Soma-Wearable Design: Integrating Somaesthetic Practice and Fashion Design for Somatic Wellbeing

With advanced technologies and raised expectations for the quality of life, research and design attempts are increasing to promote wellbeing. While data-based reflective practice and behaviour change have been a main strategy in supporting technology-mediated wellbeing, we bring the perspectives of somaesthetic practice and fashion design to complement this research scene. Assuming that body consciousness could positively influence self-perception, presentation and performance through clothing, we propose soma-wearable design as an alternative approach to explore qualities that elaborate and promote somatic wellbeing. First, we conceptualize constructive links between design for reflection, somaesthetic practice, and style-fashion-dress; and re-interpret the core qualities of somaesthetic appreciation (Höök et al., 2016) for soma-wearable design: 1) transient space for reflection with the body, 2) sensory prompt synched to context, 3) body modification for subject formation, and 4) learning through bodily experience. We articulate these qualities based on the survey of selected fashion objects; apply the soma-wearable design approach to a workshop with fashion design students; and discuss implications about forms, materials and experiential qualities of soma-wearables.