Fashion Designer Wipprecht unveils new 3D printed Gown for Social Distancing

Named “Proximity Dress”, the new gown is an evolution of the Spider Dress

Once more Fashion Designer Anouk Wipprecht has proven her ability to create “technological couture”. Her latest creation unveiled on social networks revealed an impressive body of tech-enhanced designs while combining fashion and technology. This time, her new creation, the Proximity Dress, comes on time, as a response to the current Covid-19 pandemic which imposes new rules in terms of social distancing.

Wipprecht’s interest in cultural distancing started in 2007 and was inspired by American anthropologist Edward T. Hall’s researches on man’s relationship to the space around him. One of the first pieces that Wipprecht created in light of these researches was the “Spider Dress”.

“This defines four spaces around the body, each with their own characteristic distances. Whereas Hall had to measure the space between people using a wooden stick, I have been working since 2007 to translate these concepts into the digital domain, in order to measure the spaces between people up to a range of 25 feet“, Wipprecht said.

In this vein, the 3D-printed Spider Dress responds to how the wearer interacts with their surroundings. With proximity and respiration sensors built into it, the dress detects when the wearer feels her personal space is being invaded.

Moreover, Wipprecht’s “Proximity Dress” has been created based on the same technology used for the Spider Dress. As this dress is also an opportunity to highlight the use of 3D printing in the Fashion Tech industry, it should be noted that to endure more stresses, the mechanic hip parts have been 3D printed using SLS (Selective Laser Sintering) nylon PA-11. Furthermore, the 3D printed transparent collar of the gown has been produced on an Objet Connex 500 multimaterial polyjet 3D printer, with the VeroClear material from Stratasys.

Let us be honest, the “Proximity Dress” could not be wore as our everyday clothe. It is too soon to envision this idea but it is worth noting the creativity used by the fashion industry to respond to this sanitary crisis.

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