FRISSON
– AUDITORY-RESPONSIVE CLOTHING
by Iga Węglińska
Atavism is the appearance in an individual of physical traits or behaviors that have disappeared over the course of evolution; these traits were characteristic of distant ancestors or ancient environments or cultures.
The Frisson design is a kinetic, experimental form of clothing that responds to sound signals from the surrounding environment. The designer analyzed atavistic phenomena present in modern human physiology, such as piloerection (so-called „goosebumps”) and paresthesia (skin tingling), treating them as neuroaesthetic evolutionary relics – remnants of ancient survival mechanisms that are now activated in the context of emotional and aesthetic experiences.
The starting point for the project was the phenomenon of frisson – a brief, intense emotional shiver triggered by music, films, rituals, or other strong sensory stimuli. The project treats frisson as an atavism – a mechanism that originally served to mobilize the body in the face of danger, but now activates during experiences of meaning, sublimity, or emotional awe.
The Frisson garment is equipped with a sensor that, in real-time, registers acoustic changes in the environment and initiates a response on the fabric’s surface – a delicate tremor on selected parts of the garment. This vibration reflects involuntary bodily responses known from moments of intense sensations, such as crescendo in music, a sudden choral entrance, a whisper, or emotional tension in a voice.
The Frisson design fits within the field of research on extended perception, neuroaesthetics, and sensory communication of clothing, while also contributing to the discussion on the prosthetic nature of clothing that supports sensory perception, as well as intelligent materials as tools creating a new language for posthuman design. It answers the question of how clothing can not only communicate but also sense, mimic, and manifest the internal states of the user in relation to the external world.
Text by Iga Węglińska
Photo&Video: Mila Łapko
Fashion design: Iga Węglińska
Assistant: Karolina Borowska
Make-up artist: Anna Treder
Model: Dominika / Gaga Models