Instructor: Diana Agrest
Soft Armor is a wearable body contraption, a transformative proposal that arose from a 4-part investigation on the subject of body. The project documents my process of approaching this deeply psychologically ingrained subject through its many facets, from speculative forms, to ways of formation including tangible forces and psychological constructs.
[1] Mythology: Speculation & Form
[2] Morphology: Restriction & Formation
[3] Sensory Topography
[4] Soft Armor, Tactile Skin
As the final stage of this investigation, Soft Armor proposes an alternative way to express through the skin – a layer of the body that is often perceived as delicate and fragile; but as an interface between the body and the external, the skin is also most pliable and remains vigilant to the environment. The wearable will become an apparatus that emphasizes the tactility of skin. Each piece corresponds with a specific area of the body: head piece symbolizes the gazing of eyes, body piece the palpitation of heart, and shoulder piece the tension of muscles. Lined with electromagnetic sensors, the layers react to external forces as they come into proximity; the ribbed fabric then changes its appearance and density.
Jingqi Kay Liu 