Wear Clothes Made Out of Your Personal Data and Emotions

Made-to-order takes on a whole new meaning with Abstract_. These clothes are actually crafted from your own emotions and experiences. Danish design students Bjørn Karmann (interaction), Kristine Boesen (textiles) and Julie Helles Eriksen (fashion) have come up with a concept where they thread your feelings into unique ready-to-wear garments. Type a story about anything—your best friend, favourite food, first pet—and data gained from the pace of your keystrokes combined with facial recognition data picked up via webcam is translated into a one-off patterned material. The material is then sewn into a garment of your choosing—sweaters, skirts and more. While it all seems a bit sci-fi, at the basis of the concept is a deep concern for human nature. The garment shapes even reflect human error, featuring uneven button holes and asymmetrical cuts. We caught up with the designers, who are currently presenting the Abstract_ concept at Copenhagen Fashion Week.

The Creators Project: Can you tell us a bit about the idea behind Abstract_?

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Julie Helles Eriksen: We want to connect customers with the clothes they buy so that they’ll care more about them and use them for a longer time. We live in a society with a growing interest for unique and personalised products, and we search for authentic experiences. We want to give customers an experience where they’re part of the design process and where they can express their unique story through the clothes they wear.

How exactly do you involve your customers?

Julie: We generate patterns from their own personal stories. The web shop analyses what the customer writes and how it’s written. The webcam analyses the customer’s facial expression. This personal data is transformed into a unique pattern, we then make this unique pattern into a unique garment.

Your focus is on the individual and personal; is Abstract_ a response to the rise of fast fashion and global retail giants?

Julie: I think we have a big problem today with how clothing is produced and used. I see a disconnection between the customer and the clothes they buy because a lot of the time clothes are used a couple of times and then left in the closet or thrown out. To change this we need better quality and a connection with the customer. With Abstract_ we want to design and produce clothes that people care about and use until they’re worn out. The clothes will be produced on demand, so we’ll never end up overproducing. A sustainable point of view was definitely in our minds.

How does it work on a technological level?

Bjørn Karmann: To create the pattern we use three data sets and a responsive grid. The grid is made out of 26 columns; every column represents a letter from the alphabet. So the first column is A, the next is B, so on. The first data is collected out of the story itself. When writing a word—for example, ‘abstract’—the program generates ‘blocks’ in the columns, in the position of A,B,C,R,T and S. Every vertical line is now a word image; a story of 100 words generates 100 lines of pattern. The second data set is collected by tracking your face over webcam, which controls the colour of the “blocks”. An algorithm tries to figure out if you are happy, sad, surprised, angry, neutral or even scared. For example, if you show a happy face while writing the story a warm colour is generated. The third data set is collected by analysing the rhythm of the keyboard while you’re typing. If you write slowly, quickly or take a break, this will show in the pattern too. The longer time between keystrokes, the wider the “blocks” get. But it’s not that simple! The columns change width in response to the written word, and the next word will have an effect on the last, giving the patterns a dynamic and organic flow. All of this happens in real time, and gives you direct feedback about how the pattern will look while you’re typing.

Abstract_ from Bjørn Karmann on Vimeo.

Amazing. What are your backgrounds to have come up with such a wild concept?

Julie: All three of us are from the Kolding School of Design in Denmark and Abstract_ is our bachelor project.

We’ve seen big brands like Diane Von Furstenberg collaborate with Google Glass, but it seems like there’s still a lot of uncharted territory here. What are your thoughts about the intersection between technology and fashion?

Julie: I think it’s so exciting. I believe that it’s only started and we will see a lot more in the future. There are so many possibilities in combing the two. It is often said that everything in fashion has already been seen, but with combining fashion and technology there is a whole new world…

Find out more about about Abstract_ here and check out each designers respective website for further info: Bjørn Karmann, Kristine Boesen and Julie Helles Eriksen.

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