In 2015, I managed an experimental research group with Rhode Island School of Design and Nike to examine THE FUTURE OF SKIN. This cross-disciplinary research group collaboratively explored, discussed and developed new insights into ‘Skin’s’ aesthetic, expressive, technical, and metaphorical qualities, serving as a premise for new applications and ways of understanding our skin in future contexts.
The book pictured here represents the consolidation of the 14-weeks’ findings, narrative processes and responsive material explorations for which participants imagined scenarios 50-100 years in the future aiming to understand and possibly forecast a world we might be designing responses to in years to come.
Graphic Design: Sarah Rainwater.
Intro: As both an expressive and functional material, skin offers a unique medium through which to speculate on the evolving relationship between nature, technology, and culture. From glazes in ceramics, layers in glass, diaphanous membranes in sculpture, to structural enclosures and dynamic sensory surfaces in architecture and design, this fragile yet highly resilient membrane is an infinitely rich source for asking new questions about how we live, in NIKE’s case– perform, and how we can imagine new possibilities for the future.
presentation shots and close ups of some material experimentations