The 3rd Smart Textiles Salon will take place in Ghent, Belgium on 3 –6 June, 2013. The programme of the Salon consists of two parts. The first part includes lectures and a few workshops where the participants will make their own smart textile products. It is important to note that designer Evelyn Lebis, MA-graduate from Swedish School of Textiles 2011, will support workshops of Riccardo Marchesi (Plug and Wear).

The second part is an exhibition where new smart textile objects will be shown. 2012-graduate Barbro Scholz will exhibit her thesis project Your Balance during the second part of the Salon.

I’m looking forward to attend workshops and if needed  to help Barbro with organizing her objects for the exhibition. I am curious about new smart textiles project and can hardly wait to meet friends from Arcintex network.

The official site of  the Smart Textiles Salon  http://www.smarttextilessalon.com/

Tatiana Krupinina

]]> http://www.stdl.se/?feed=rss2&p=2895 0 http://www.stdl.se/?p=2897&utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=irreversibel-dynamic-textile-patterns http://www.stdl.se/?p=2897#comments Tue, 21 May 2013 15:48:20 +0000 LW http://www.stdl.se/?p=2897 Colors to be crafted in the Finnish Arkipelag summer 2013

Textile expressions are traditionally crafted and produced to keep a given expression during their life cycle; a floral pattern is supposed to keep its flowers. However, things are changing. In my thesis work Designing Dynamic Textile Patterns the making of textile patterns and expressions aimed to change over time is examined. A carpet that lights up when walked upon, a bag that changes expression when some one call you, and an apron that is striped and changes into a checked pattern are some previous examples of dynamic textile patterns. Later I have started to look at natural dyes in relation to create dynamic irreversible textile patterns as seen in the project with the work title “a textile underwater garden” (www.stdl.se).

In my textile experiments with plant-dye, I dye without mordant (meaning no added chemical or salts). This is because I don’t want to influence on the light/color fastness of the color, more the other way around actually, I want to create and advantage a visible color ”change” in my textiles.

From this perspective I creates textile expressions that changes over time, creating textiles without a final expression and look, in a traditional manner. In this project the textile is crafted to show a changing expression evolving over time. By plant dyeing with ocean water and local plants I want to give ”life to” textile expressions by nature, rather than to picture nature.

Linda Worbin

I am interested in national identities as a base for developing smart textiles.

I learn traditional embroidering techniques in order to combine them with new materials and create a new aesthetics for smart textiles.

I strive to create a new approach for developing smart textiles. My main idea is to use the investigation of national identity as a base for developing smart textiles. Considering traditional textiles as a source of information about the socio-historical context wherein they were produced, I try to reproduce this information in smart textiles.  I construct national ideal types and capture them in textiles.

The project “Russia: A nation of miracle believers” is an example of developed approach.

The object is a sham miracle. It is a winding-sheet (an epitaphios) that is often encountered in Christian Orthodox Church. The constructed miracle points the instrumental use of religion in modern Russia. It shows the banality of magic.

The special feature of my “miraculous” piece is to produce sound interactions with a viewer. My piece contains embedded light dependent resistors (LDR) that sense light intensity and reproduces a sound system.  When a viewer comes close to the epitaphios, the light falling on the LDR gets less intense due to the viewer’s shade and the epitaphios starts to produce sound. The possibility to produce sound is one of the most spectacular possibilities of smart textiles and the best way to express the idea of the miraculous.

My project is mainly based on the traditional flat metal stitching technique. In order to make flat metal stitching, the thread should be placed on the front side of the fabric in adjacent vertical rows and fixed with yarn cross-stitches. Each of the geometrical varieties has its own name – “feather”, “cutting”, “building”, “berry”, etc.

This technique is perfect for working with conductive treads. Mostly, the treads are fragile or stiff and the best way to attach them to the fabric is to fix them with supporting thread.

Also for the final object I made a conductive chenille cord the best example of combination traditional methods with new materials.

In order to watch the video, please check it out on

RUSSIA: A NATION OF MIRACLE BELIEVERS

Photo 1,2 The epitaphios (Photographer: Tatiana Krupinina, Jan Berg)

Photo 3 Flat metal stitching (Photographer: Tatiana Krupinina)

Photo 4 The conductive cord (Photographer: Tatiana Krupinina)

Persson, A., 2013. Stretching Loops – Exploring interactive textiles expressing Imitation for recording and replaying interactions. In: Crafting the Future, 10th European Academy of Design Conference. Göteborg, Sweden 17-19 April 2013.

Persson, Anna. 2013. Exploring textiles as materials for interaction design. PhD thesis. The Swedish School of Textiles, University of Borås.

