On today’s episode of the Electric Runway podcast:
She’s a multidisciplinary designer breathing new life into fashion. Her headline-grabbing garments aren’t just beautiful, they also interact with the world around them. Stare at one of her dresses too long, and you’ll find it staring back. We speak with Behnaz Farahi about the art project that made her famous and her thoughts on fashion tech.
Projects mentioned:
Synapse
Synapse is an interactive helmut that moves and responds based on brain activity:
Caress of the Gaze:
What if our outfit could recognize and respond to the gaze of the other? This is an interactive 3D printed wearable which can detect other people’s gaze and respond accordingly with life-like behavior.
Learn more about Behnaz Farahi on her website here.
But first:
All eyes are on New York Fashion week this week. While we may not be seeing tech on the runway like last season, that doesn’t mean disruption is underway. Fashion Weeks across the world are going through radical change. Designers are abandoning expensive runway shows and instead opting for Instagram and other digital avenues for showcasing their collections. Others are doing away with the seasonal structure and showing spring collections, well, in spring. It’s a see-now-buy-now model, and it means rapid change for the fashion industry.
Style Editor Vanessa Freidman blames the Smartphone. In a recent article for the New York Times, Freidman writes: “Fashion designers are reexamining the system on which they rest. And they are doing it in the cold, blue light of the smartphone’s glare. They are doing it, arguably, because of the smartphone’s glare.”
The ubiquity of the smartphone means fashions are seen moments after they hit the runway, making it easier for brands like Zara and H&M to produce copycats quickly. Digital has also made everyone digest trends much quicker, since we’re not just seeing outfits in editorial spreads in magazines, but on websites and in social media streams.
The irony of it all? An industry that had prided itself on forecasting what’s new and next is actually working with a calendar and system that suddenly seems antiquated.
