This piece utilizes huge inflated balloons to create movements that would be impossible with traditional fabrics. As the balloons deflate they change their form completely: revealing the underlying structure, whether it is a body of a separate unexpected form. The technique of deflating a large “formless” structure to either change its shape or show something else underneath could be integrated into a wide number of other works. Additionally, one could use the stored air inside of the ballon to power the movement of other pieces of fabric.
The velociraptor suits from the original Jurassic Park combine human actuated puppetry elements with radio controlled servos to create a realistic and naturally moving model of a dinosaur. I was struck by the mechanisms used to actuate and support the neck. Specifically the structure used to create an even twist around the neck could be used to interface with many parts of a human body that have similar mechanics.
Kino uses small wheeled robots which can drive up and down fabric to create changing patterns or forms on clothing. It is easy to see how we could use the idea of a miniature robot driving on our clothes to change their form. The robots could cinch in a belt, change the length of a dress, or even pull your pants up for you.
“Popped Balloons” uses balloons to cover the body entirely in amorphous shapes and then pop the balloons to reveal the body underneath. The model would either walk through a doorway of pins or each balloon could be popped by a servo with a needle .
“Suspensions” would challenge the notion that we all put out pants on one leg at a time by using fishing wire and motors to automatically clothe the wearer as they stand completely still. The skirt and sleeve would be pulled up and the center of the top would be dropped from above.
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