Hasta La Ideas

ECAL student Renaud Defrancesco has designed a transparent acrylic glass headband that passes music vibrations across its surface to the ears.

“It’s a new way to listen to music,” Renaud Defrancesco told Dezeen. “You are bathed in music without being isolated like with normal headphones, which can be dangerous because you don’t hear what’s around you.”

His Vibso headphones play tracks via Bluetooth and create sound using a vibrating electromagnet hidden in the top of the headband, beneath an opaque plastic cover. Similar to how a speaker works, the electromagnet moves a connecting element that in turn causes a membrane to pulsate.

However, instead of a black round plastic layer used in traditional speakers, this surface is formed from two-millimetre-thick transparent acrylic glass. “The membrane is in acrylic glass because it transmits the sound well, has a good flexibility and it’s easy to thermoform,” explained Defrancesco.

The vibrations spread across the curved membrane down to the sections that cover the ears, where they are heard as music without the user feeling the tiny movements. “The shape of the headphones directs the sound inward, so a person close by will not hear the music,” said Defrancesco.

Comparing his design to large padded noise-cancelling headphones, Defrancesco’s list of advantages includes being able to share music with others if they touch their ear to the other side of the headband and not causing sides of the head to overheat.

The band can also be covered in padded fabric for added comfort. Defrancesco showed the project at the Ecole Cantonale d’art de Lausanne‘s Half-Time exhibition earlier this month.

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music through clear plastic band appeared first on Dezeen.

Researchers at Italian design centre Fabrica have created accessories that would deceive neuroimaging devices by diverting thoughts using electric shocks and flashing lights (+ slideshow).

Lisa Kori Chung and Caitlin Morris from Fabrica designed the anti-NIS (neuroimaging surveillance) pieces to detect when surveillance technology linked to CCTV cameras is trying to read the wearer’s brainwaves. It would then focus their thoughts to something inconsequential to help maintain privacy.

They say neuroimaging technology is currently being researched and developed to read and record the thoughts of the public, with the aim to detect ill intentions before they are carried out.

However this raises issues of privacy, so Kori Chung and Morris are proposing to mask thoughts using a range of wearable devices.

Each faceted piece covered with decorative patterns is designed to detect when the wearer is being scanned and provides a distraction to change their thought pattern.

“Rather than simply blocking access to the brain, which would require unsubtle and complex equipment, each piece proposes a method of momentary cognitive diversion,” said the designers.

“When a scan is detected, the accessories provoke a sensory reaction that will demand the wearer’s attention, changing their current brain activity patterns and affording a moment of privacy through camouflage.”

The hat transmits sound pulses through the skull to the ear, the collar gives a gentle electric shock and the mask emits light flashes into the wearer’s eyes.

This means that at the moment of the scan, the wearer’s thoughts are more likely to be read as “this light is too bright” or “that’s a strange sound” rather than what their mind might have been preoccupied with otherwise.

Even though the implementation of neuroimaging technology is still science fiction, the project aims to raise awareness of other surveillance techniques currently used in conjunction with CCTV such as facial recognition, motion detection and voice analysis.

The project was designed for the Futures 10 exhibition of wearable technology, displayed last night as part of the Wearable Futures conference at Ravensbourne in London.

On the same theme of masking surveillance, Adam Harvery created a range of anti-drone clothing to hide the wearer from heat detection technologies.

Photographs are by Marco Zanin.

Here’s some information the designers sent to us:

Wearables to thwart neuroimaging surveillance by Lisa Kori Chung and Caitlin Morris

The paradigm of clothing as protector and concealer is slowly shifting: increasingly, our bodies are becoming more and more public (though security practices as well as fashion choices), while new forms of neuro-imaging technology are developing that may one day allow for surveillance and interception of the contents of our minds. Anti-NIS Accessories is a series of proposed objects designed as a form of clothing that maintains privacy of thought and action.

Rather than simply blocking access to the brain, which would require unsubtle and complex equipment, each piece proposes a method of momentary cognitive diversion. When a scan is detected, the accessories provoke a sensory reaction that will demand the wearer’s attention, changing their current brain activity patterns and affording a moment of privacy through camouflage. The objects include a hat that transmits sound pulses through bone conduction, a collar that gives a gentle electric shock and a mask that distracts the user with flashing lights.

Can the purpose of clothing be expanded to serve a hybrid purpose: acting as an expressive covering of the body, and also maintaining privacy of things like emotions, intelligence, and even more specific “brain data”?

These are the wider questions we asked:

Today, closed-circuit video surveillance has become commonplace. Concurrent with its rise in ubiquity, new techniques are being developed for analysing the massive amounts of information generated. Biometric identification techniques such as FRT (facial recognition technology), gait analysis, and voice analysis are often used after an incident has taken place to try to determine the identities of the parties involved. However, now various companies are working on algorithms to detect persons acting “suspiciously” (perhaps based on activities such as running, loitering and carrying packages). We are entering a new period of algorithmic guessing of intention based on external behaviours, before an incident takes place.

