Saving Planet Earth: Elena Corchero

Talks with artists from Saving Planet Earth: A 21st Century Approach.

Elena Corchero will be talking about how technology can enrich sustainable fashion. So called "wearable computing" products on the market are usually associated with sports and performance textiles. Because there is a focus on the male market, fashion-oriented people, particularly women, may not choose to wear a typical solar jacket or backpack. Elena explores a more delicate union, in which technology meets tradition, balancing form and function with the nostalgia inspired by crafted textile techniques and accessories that have been lost or forgotten.

Elena's goal is to explore clothing and textiles to design technologies that make us more human and less machine. She believes that when a technology is added to an ancient medium like textiles there is a need to respect and explore its history and traditions. She spent her childhood at her mother's fashion studio and studied Fine Arts. She joined MIT's Media Lab Europe and specialised in smart textiles and wearable technologies. She recently completed an MA in Design for Textile Futures at Central St. Martins College and is currently a research fellow at Distance Lab.