I worked on the background while Vanessa worked on the characters!
Background Assets:
Sketches:
Living room (Process)
Originally gonna skip the sketch so I made this but it was very very geometric and lack planning / detail so i did a sketch in the end (see above)
Still not done yet on the right side.
Detailed view.
Bathroom (Process):
Still not done yet.
Kitchen (process):
Also not done yet!
Characters (done by Van)
UPDATE: These are photos and notes from the visit to the wall.
Forgive the quality as I just quickly did a screenshot of the images as they are too big size for OSS to load 🙁
I kinda liked how the screen converts the linework into thin pixels, kinda have an effect. The scale also looked alright but the colours are very very bright.
So here are our notes on improvements:
Desaturate and darken red
Brighten blue
Scale maybe try to make it smaller
More textures and shadows, less solid colours
Try control the colours more, maybe colour-code certain areas (eg. bathroom = more blue, living room = more yellow, etc)
Thanks fo reading! For reward, here’s Celine posing with our character! Beep!
There will be 3 panels, the kitchen, the living room, and the bathroom. All 3 backgrounds will scroll to the right at their own speeds. Between each panels is a particle effect that is some kind of portal.
The house is filled with party goers which is actually just a few same people wearing different outfits doing different random things that is absurd and funny. The objects and the people will be animated.
The wall reaches the end of the artwork and all the people will look at the observer, out of the fourth wall. At this point, they realised that they are being watched, so the wave function collapses and the superposition becomes a fixed state, which in this case is the characters waving at the audience. The screen then turns off with a old school TV screen switch off effect together with some static.
Use processing or something to create the light streaks
see if can make the jellyfishes, or just use video. (will it be allowed?)
See the vibe of it. after trying once
Plan further and then add more interactive elements.
Sound is important.
can the environment change on its own via user’s subconscious input? eg. heartrate.
VPT8 for projection mapping
Other things I wrote last time:
“Doesnt demand too much of one’s curiosity, but has a life of its own. It is alive on its own, unpredictable in its way of life, but is predictable in the larger scale, making it useful staying in our peripheral vision, undistracting.”
In the future, global warming desertified most lands on Earth. Humans continue to survive in overheated cities that are covered in dust. Humans wear fully-covered suits to adapt to the dusty and hot environment, while using wearable technology to help them detect and react to the changes in environment.
[INSERT COOL NAME HERE] is a jumpsuit that uses modular pieces of wearable technology to adapted to the hot and dusty environment.
The jumpsuit offers a decent protection through the light, breathable fabric and have enlarged sleeves that allow air in. Environment sensors (Envirosensor) are worn on the arm to track the temperature and pollution levels around the user. Other wearable parts will read the sensors’ data and react according to the changes in the environment. This offers the user a functional and stylish way of navigating through this dystopian world.
Design sketch /draft (Rough)
One of my first few sketchesfurther developmentfurther development + stylingvectorising so I can create the shapes betterturns out to be super ugly so I reverted back to papernew look with scarf and new design for envirosensor. Note: The colouring is just for me to visualise the separate parts and is not the actual colour of the garment.
This was when my design was starting to take shape. With some more sketches come these:
Did some sketches of body proportions and photocopied many pieces to start mass sketching.
An even earlier sketch, wayyyyy before I changed the form into something less cyberpunk.
One of the few who can survive making it here on OSS HAHAHA its ugly.
After a few rounds of sketches, I came up with this design. Brown main colour, nylon translucent on the areas that will be attached with tech. But I didn’t really like it still.
Colour testing after visiting Chinatown’s fabric shops and discovering some sick materials. I think I’ll visit again as I still don’t like the colours here. This point was also me discovering a new form which includes the ‘winged’ look. Just some extra flabs on the sleeves on the arms and legs. I liked it. Looks futuristic, functional, and isn’t too weird or flashy.
Added some parts to the coloured piece. Still don’t like the form.
One proper drawing of the new design where I smoothed out the flabs so it looks less popping out.
Another sketch to show the different parts. Again, you can see the Illuminator is erased. Here is also where I discovered a new form for the Envirosensors. I didn’t like the puffy parts of the old sensors cos it looked out of place. I basically just took 2 different designs and mashed them together. I took a step back and just use one of the reference instead and got this. On the right side you acn also see me trying to separate both sensors to different forms so they are more intuitive to know. (the wavy striped one is for temperature, while the coral-like one with holes is for pollutant)
Was kinda trying out sketching the new parts, adding colour to just make them come out a bit more. Still don’t like the Illuminators.