What if brain-scanning could be periodically deployed in a widespread and stealthy manner in urban environments, similar to CCTV now? Already our notions of civil liberties and bodily privacy are being challenged on an everyday basis, how should they be defined in the future in terms of the mind?

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cameras by Fabrica researchers appeared first on Dezeen.

Extravagant outfits and hats from the wardrobe of the late stylist and fashion muse Isabella Blow have gone on display in London (+ slideshow).

Isabella Blow: Fashion Galore! at Somerset House celebrates the life of the British magazine editor, who launched the careers of designers including Alexander McQueen, Philip Treacy, Hussein Chalayan and Julien Macdonald.

Blow entered the fashion industry in the 1980s as an assistant to Anna Wintour at US Vogue. In the UK she worked as the fashion director for the Sunday Times and Tatler before her death in 2007.

Blow’s collection, now owned by model Daphne Guinness, includes items designed specifically for her by fashion designer Alexander McQueen and milliner Philip Treacy.

Their experimental and flamboyant garments and hat designs contributed to her distinctive and recognisable style.

Designed by London architects Carmody Groarke, the exhibition is divided into sections themed around areas of Blow’s life.

It starts with a display of family photographs depicting her aristocratic upbringing in Cheshire, UK, during the 1950s.

A section dedicated to McQueen and Treacy includes their graduate collections and early work created from found materials, such as Blow’s wedding headdress.

Both designers’ Autumn Winter 1996 collections are also displayed. McQueen dedicated this collection to Blow and it was the show that shot him to fame. Blow also styled Treacy’s show for the same season.

Clothing by Viktor & Rolf, Jeremy Scott, Comme des Garçons and Julien Macdonald all feature in a section dedicated to Blow’s love of the English countryside.

Full outfits worn by Blow have been recreated on mannequins by set designer Shona Heath using old photographs.

One of her most famous and successful shoots, for British Vogue December 1993, has been put up alongside London-themed installations by Heath that exhibit more hats and shoes.

The final portion shows the Spring Summer 2008 collection that Alexander McQueen and Philip Treacy collaborated on and dedicated to Isabella after her death, on show to epitomise her legacy.

The exhibition, created with the Isabella Blow Foundation and Central Saint Martins, opened earlier this week and runs until 2 March 2014.

Photos by Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images for Somerset House

Somerset House sent us the following information:

Isabella Blow: Fashion Galore!

20 November 2013 – 2 March 2014 Embankment Galleries, Somerset House

This autumn, Somerset House, in partnership with the Isabella Blow Foundation and Central Saint Martins, is proud to present Isabella Blow: Fashion Galore!, a major fashion exhibition celebrating the extraordinary life and wardrobe of the late British patron of fashion and art.

Born into the rarefied world of British aristocracy, Isabella’s thirty year career began in the early 80s as Anna Wintour’s assistant at US Vogue. On her return to London in 1986 she worked at Tatler followed by British Vogue. In 1997 she became the Fashion Director of the Sunday Times Style after which she returned to Tatler as fashion director. Driven by a passion for creativity, Isabella is credited for having nurtured and inspired numerous artists and designers.

The exhibition will showcase over a hundred pieces from her incredibly rich collection, one of the most important private collections of late 20th Century/early 21st Century British fashion design, now owned by Daphne Guinness.

This includes garments from the many designer talents she discovered and launched, such as Alexander McQueen, Philip Treacy, Hussein Chalayan and Julien Macdonald amongst others.

Isabella is also known for discovering models Sophie Dahl and Stella Tennant, and for her collaborations with major photographers such as Steven Meisel, David LaChapelle and Sean Ellis, which pushed the boundaries of convention in her increasingly provocative fashion spreads and establishing herself as a legendary figure within the international fashion and contemporary art worlds.

Curated by Alistair O’Neill with Shonagh Marshall and designed by award-winning architectural firm Carmody Groarke, with installations by celebrated set designer Shona Heath, the exhibition will display thematically the breadth of Isabella’s collection, a life lived through clothes.

Isabella’s Background

The first section of the exhibition will explore Isabella’s background, and her British aristocratic ancestral roots.

Born Isabella Delves Broughton in 1950s post-war Britain, with a family seat at Doddington Hall in Cheshire, her family history can be traced back to the 14th Century – a factor which played an important part in Isabella’s life. Highlights include family photographs and the sculpture entitled Isabella Blow by Tim Noble and Sue Webster.

Alexander McQueen and Philip Treacy

This section will feature pieces from Alexander McQueen and Philip Treacy’s graduate MA collections from Central Saint Martins and the Royal College of Art respectively, including Isabella’s wedding headdress.

Exploring the way in which both designers used whatever they could get their hands on to make their garments and hats, this section celebrates the beginnings of their careers and the talent Isabella saw in them, celebrating her eye for discovering young talent.

The next section exhibits key items from McQueen and Treacy’s AW 1996 collections. McQueen dedicated his AW 1996 collection, entitled Dante, to Isabella and this was his first season toreceive international critical acclaim. This same year Isabella styled Philip Treacy’s AW 1996 collection, key items of which will be exhibited.

