A visitor to Fashion Week in New York City will see a multitude
of designs purposely constructed to project beauty and novelty.
When MICA students think of fashion, however, the garments they
envision have deeper meaning. Nowhere is this truer than in the
Smart Textiles Design course jointly offered by MICA and Johns
Hopkins University. Designers are bringing forth inventive
attire that has the potential to literally transform the lives
of the wearers and those they interact with. The Smart Textiles
Design course is led by seasoned instructors, including MICA’s
Annet Couwenberg, past Fiber Department chair, and James
Rouvelle, chair of the Interaction Design and Art Department.
Its aim is to help students see the possibilities of wearable
technology. This past year, students worked with faculty and
mentors from a range of industries to integrate digital
materials with fiber through sewing, weaving, machine
embroidery, and structural design. The resulting academic
exploration was a unique mixture of fabricatio