Then I went to Jurong Point for my dental appointment….
This magic happened:
My brain just worked. I drew a new figure. Then for the tech, I simplified the whole Illuminator to just perform its original function: To just light up. The envirosensors have a more defined form and looks like something I can make since I can visualise it. I added a cape (which was an idea I kept thinking about) and a hoodie to complete the look. (Thanks to Jannah for suggesting hoodie!)
So far that’s what I have for sketches. I’ll update with more sketches on the tech and more views and colours for the garment. Hopefully I’ll do what I say I’ll do………
How your design is interacting?
Interaction with data: The data from the sensor changes the LED colours, as well as send signals to the other parts to react according to set data
Interaction with user: The mask uses a pressure sensor to fit itself snug onto the user without pushing onto the user too much.
Interaction between parts: From the data, the parts react accordingly.
ELECTRONICS NEEDED:
Arduino nano / lilypad x
Temperature sensor x1 (optional)
Pollution sensor x1 (optional)
Humidity sensor x1 (optional)
Light sensor x1 (optional)
LED strip m
conductive thread (many)
servo motors x4 or 6
buttons x (for simulations)
battery packs (9v) x
Pressure sensor x1
I’ll work out the individual electronics uses next post.
Focuses on next few posts:
Tech: All the different parts, sketches, the actual tech I’m gonna use, and choice + purchase + etc., prototypes (maybe)
Material: All the different material choices, colours, links for purchase (or documentations of the locations),
Prototypes: drafting paper to muslin to actual materials. Body measurements. Testing and testing…
I’ve read up on materials to wear on hot and dry weather, which is like the desert. Cotton, Linen and Rayon works well for my concept. Polyester is also a possible choice (conceptually) as it is breathable, although not recommended for “summer weather”.
Looking into nomad dressing, I was also curious why they wear layers and layers of fabric. Turns out, they do this to prevent water-loss. They use light fabric like cotton, that are lighter in colour so as to reflect the sun rays. The layers help them to keep moisture to their body, slowing down the rate of evaporation. Also, covering the body as much as they can helps a lot in keeping cool.
For concept…
I need to type to think, so let me just write freely about my ideas.
New narrative to justify my new style:
In the future, with desertification, cities and citizens adapt. Citizens now dress to protect themselves from the elements while in the city. This makes it necessary for them to have lighting on themselves to self-express and to also allow themselves to be seen. Reflective and holographic clothings makes people stand out more. The need for sensors to help them sense their environment is important as they have to take shelter if it gets too hot or too dusty. There is a need to collect water from the dry air, so some have adaptations that collects moisture from the air as they move. ( https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2019/11/could-desert-beetle-help-humans-harvest-water-thin-air )
I need to start sketching now cos I keep changing my idea. But at least I’m happy that I’m moving away from the clunky sci-fi ripoff I’ve been doing. I’m so glad that we did the biomimicry exercise!
So here’s my moodboard, again. Updated. Finalised. I’m not gonna update anymore or else I’ll be super stuck.
Jumpsuit — The idea is to have a full-body cover that can protect one from the elements. It has to be light and airy. I’ll wire it up with conductive thread to connect the different pieces together. I’m also making it greyscale so I can focus on the material rather than the colours.
The reason why I want to create different pieces is because I always thought about the feasibility with wearable electronics. If I can’t wash my clothes, then what’s the point of wearing them? Also, I want to keep this jumpsuit after the mod so I can use it hehehehehe so yep.
The respirator will be an organic armour-like piece made with plastic-like material (probably). The reason for plastic is for it to be clean as it’s attached to a mask.
The envirosensor wasn’t much looked into previously as I thought it was going to be just an armguard thing. But I’m very inspired by the Warframe character armour on the left and thought about beetles (and also Golden Experience from JoJo :P). I kept looking and though that it will go well with the airbag looking thing, which I plan on using for the interface.
The illuminator will now be more organic and flowy. Kinda origami-like also. I want to make it blend well with the garment, not stand out too much. It should look like it’s part of the garment.
The armour is a last-minute add-on, which I think I won’t have time to do, but Ill still put it here. It’s basically a geometric, plated outer covering for the jumpsuit. Was thinking the tech for this will be for temperature : if it’s too warm, it will open up. But it’s too much to handle for me so I’ll probably not touch it.
