It was meant for our imagination, the future world but not really, right? Just for TV...
A world unimaginable that it had to be imagined, showcased across the arts and then commercialised.
So now we are almost living in the tech future world that once belonged to imaginations and the 2D world.
If we look back, historically, the path to wearable technologies was paved a long time ago.
Long before the Google Glasses or the Apple watches were born, the simple wristwatch if we think about it was or still is a portable technology item. And long before that in about 1500, Peter Henlein a German inventor, created small clocks that adorned pieces of clothing called Taschenuhr.
It's just that the wearable technology or smart clothes, have become much more, well, smart.
Fast forward the movie from the past about the future into the present, and wearable technology is on everyone’s lips.
But what does this mean for our identity?
This is asked on an aesthetic level, although if we want to really think about it, in regards to identity there is probably concern with DNA or cell replica. But the question pondered about here, is more geared towards our visual layers of identity evolving and how that may come about.
Globalisation has affected our identity and our fashion, if we apply Zygmunt Bauman's theory of Liquid Modernity, then we are forever becoming modern, thus so will our identity through technology, since technology is linked with modernity.
It's not just the technology of social media that is affecting our identity, but our identity is being affected through what we wear, thus wearable fashion.
So can we expect these wearable technologies to globalise and affect us?
Or will things not change much in regards to products and how they flow around the world, in other words will each mechanic or device become like other products, branded, marketed for a specific country?
Perhaps tribes will form across borders depending on the wearable technology we wear, just like fashion tribes can form.
Tech up our identity?
When we are wired up and sensors are sending information about us, or detecting information about us or changes in our environment, what does this mean for our liberal choices of how we perceive ourselves and present ourselves?
Perhaps the laws coming into play for data in May will affect all this, and perhaps these thoughts belong to some past movie, after all wearable technology can save lives, help health, save time and effort, and maybe even comfort.
And these attributes is what we need from the mechanisms.
The Fashion Industry has embraced technology and it looks like we are headed for even more partnerships between the two fields. The world of fashion and the world of technology have not always connected aesthetically, but that is now too in the right direction.
Since 2014, The Wearable Technology Show has welcomed at the Excel in London, entrepreneurs and businesses to showcase the latest of their work in smart textiles.
Many are innovators, independents and work hard so that advancements can be made and that we are aided by technology, looking at solutions for better health, better safety or better comfort.
Those we met during the show are detailed below, showcasing that the spirit of fashion, engineering and technology is well on its way and providing us too with lots of thoughts to contemplate with.
At the Wearable Technology Show, fabrics were being illuminated with sensors.