London-based artist Lauren Bowker has developed a new form of ink with her material exploration studio THE UNSEEN. It was demonstrated in a couture capsule collection entitled Air, which was designed for Swarovski and presented during London Fashion Week 2014.
The ink reacts to the different fluctuations in the wind and the body. The air around us is made up of many different components that are products of our environment, including pollution, moisture, and more.
The biological and chemical technology is integrated into layers of fabric and transforms its colour in response to pressure change. Air’s nano compounds, inks, and dyes are capable of sensing up to seven stimuli: heat, UV, pollution, moisture, chemicals, friction, and sound. Each element has a different colour-altering effect; pollution, for instance, changes between yellow to black. The result is that it translates our environment into a stunning visual representation, where a multi-faceted textile is reminiscent of an insect’s lustrous exoskeleton.
