Wearable knitted data! I want one!

Dam! Just-in-time delivery manufacturing meets data!

newsknitter

Newsknitter

is a data visualization project which focuses on knitted garments as an alternative medium to visualize large scale data.

The production of knitted garments is a highly complex process which involves computer support at various steps starting with the designs of both the fabric and the shape of garments until they are ready-to-wear. In recent years, technical innovations in machine knitting have especially focused on the patterning facilities. The patterns are designed by individuals generally depending on the current trends of fashion and the intended target markets and multiplied through mass production. News Knitter translates this individual design process into a world-wide collaboration by utilizing live data streams as a base for pattern generation. Due to the dynamic nature of live data streams, the system generates patterns with unpredictable visuality.

News Knitter is initiated as a quest for an alternative medium to visualize live data streams. The key motive is to translate digital information into the language of the physical world.

News Knitter converts information that is gathered from the daily political news into clothing. Live news feed from the Internet that is broadcasted within 24 hours is analyzed, filtered and converted into a unique visual pattern for a knitted sweater. The system consists of software that receives the content from live feeds, another software that converts it into visual patterns and a fully computerized flat knitting machine that produces the final output. Each product, sweater of News Knitter will be an evidence/result of a specific day.

The last thing i need is more stuff, but really, data and clothing – how seductive is that!

Via: information aesthetics