The Sound of Textile: An Interactive Tactile-Sonic Installation

Abstract

The Sound of Textile installation consists of seven interactive textile stripes enhanced with sensing capabilities. The expressive textile textures invite visitors to touch them. Every established connection between the visitor and the textile triggers a specific sound serving as an invitation into the imaginative world of stories and emotions. The selection of textiles and sounds has been established from collecting associations that arose in the authors when moving our fingers over specific textures. This introspective journey is the artistic counterpart to our HCI development of smart textiles, concerned with enhancing textiles with sensing capabilities, as well as finding ways to communicate interaction possibilities within the medium. The installation, therefore, serves as an intense sensory experience for the user, but also provides valuable insights on how we could design more meaningful interactions with smart textiles in future applications.