Dimensions of tactile perception

2021
Jacquard weaving
A series of woven textile samples

As part of the Master of Arts thesis, I studied which kinds of textile surfaces humans can identify through touch and explored these dimensions through weaving, resulting in a series of textile samples. Together and separated, the materials and woven structures strive to create multi-sensory, touchable worlds. My interest in the interaction between the human body and materials inspired the design process.

Tactile perception of materials can be divided into five psychophysical dimensions: temperature (warm/cold), hardness (hard/soft), friction (moist/dry and sticky/slippery), macro and fine roughness. Based on this, I examined the woven structures and materials supporting the different dimensions of touch by creating woven samples with various haptic surfaces, and textural and material combinations.

The design process incorporated body and movement. The tacit knowledge and the haptic feelings used to evaluate the surfaces were grounded in first-person somatic reflection and experience. I observed how my hand moves on the fabric: Does the surface lure me to stroke, press, or tickle it? When it comes to the thick sample with wadding, I noticed my hands go in the tiny holes that the warp creates when stitching the layers together; the soft and thick ones lured my hands to press them, while the flexible ones lured me to stretch them.

The texture and tactile properties of woven fabrics are determined by yarn materials, weave structures, and patterns. Varying textile surfaces were created with different combinations of these. Three-dimensional surfaces were created using multi-layered structures and wadding materials, as well as material combinations where two or more yarn materials behave differently when steamed or felted. Hairy surfaces were created using structures with long weft floats. Depending on the material choices, such structures resulted in either rough and spiky or soft and fluffy surfaces. Flat and smooth surfaces were created using satin structures and smooth yarns.