Liquid Living - Social Circuits

The outline of the project was to explore how people live with water in Glasgow. My focus was on the differences and unseen similarities between the ways in which people interact around the rivers Clyde and Kelvin and how this effects their experience. My aim was for the people who used the areas to make relationships and become aware of the unique qualities of the area, through evoking emotional awareness, prolonging passing moments and create a mutual appreciation.

Social Circuits is clothing which reacts to the behaviour of it’s wearer. Each of the three garments is tailored to a specific narrative created for a persona created from key observations from research.

there are 3 items of clothing, Clyde's work suit, Kelvin's jacket and a track suit. Each works by galvanic skin response as an input, which senses and reacts to changes in the wearers skin from various stimuli which can be physical or emotional.

Clyde's Work Suit

Is woven with conductive shape memory alloy thread. When an emotional change is sensed, a non-specific shape change occurs in the clothing. The shape takes forms of polygons which are laser cut into the neoprene material.

This was in reaction to the narrative created for Clyde that she didn't realise that she had an emotional experience within the area. The shape change forces her to realise she has had an emotional change and evaluate how she feels at that moment and recognise her emotional attachment to her current experience or with specific locations. This becomes a shared, lone experience of self realisation for other people who are using, and sharing the area.

Kelvin's Jacket

is woven with conductive thread and responsive LED lights. everyday the moment passes Kelvin to say hello to a face he sees every morning. They often exchange a smile and a hello or a second glance, but the opportunity to converse is passed daily. The jacket is long, hooded and waterproof to fit with Kelvin's use of his environment on his walk to work each morning.

Kelvin interacts with the jacket as a practical object by fastening the button, which also connects the jacket's circuit and acts as a gesture to the oncoming person that you are "open". On approach patterns of light emerge in reaction to heightened emotion or interest, and the jackets then show and react to the emotional changes displayed by the wearers, who stop to talk for the first time.

new relationships can be formed from this, and the moment is prolonged and made memorable.

The Track Suits

are woven with conductive felt, which can alter it's surface along with thermochromatic inks, which change colour in response to body heat. This is about forming partnerships through a mutual activity by Clyde and Kelvin. People can partner or tag on to people's run, judging the appearance of their clothing. If someone is running similar to you, they will be exerting similar energy, heat and sweat, so the colours and texture of the clothing will be visually similar to your own. This occurs when two people might cross paths, and follow onto someone elses run which changes a routine experience.

This may lead to people taking new routes, finding new things and new people, giving meaning to their daily exercise and creating memorable events and changing how they use the area in a routine way without any real thought.

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