max und mimi
Max and Mimi are hand puppet prototypes Joe Saavedra and I made using an accelerometer (a device that measures acceleration and gravity). Max blushes when he moves closer to someone on his left, and Mimi stops flirting and lighting up her toosh when she… uh. has to bend over.
These two are my bitty babies. They’re so cute I could die.
MAX:
MIMI:
jean paul gaultier
I know I’m 100 years behind fashionistas, but i just realized Jean Paul Gaultier had a modern dance inspired spring 2009 collection. No wonder I want to buy the entire collection. The soundtrack is also ridiculously amazing.
next steps for thesis
1. Thesis statement [revised]:
In an effort to advance exploratory forms of interactive music, costume design, and modern dance techniques, I am designing a wearable dress that controls sound and screen performance settings using motions sensors that allows dancers the freedom and liberation to continue exploring and redefining modern dance.
-Though many precedents such as: Apparition, the Peony Pavilion, and Solar Ballerinas sound similar, what can make mine different from theirs?
Possible solution: design approach to the wearable
2. Observations of costume and sound in everyday landscape:
After understanding that the design of the costume can set my piece apart from several of my precedents, I then took a walk around the city and observed various costumes that associated certain sounds.
What I found were two observations:
a. costumes that I encountered everyday, all were forms of safety, security, and structure.
b. the sounds associated with these costumes almost all came from a hard or software. (a drill, a walkie talkie, scans from the grocery store and the card scan).
This made me realize how there is a connection with costume design and digital sound however, the two do not have intimate conversations with one another, but the user who interacts with them does.
3. Precedents, books I am excited about, conferences and shows I will be attending
I then researched further into elements of costume design that had an element of hard, structural and protected material look for the same design aesthetic as I had seen in my observations…
and I also dug deeper and found wearables that do make a direct connection with costume design and digital sound interaction such as:
Head Holder
Hip Disk
Wearable Forest
Finally we Hear one Another
Aerial/Knowear
Aerial/Birdie Brooch
Musical jacket *note:circa 1997. the fashion is unreal, folks.
BOOKS
I also tapped into resources which I was ridiculously excited about….
Fashionable Technology
Fashioning Technology
CONFERENCES AND SHOWS
and have even planned on attending various conferences and shows in various subject matters and themes that I find present in my project.
Fluid Hug Hug
Z Spot Now
Green: Sustainability, Significance, and Style
CONTACTS
Throughout the week, I contacted several experts in the field of wearable technology and asked what they thought would be my most difficult design challenges…
questions of which hard or software is best for use Chrisopher Lindinger
Katherine Moriwaki for additional precedents, questions on the issues and problems I may run into for next semester, etc.
contacts for Costume Designers in the Parsons Fashion Design School or at FIT are to be added on a future date.
4. Build user scenario
I then created a user scenario to give myself a sense of what it is I was exactly wanting my users to experience and what kind of visual presence my wearable tool may have.
5. Technical prototype
And as my ideas projected.. I built a stronger technical prototype that has now added a visual element. Through motion readings, the patch now also creates color changes, in addition to controlling the frequencies and amplitudes of audio before.