I was previously confused with this. I wanted my garment to have holographic-like properties, but I don’t know how to apply them. After looking at beetles, I realised their wings look like this material. So I think I will have this material as a cape. I will also try to apply this biomimicry x tech idea where you can add bumps to the surface of a hydrophobic material, and then coat the tip with a hydrophilic material to make it able to collect dew from fog. This works for my desert concept as people need water.
OKAY. So for now, enough with research. I have enough materials to justify my project, and I need to spend more time moving forward. Tomorrow and the next few days, I’ll go out to look at materials and prototype. I’ll also sketch more throughout the days.
AH UPDATE: ACTUALLY MAY NEED TO THINK ABOUT HAT AND EYEWEAR BUT SEE HOW……… :’)
Here’s my blabber on what I feel about the theme of my concept. This isn’t fully backed by my research, but most of the information are inference from those research.
In the information age, we are constantly bombarded with information and as such we need to find ways to sieve out information we need from all the other clunks that we should dismiss. This trains our mind to shorten our attention span over time as it is much more efficient to look through many sources of information rather than to focus just on one.
Personally, I’ve been almost diagnosed with ADHD when I was younger. I am always fidgety and easily distracted. Yes that could have been an excuse for me to justify being lazy, but I think my mind is kinda on overdrive sometimes, especially when I was younger. This, together with my thoughts on the information age, is (I feel) the reason why I need white noise to focus.
There is a need for more inflow of information to keep the task in check. This information usually has to come from some form of entertainment. A moving screen, some sounds from a podcast, music, or white noise. These are ideal (provided if they don’t feed new information that might interest the user to listen or watch) as they provide entertainment which are neither too little or too much information. Some of these information help give us brief distractions for us to satisfy the distraction-seeking part of the brain. Some of the ways we process such information are already so imbued in us that we just consume them subconsciously. Example, listening to music we are familiar with (or even unfamiliar with which we intend to just hear) allows us to consume the information automatically without us needing to put in energy. It occupies our information (or distraction)-seeking part of the brain and helps us to stay focused on the main task.
I would like to think of this as a form of multi-tasking. We are still able to process information on both sides, just that one is done by a more “automatic” or “subconscious” part of the brain.
MORE RESEARCH…
According to https://www.wired.co.uk/article/brain-distraction-procrastination-science , it is part of our biology that we get distracted. We get sudden sharp rise in attention at certain points, and then we have our in between distraction that we need. This is also related to our brain’s natural rhythm and I think there is also a co-relation with our circadian rhythm, like how certain times its easy to get in zone, while sometimes I’m just all fidgety.
To get in the zone, we need to be at least somewhat familiar with it as we need it to be done subconsciously. Getting into the zone is also emotional. One needs to be passionate about the subject.
Find the right environment. Figure out which types of environments are most conducive to finding your flow, and work them in whenever possible. I know, for example, that a coffee shop will help me start writing much more easily than sitting in an office. A good friend absolutely swears by airplanes. The notion of the environment being important applies equally in athletic endeavours: the home field advantage is well-known, but I’ve spoken to athletes who find that playing in away settings delivers them a huge mental advantage — they lose themselves in a feeling of “them against the entire stadium.” Different people need different things. Learn what they are for you.
This quote is directly taken from https://hbr.org/2012/03/how-to-get-into-your-zone . I think this is where I come in. To create the best environment to work in.
More research suggests that technology isn’t the problem of distraction, but is just a good outlet: https://www.nirandfar.com/technology-addiction-video/
CONCEPT
Okay, so I think I have a pretty good idea on what I want to do for the Interactive Environment. It’s gonna be some kind of object that can transform a room. This object has sound, smell, and projections, both which are adjustable by the user. It should also be portable.
I want to immerse the user in the state of the ‘zone’. With that, I need some ideas of how people get in their zone. For me, it’s an environment that I can’t relax, but also not one that I am too stressed in. It’s like being in a cafe. But cafes are expensive. How do we build a cafe environment in an inexpensive way?
Immersion through sight, sound, smell, taste
Sight: projection on non-distracting scenery (eg. lo-fi hiphop to study to, waneella, relaxing videos, etc)
Smell: Coffee or whatever stimulating smells
Sound: Soundscape + their favourite tunes to study to
Occasional but mostly random breaks
Pleasant distracting content eg:
Sight: cartoon snippets / advertisements
Sound: comedy
Smell: ?
