Sandra was our very first Experimental Weaver in Residence! When she arrived, we brainstormed ideas for possible collaborations and she was drawn to the research challenges presented by our colleagues in Aerospace Engineering. Specifically, her and then PhD student Katya Arquilla collaborated to prototype woven “dry” electrodes that could be integrated into a headband to sense the movements of the muscles on one’s forehand. The image above shows one prototype in this exploration. We used this experience to public a full length paper to CHI 2020 detailing a role fo artists and craftspeople in engineering research and Katya has continued to refine and test the prototypes she developed with Sandra and applied them to heart rate sensing.
A residency catalog outlining our collaboration with Sandra Wirtanen is now available as a PDF and eBook. The 32 page catalog describes the methods and outcomes developed during the residency as well reflections on what aspects of the structure were mutually beneficial for the artist and research lab. While the findings are under review for publication, this “DIY” catalog offers a more aesthetic glimpse into our art/engineering collaboration. We are printing an initial run of 100 catalogs. If you are a part of an organization that would like to have some, please let us know. Unfortunately, we are not able to ship single copies to individuals and would encourage you to download the PDF or eBook.