The New Aesthetic of DIY-Materials

Abstract: Materials embedded in artifacts determine the user's materials experience and influence the aesthetic perception. Currently, the widely use of perfect and homogeneous industrial materials is dictating our experience and guide our perception. However, In the last years, a new phenomenon where designers seem interested on recuperating control of the development and the design of materials is emerging. This phenomenon is known as DIY-Materials and is a way for designers to self-produce materials. Those materials appear to be a delightful source of richness regarding the perception and must be considered in designing for the next aesthetic. The paper aims to present some initial considerations and ideas for explaining the current investigation into the aesthetics of DIY-Materials. All the previous studies about the relationship between materials and their aesthetic attributes and qualities are under examination. We create materials boards using the extensive current cases studies, and we framed them following the settled kingdoms classification of DIY-Materials. As part of the study, we started to make some aesthetic considerations for each kingdom with the general purpose to move further formulating useful strategies for designers to self-produce their materials.

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