Artist Statement
The installation I come from… highlights the present conditions of foreign people and their struggle to integrate and exist in an unwelcomingly welcoming host country/society.
This global issue is deeply permeated into our society and is an inconvenient truth for the government and public alike as it requires us to take an honest and deep look within ourselves – it is no longer about “others” but about “us”. Through this work, I would once again like to highlight the political, social and cultural environment surrounding this issue and bring it up to discussion, because I believe it is important to talk about it no matter how uncomfortable and awkward it may be.
This work is the result of a process of reflection on my personal experiences as well as the experiences of those in similar situations who have felt the seed of rejection taking root deep in their hearts. A lack of platforms for such discussions has meant people have not been able to express concerns and initiate dialogues to achieve better understanding, reconciliation and healing. This piece gives voice to a silent longing to be accepted for whom one is rather than to be identified by one’s nationality and it also makes visible the unseen pain that is all too present around us. It was impossible to talk about the different nuances of pain I have experienced as a foreigner, but creating this installation has started to shed some light on this situation.

The installation is exhibited with the following quote:
“ His foreignness had a peculiar and indelible stamp. At last people became used to see him, but they never became used to him.”
Joseph Conrad, from the book Amy Foster

The piece was exhibited at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Borås, Sweden, between March 8th and May 5th, 2012

Related links:
vimeo.com/50331306
youtube.com/watch?v=Oy3QFuFNxOQ

Researcher: Marjan Kooroshnia

In order to watch a movie, please check it out in

Vimeo: https://vimeo.com/50324533

Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lYqJV1Ynv9g

ArcInTex – network 25th february to 1st March 2013

www.arcintex.se

Marjan Kooroshnia and Linda Worbin from The Swedish School of Textiles gave a Thermal Printing workshop using silk screen with thermochromic print, participants did designing and print dynamic textile patterns (using both external and integrated heat elements to activate dynamic textile patterns).

Ramyah Gowrishankar from Aalto University gave a e-embroidery workshop and Vanja Valencak from Aalto University gave a 3D printing workshop.

This one and half days workshop is an introduction to E-Textiles materials and techniques for fashion and textile design students. E-textiles, also known as electronic textiles or smart textiles, are fabrics that enable computing, digital components, and electronics to be embedded in them.* The course starts with short lecture about current E-Textiles projects in art and design field. Students will be introduced to different kinds of conductive textile materials and its use in E-textiles projects. The following hands-on workshop explores the use of “light” in textiles and fashion projects. We will look into different kinds of light source technologies, various kinds of diffuse/ reflection techniques, interaction possibilities with textile sensors.. so on. In this workshop, we will especially focus on LED (Light Emitting Diode) as a simple light source technology to come up with hands-on experiments to explore its expression possibilities.

Date: November 15th, 16th, 2012
Location: T473, The Swedish School of Textiles
Participants: BA and MA students from Textile and Fashion design
Lecturer: Mika Satomi

Workshop Day 1:
On the first day, students were introduced to various kinds of e-textiles project from fashion, textile and art field.
Then they were introduced to e-textiles materials and simple LED circuit schematics to create their own e-textiles circuit using e-broidery technique.

Workshop Day 2:
On the second day, students were introduced to different kinds of expression examples with lights, such as defuse, reflect, shadow and interaction. They formed 5 groups to work on their own expression experiments with lights. Here are some of the outcome.

Group1:
This group was interested in the shape of reflection on different materials.

Their project idea is to make a light necklace that changes the light as the wearer moves.
They have used conductive thread to make pompom that hangs from the tip of the necklace working as contact sensor.


They have used conductive fabric as electrical connection on thin stripe of fabric. LED is placed on the side way on the reflective material to create long casting light.

Group2:
Group2 worked with the idea of reflecting light and semi transparent fabric.

They have worked with SMD LED to make the embedded light source circuit. To work with subtle expression of light, they had to find a dark space in the room.

The pleating creates an additional expression to the light.
Further investigation on pleating techniques and expression will probably bring very interesting result.

Group 3:
Group 3 looked at the defusing property of light and how they can control them.

They have experiment with spacing the light source and reflecting them back.

With combination, they have achieved this very soft light that illuminates the segment of the folded fabric

They made tow separate circuit that turns on/off with button

and here is the outcome

Group 4:
Group 4 made a super hero neck warmer (protector?) with light. They experimented with colored light and defuse material in wearable context. They have used thick foam to space the light from the defusing material and also to achieve a stable placement on body.
The circuit included two different color light with a button, making it a bit complicated to connect.

The button controls the amount of light on the piece.

Group 5:
This group worked with the idea of wearing light as part of a garment. They have experimented with two ideas, reflecting the light through slit, and diffusing light with textured textile to give a texture and color to the light.

They have used smocking technique to give a space between the light source and the covering fabric. Even though they have used just white LED, they could achieve red and blue light using colored textiles.

Here is the outcome

more picture on STDL flickr

Laminating textiles between layers of glass.

We want to explore by design both traditional and smart textiles, in knitted and woven designs. The project investigates different spatial expressions using different dichotomies like:

Diffusing – Blocking

Transparent – Opaque

Contrast – Shade

Color – Colorless

Reflective – Dull

Unit – Repeat

Static – Dynamic

Project initiated by:

Delia Dumitrescu

Linda Worbin

Materials: Bobbin-Lace of: Monofilament, Silver-Thread, and Bekinox-Thread; Magnets.

1,2,3 Scenario Pictures, Overview Sensors (photographer Jan Berg)
4,5,6 armsensor, shouldersensor, kneesensor
7 balance graph

Barbro Scholz
barbro[at]barbroscholz.de