Countryside

A huge hedge installation, inspired by Isabella’s love of the English countryside will display groups of clothing from her collection presented in four themes that conjure the fantastical world Isabella inhabited and drew inspiration from, reflecting her love of birds, flowers and the surreal.

Works in this section show off a number of Isabella’s favourite designers, including clothing by Jeremy Scott, Comme des Garçons, Julien Macdonald, Viktor and Rolf and Undercover alongside accessories by Philip Treacy and Erik Halley.

Isabella’s Outfits and Style

Shona Heath will create bespoke Isabella Blow mannequins wearing full outfits worn by her, built referencing archival documentary images. These will demonstrate her distinctive, eclectic style and mixing of designer pieces. She was quoted as saying “Fashion is a vampiric thing, it’s the hoover on your brain. That’s why I wear the hats, to keep everyone away from me”, demonstrating the way in which Isabella wore her clothing as a form of armour.

Pieces here include McQueen for Givenchy, Alexander McQueen, Fendi, Philip Treacy, Escada, Teerabul Songvich, Dior, Prada, Jeremy Scott, Benoit Meleard for Jeremy Scott, Viktor and Rolf, John Galliano for Dior, Manolo Blahnik and Marni.

Isabella at Work/Head & Feet

Taken from Isabella’s owns words: “Tip: Always accentuate the head and the feet”, this part of the exhibition will look at the importance that hats and shoes played in her life – she was rarely seen without a McQueen outfit, Treacy hat and Manolo Blahnik shoes.

Representing Isabella’s work and urban London life installations by Shona Heath will be created to exhibit hats and shoes from her collection.

This section also features one of Isabella’s most famous and successful shoots with Steven Meisel for British Vogue December 1993 entitled Anglo Saxon Attitudes featuring Stella Tennant, Honor Fraser, Plum Sykes, Bella Freud and Lady Louise Campbell, the first time any of them had graced the pages of a magazine, showcasing Isabella’s eye for spotting talent.

Legacy

The final section in the exhibition displays La Dame Bleue, the S/S 2008 Alexander McQueen collection that Alexander McQueen and Philip Treacy collaborated on and dedicated to Isabella after her death. The collection was inspired by Isabella and to end on this note evokes both her legacy and her importance.

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exhibition of Isabella Blow’s collection appeared first on Dezeen.

Product news: design studio Kawamura-Ganjavian is now producing a smaller version of its squishy headpiece for napping on the go for children (+ slideshow).

Spain and Switzerland-based studio Kawamura-Ganjavian have scaled down their Ostrich Pillows for ad-hoc snoozing to be suitable for children aged six and over.

Originally funded on Kickstarter, the padded grey helmets are designed to make sleeping at the desk, on long car journeys or in waiting rooms more comfortable – find out more in our previous story.

The design has been modified for kids so the whole face is visible through the hole in the front, compared to just the nose and mouth on the adult model.

Patterned fabric now lines the inside, visible through the two hand holes on either side.

When we published the adult version, our commenters called it “a pickpocket’s dream” and compared it to a “garlic clove” and a “locust head”.

Kawamura-Ganjavian has also designed a padded reading room at a bookshop in Lausanne and screens made of sticks covered in Velcro for an exhibition in Milan.

Our most recent stories about design for sleep include a squishy light that can be used as a warm, glowing pillow and the first Sleepbox hotel made from portable sleeping capsules in Moscow.

See more design for sleeping »
See more design by Kawamura-Ganjavian »

Read on for more information from the designers:

Ostrich Pillow hit the headlines across the globe 12 months ago and everybody was talking about it, from Perez Hilton to Stephen Fry, Jimmy Kimmel to the cast of ‘Modern Family’, Tech Crunch to the Sun, Hypebeast to Loose Women, Huffington Post to Bloomberg.

The Ostrich Pillow launch made a sensation last year when it it’s founders raised more than $200,000 in just 30 days via the amazing crowd-funded Kickstarter campaign.

The people have spoken with sales stretching across the globe, and the sleep-deprived masses have been relishing the calm in their “Ostrich Pillow moments”. Have you Instagrammed your’s yet?

We at Ostrich Pillow like to be inclusive so now with public demand telling us to think about the kids, so here we are announcing the launch of Ostrich Pillow Junior. From ages six plus, the Ostrich Pillow Junior is the perfect travelling and napping companion for kids for car journeys, study breaks and general time outs.

Beautifully designed, hand-made to perfection in Spain and supercool, this new addition is more fun, more functional and more bang for your buck.

Ostrich Pillow Junior comes with a larger opening for the face so both eyes and mouth are visible enhanced padding at the forehead and neck to give more comfort, support and ease for the younger user.

The pillow comes with two unique interior colours – Berry Snooze and Dreamy Waves and comes with a more attractive price and retails at €59, $75 and £50.

Alongside the launch of Ostrich Pillow Junior, the designers have created more colours for the adult range. As well as the original Ostrich Pillow Blue, we now offer you the choice of Mellow Yellow for those bright happy times and Sunset Siesta for those chilled out and laid back moments, solving more of your gifting dilemmas’ as the holiday season draws nearer.

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Kawamura-Ganjavian appeared first on Dezeen.