EXECUTION
I was inspired by a few artists’ works. Here they are:
James Turrell – Wedgeworks (2011) http://jamesturrell.com/work/type/wedgework/
James Turrell – Magnatron Series (2003) http://jamesturrell.com/work/type/magnatron-series/
I stumbled upon these videos that are meant for cats to watch:
Then it became these kind of videos:
I started diving into more videos and discovered that the chill playlists are right — they knew what were relaxing to watch.
I also found that aquariums and floaty things (AKA jellyfishes) are relaxing to watch too.
I also found bizarre but interesting vapourwave compilations like these that are filled with retro ads:
I just had to look up more
Theres also streams of live music content like this:
Some cool stuffs but I think is distracting:
I think seeing stuffs float around and moving landscapes are really working. Rather than the advertisements or human / animal movements.
OKAY
So the idea is to have a portable projection + sound + smell machine that enables a user to be immersed in a space they are in. The projection is like a window to a relaxing visual world that one can focus in, while studying sound can be mixed with their favourite music playlist of their choice. The smell part I’m not sure yet but I’ll think about it. I’ll also think about whether to use videos or light streaks. In between, there will be random “commercial breaks” that allow the user to unwind. Everything must be controllable by the user.
The form will be taking inspiration from Apparatum. The effect will be similar to Vadim Fishkin’s Choose Your Day and Speedy Day. James Turrell’s aesthetics and immersive environments will also be considered.
If need be, I’ll create a room, or maybe setup in Truss Room so I will have more control. I can control the room’s brightness too!
Biomimicry in Fashion sees a future of clothings where it is not about machine-human hybrid (aka cyborgs) but about reconnecting with nature, which can be much more sustainable and beautiful. As fashion is the second most polluting industry on the planet (after oil industry), biomimicry is also getting recognition from luxury brands that are trying to find ways to be more environmentally friendly.
Here are some of my own hand-picked examples of biomimicry that I think fits well with the class!
PROSTHETICS
This tentacle-like prosthetics is simple and functional, making it an inexpensive and easy-to-use alternative to prosthetics. It serves the basic function of gripping, which is effective. Another take on this design is the Vine Arm, which is more about the aesthetics and users’ self expression rather than its function.
“I want to change the way society perceives disability – showing disability can be cool, fashionable, beautiful and powerful… it’s like my body is a canvas and when wearing an Alternative Limb, I become the art” – Kelly Knox
MATERIAL
Bolt Thread is a materials innovation company that uses biomimicry to create sustainable threads used in garments.
Mylo™ is a material made from mycelium where the team carefully control the mycelium’s growth conditions to produce a mycelial mat that can be cured and tanned into a soft, supple material that looks and feels like leather.
FASHUN
THE UNSEEN – Air
This garment is inspired by the way chameleon uses their skin to react to their environment. The garment changes based on environmental factors around the wearer, including temperatures, UV rays, wind, humidity, pollution.
SOME THOUGHTS…
After reading up and looking at examples, I realised how we forget nature as a source of inspiration rather than other existing products out there that we are just rehashing over and over again. Nature is incredible, and it is something that we need to remind ourselves when coming up with projects in future.
“Future bio-infused garments will become the second layer of skin, almost like a protective mesh that reacts through form and space, as dictated by the changing environmental conditions and even the social surroundings…”
This quote kinda inspired me to think further for my project. What if tech in the future isn’t like what people used to imagine, but more organic and bound to our bodies like a second skin? I will keep this in mind.
Update: After biomimicry research critique, I kinda wanna change some of the elements in my design to make them more sustainable rather than just copying a certain retro-futuristic style (even though I love it).
Also: I REALISED I NEVER EDIT THE KEYWORDS PART SO IM GONNA WORK ON THAT.
Did some sketches of body proportions and photocopied many pieces to start mass sketching.
An even earlier sketch, wayyyyy before I changed the form into something less cyberpunk.
One of the few who can survive making it here on OSS HAHAHA its ugly.
After a few rounds of sketches, I came up with this design. Brown main colour, nylon translucent on the areas that will be attached with tech. But I didn’t really like it still.
Colour testing after visiting Chinatown’s fabric shops and discovering some sick materials. I think I’ll visit again as I still don’t like the colours here. This point was also me discovering a new form which includes the ‘winged’ look. Just some extra flabs on the sleeves on the arms and legs. I liked it. Looks futuristic, functional, and isn’t too weird or flashy.
