Materials for the exploration of intimate sensations and sexual pleasure

Over the last few years, we aimed to empower humans and their bodies, connecting the self, facilitating a dialogue between people through their senses with the support of technology. In our perspective and practice, technology should be embedded in everyday life into objects that can improve aspects of a person’s daily routine, and blend into products that anyone could use, while being accessible to users with special needs. Our work takes in consideration physical, political, and societal barriers that people with disabilities are often facing, while aiming to achieve inclusive solutions. Among our projects, Lovewear, a project partially founded and developed through the European Union Horizon 2020 research and innovation program, offers an autonomous experience through haptic feedback, allowing self-exploration of intimate sensations and sexual pleasure. The natural sensation of a tactile movement on the skin’s surface is achieved through soft robotics; miniaturized pumps and solenoid valves, precisely direct and control the airflow through a matrix of isolated textile chambers. In this positioning paper we are highlighting what we have learned from this project, which is the base for our further explorations, to enable reflection, awareness and understanding of the body.