Abstract
The domain of materials for design is changing under the influence of an increased technological advancement. Materials are becoming connected, augmented, computational, interactive, active, responsive, and dynamic. These are ICS Materials, an acronym that stands for Interactive, Connected and Smart. While labs around the world are experimenting with these new materials, there is the need to reflect on their potentials and impact on design. This paper is a first step in this direction: to interpret and describe the qualities of ICS materials, considering their experiential pattern, their expressive-sensorial dimension, and their aesthetic of interaction. Through case studies, we analyse and classify these emerging ICS Materials and identified common characteristics, and challenges, e.g. the ability to change over time or their programmability by the designers and users. On that basis, we argue there is the need to reframe and redesign existing models to describe ICS materials, making their qualities emerge.
Keywords
ICS materials; expressive-sensorial dimension; aesthetic of interaction; materials experience.
DOI
https://doi.org/10.21606/drs.2018.521
Citation
Parisi, S., Ragnoli, V., Spallazzo, D., and Petrelli, D. (2018) ICS Materials. Towards a Re-Interpretation of Material Qualities Through Interactive, Connected, and Smart Materials., in Storni, C., Leahy, K., McMahon, M., Lloyd, P. and Bohemia, E. (eds.), Design as a catalyst for change - DRS International Conference 2018, 25-28 June, Limerick, Ireland. https://doi.org/10.21606/drs.2018.521
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
ICS Materials. Towards a Re-Interpretation of Material Qualities Through Interactive, Connected, and Smart Materials.
The domain of materials for design is changing under the influence of an increased technological advancement. Materials are becoming connected, augmented, computational, interactive, active, responsive, and dynamic. These are ICS Materials, an acronym that stands for Interactive, Connected and Smart. While labs around the world are experimenting with these new materials, there is the need to reflect on their potentials and impact on design. This paper is a first step in this direction: to interpret and describe the qualities of ICS materials, considering their experiential pattern, their expressive-sensorial dimension, and their aesthetic of interaction. Through case studies, we analyse and classify these emerging ICS Materials and identified common characteristics, and challenges, e.g. the ability to change over time or their programmability by the designers and users. On that basis, we argue there is the need to reframe and redesign existing models to describe ICS materials, making their qualities emerge.