Project1 - Sharp Curl

Video Documentation: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1nqDTlQ-lbCqg0y5ze_l42GPKVESkVWTu/view?usp=sharing

• Concept

The inspiration for Sharp Curl comes from the hedgehog. When threatened, a hedgehog curls up into a ball, exposing its sharp spines outward to protect its soft body. This wearable draws from that self-protective mechanism and translates it onto the human body to create a new sense. The human mind is also inherently fragile, yet society constantly demands that we appear strong. This wearable encourages people to return to their instincts. When feeling uneasy or stimulated by other people or surroundings, they can curl up like a hedgehog to regain a sense of safety. The spikes that rise when curling up symbolize the externalization of human emotions, visually expressing discomfort or anxiety. Additionally, I chose to use the color red, which evokes intense emotions, to create a striking visual effect. Through rapid flashing, it emits a signal of danger. When you feel uneasy, perhaps it’s better to return to your primal instincts. Just curl up, and let the world see your signal of uncomfort.

• Research & Development

Sharp Curl seeks to reconstruct the way people express their sense of safety. Everyone has their own space where they feel safe, no matter physically or mentally. When our personal boundaries are invaded by others, I hope we can express our need for safety and create our own protected space, rather than silently endure it. This wearable visualizes the human perception of safety through the act of “curling up,” an instinctive, animal-like gesture that symbolizes the innate human desire for personal space.

When designing this wearable, I consciously connected my work to the article “Wearable Technologies: Between Fashion, Art, Performance, and Science” which we have read in week 3. As I mentioned in my previous reading response, I believe wearable technology functions more like a new sensory system for the human body—it encourages people to pay closer attention to their own attitudes, feelings, and emotions. Therefore, I decided to use wearable technology to amplify an invisible yet crucial part of being human: our emotions, especially those that represent discomfort or unease. I also thought about how to naturally combine performance and the device, which led me to the hedgehog’s curling motion. Curling up is a common behavior among living beings when experiencing negative influences. This gesture carries strong performative meaning and resonates deeply with people.

During the design process, I drew inspiration from a designer I found on Xiaohongshu, who abstracted the movement of an insect and attached one of its moving parts onto the human body through a wearable structure. She used a vertically moving motor to simulate the insect’s leg motion, and I really like the visual effect this created. Inspired by that, I decided to extract the most distinctive feature of the hedgehog, which are its spines, to achieve a form of body transformation.

For the materials I use, I think there is still space for improvements. Servos were not the ideal choice, if I had alternative materials or mechanisms, I would make the spines larger to strengthen the expression of the wearable. In terms of the fabric, to make the wearable better fit the human body, I attached individual spine modules onto fabric so they could follow the curve of the back. This idea came from earlier projects that placed 3D-printed pieces onto textiles to enhance flexibility and form. Also, After my presentation, I added a FastLED blinking effect to reinforce the visual expression, which intensifies the sense of emotional tension and the signal of alert the wearable conveys.

• Conclusion

The goal of Sharp Curl was to explore how wearable technology can translate emotional states into a visible and physical form to change human sense. By taking inspiration from the hedgehog’s self-defense mechanism, this project aimed to reconstruct how humans express vulnerability and personal boundaries.

I think the biggest shortage of my project was that I didn’t complete a prototype early on, which made the overall production process rather rushed. My initial inspiration actually came from the jellyfish, but I couldn’t find a satisfying way to express that idea, so I didn't manage to finish a prototype. Later, when I tried to develop the earlier concept further, I couldn’t achieve the desired effect, which caused me to struggle for quite a long time. The current version of the wearable still has much room for improvement aesthetically, and there could also be a more effective mechanism to make it more engaging. However, my greatest takeaway from this project is the process of creating a bodily experience from concept to realization. I’ve always felt that I lack creativity, but this project pushed me to abstract a certain characteristic and transform it into an element of my own work. I learned how to create my own materials and how to integrate performance into the project, both of which have been truly rewarding experiences.

• Process Documentation