Augmentation Art

Neandathol and Grow on you #2 


Lucy MacRae and Bart Hess have created works of art that have inspired my inner fascination with fashion as art. Their expressions of beauty are fascinating to behold and wonder. I, especially, enjoy Neandathol and Grow on you #2 for what I perceive as a viewer. As I ponder over the image in Neandathol, I can only imagine that putting the creature in Levi's takes away the profound inhumanity of the subject who is a humanoid with a step towards homo sapiens. The subject is pictured as hairless with deformed, long. blue feet and hands. The wing span of those arms definitely conjures up the beginnings of man and the use of the color blue perhaps to tie in earth or to match those Levi's. Either way the photo is a reminder that the human body has been a canvas for the human mind since the beginning of time.
Grow on you #2 is a site to see. The blue foam around the jawline and eye remind me of shaving cream that turns blue when its time to shave. Or even the foam conjures up the image of a mask that is meant to be worn by a future man who is tired of the shaving ritual. The foam is reminiscent of marble and maybe there is meant to be a juxtaposition of the sculptured and real-life faces.

Sandra Backlund

Sandra Backlund's knit work is inspiring, futuristic, ritualistic and shows her work in craftsmanship and design. Her knitwear is tineless and and has no bounds on the imagination as one can see. Again I am fascinated by the work in fashion to augment and adorn the body. Her knitwear is surreal, polished and a realistic interpretation of this fascination with augmentation.

Show Your Mood with Brain-Controlled “Necomimi” Cat Ears

Made by the Japanese Neurowear, Necomimi is the product where fashion and technology meet each other. The concept idea aims to reach a form of “augmented human body” with the help of brainwaves and biosensors. The ears on the headband stand up when the wearer concentrates or sees something interesting. And when the user relaxes, the decreasing brain activity makes the ears fall down.This may be cute and gimmicky but it stands on the cusp of perceptual computing revolution.In fact, Intel CTO Justin Rattner wore Necomimi onstage and promised Intel will go all the way to mindreading,