Radiant Textiles : Designing electromagnetic textile systems

Abstract: To regard the electromagnetic domain of conductive textiles is to unlock a realm of expressive possibilities. The underexplored area of the electromagnetic domain in con­ductive textiles implies that numerous computational and electronic textiles created thus far possess untapped capabilities. These textiles, composed of metals and metal alloys, transcend our perception by constantly interacting with electromagnetic waves, fields, and signals. Serving as energetic materials, they extend a textile’s design qual­ities beyond its visible and tangible elements, ushering designers into an intangible, non-visual, extrasensory realm.Through experimental design research, the research program aims to explore the ex­pressive possibilities of the electromagnetic domain of textiles. To achieve this, there is an initial focus on material development to understand the means through which these phenomena can be expressed. Subsequently, the design of methods and tools for sens­ing and perceiving the phenomena are explored. This foundational knowledge is crucial in uncovering the aesthetic potentials of electromagnetic systems involving sensing circuits and textile artefacts. Additionally, design variables that extend the expressive possibilities of textiles are proposed including textile radiance, electromagnetic texture, electromagnetic fusion, electromagnetic coupling, diffusion, and field shape. Further­more, the results suggest a framing for how electromagnetic textiles function through acts of sensing, acting, and revealing. Through examples, exhibitions, and publications, an argument is made for positioning electromagnetic textiles as a distinctive category of smart textiles, unveiling the often overlooked design potential residing within electromagnetic phenomena. The choice of how to sense and reveal electromagnetic phenomena through textiles presents aesthetic implications for multisensory textiles, requiring designers to transcend the realms of visibility and tactility, thereby challenging the predominant senses employed in conventional textile design. This presents as an expanded design space that allows for unconventional textile expressions. This forms the basis for radiant textiles: a type of smart textile that regards a textile’s electromagnetic qualities and properties, and which opens to multisensorial textile expressions.