Birce Özkan and fellow MFA DT students Ezgi Ucar and Isabella Cruz Chong showcased their work at the SXCreate during SXSW 2015. Congratulations!

About Birce’s “Augmented Skirt”:  This augmented skirt gives the user an additional layer of sensing that allows her to find the direction by imitating nature. The garment appropriates the migration method of birds; these are known as being excellent navigators; they have built-in biological compasses to tell them which way to fly based on detecting variations in the earth’s magnetic field.

About “Ezgi’s Sensory Sound Objects”:  The high speed of modern life and the constant stimulants effect our perception of things and interpersonal communications. Trying to do many things at once, our sensory system starts to ignore some of the stimuli we have to deal with. This project seeks to find a way of understanding our perception of the world by experimentations with inter-sensory translations. Through a series of objects converting Braille into music, users will experience a different point of view of their communication tools and perception abilities.

About Isabella’s “Rootedness interactive installation”: “Rootedness” is an interactive installation where as a person touches the soil on the table he or she feels speaker produced vibrations emitted on their feet and other parts of their body. The project fosters a connection to a natural resource, an awareness of touch and of one’s self. The piece consists of a wooden table, mesh, soil, contact microphones and a wooden platform.