1.0 | UX OF SKIN
Brief: Design a way to express the skin/world interface. Within a 2-week period, we required to make a physical model from rapidly generated experimental ideas, in order to prototype and test a defined concept.
Team: Eric Dodd, Manali Panchal, Kate Chernysheva.
During the first week, we started to understand the basic functions of the integument (outer protective layer) that includes sensory functions, overlapping layers, cultural and physical aspects. We developed our idea of touch and informational functionality and skin capability.
We began our individual thinking along the path of execution of our conceptual ideas into physical form. After getting different skin attributes and reading some research, I started to surface my ideas and began to explore my own skin with materials.
Here are some thoughts explored. A few of them were from recent past activities which came to my mind.
What is the physical emotion based on the idea of touch and skin?
My thought went for the most part with layers covering not only humans but fruits and vegetable skins and other different materials that are similar to the skin. I found myself with a few ideas about food products and their texture that we could experiment with.
After a discussion in person at Hyde Park (the only spot we could meet in a pandemic) with my group, we came up with an idea to reveal the journey of texture. We thought of creating a mystery box and enhancing understanding of touch by removal of vision and increasing gastronomic pleasures.
As moving forward with advances in ideation and feedback in class from students and our faculty. We came to a conclusion that it is being very basic in a way to give an experience or understanding of the skin. It was a moment of unclarity. We again took some time with ourselves and came back to a group discussion to a fresh idea with a fresh mindset.
We started to stir up more ideas with our research and found another way to express the skin interface.
Skin a protective barrier for internal body system and outside world.
Witnessing at the very basic aspect of SENSE OF TOUCH, I did a research on Somato Sensory System - Sense of Touch - Thermoreceptors- Thermochromatic effect
Mental Mapping & Contextual Understanding.
SKIN → SOMATOSENSORY SYSTEM | THERMORECEPTORS → INFORMATION TO BRAIN
With more and more group discussions, we ended up looking at touch, skin hunger and signs in humans like aggressive behaviour, body image issues, external appearance and internal wellbeing over and above.
Proceeding with gained outcomes we started with our next step to prototype our idea into a physical model.
1.1 | UX OF SKIN | Final Week
Our initial concept was to combine our research and examine the healing power of touch. Our idea revolved around the tactile sensation and the temperature, which people can experience.
The concept of a prototype.
We had the idea of creating a blanket for our classmates to experience. As a researcher on ways to show what was in our minds, Kate my teammate gave a brilliant idea of thermal paint.
Plan A~
We intend to create a blanket that will be painted with thermo-chromatic paint, heat-sensitive paints that indicate this change in colour when exposed to a certain temperature. Our other prototype to experience the same was to make a box of hands willing to touch and reveal a sense of comfort.
As we were on our last stage to complete our prototype functioning, we were awaited with the delivery of thermal paint to arrive. Unfortunately, our paints were not delivered in time and we developed a rescue plan to highlight our idea.
Plan B ~
We used LED lights for reacting when you touch the coverage surface.
Working of Prototype
Our classmates experiencing the prototype.
We have focused on how people feel about touch, how do they interact with similar surface. I personally felt that while experiencing the ecosystem we live in, we not only just use our outermost layer to sense. The skin is a medium to bring the sensation to our mind and simultaneously our inner body system also reacts to it.
Countless studies prove the necessity of social and emotional touch, both of which, by releasing oxytocin, boost the immune system and lower the heart rate.
“Touch is the first emotionally meaningful sense to appear when you’re born,” and the last to go before you die. (Dr. Katalin M. Gothard)
Especially observing in the current pandemic scenario for people who live alone, lockdown means ‘touch starvation’ as we go days without hugs, handshakes or other contact.
The elderly lose their vision, their hearing, their balance. But they don’t lose touch.
Looking at this experience and thinking about how the elderly lose their vision, their hearing, their balance. But they don’t lose touch. If we take this experiment further to making a group of people experience. It can be done with more layers in a way people can feel their freedom and the feeling of beignet touch.
Outcomes
After discussing with the class and our professor we learnt that the experience was solving our brief of getting people involved through their touch and creating an impression in their heads. We talked about how we can make this experience available to the largest audience.
In addition, Tatiana our classmate said that she liked the idea of using light to be a response factor more than chromatic painting. We noticed how we can incorporate more than two kinds of interaction for the temp re-touch concept.
Bibliography
https://news.arizona.edu/story/uncovering-mind-body-connection-touch
https://www.tweaktown.com/news/68293/researchers-made-artificial-human-skin-covers-smartphone/amp.htmlhttps://brightthemag.com/fair-but-not-so-lovely-indias-obsession-with-skin-whitening-beauty-body-image-bleaching-4d6ba9c9743d