Wearable technology: the future of fashion

Fashion designer Ying Gao’s glowing dresses catch the eye of the viewer, quite literally. These gaze-activated dresses glow in the dark and the fabric slowly moves in reaction to the viewer’s gaze. Not only are these dresses hypnotic and beautiful to watch, but they also demonstrate how our generation is responding to the trend and future of wearable technology.

This is not the first of recent technologies to attempt bridging the gap between technology and fashion. We are seeing more and more wearable technologies such as Google Glass, the Pebble watch, and lifestyle tracker bracelets such as the Nike Fuel band and the Fitbit. Surely this is only a start of an era of fashionable wearable technology where these innovations will soon become a part of our everyday wardrobe.

The biggest challenge wearable tech companies will face is creating a product that everyone will wear and use all the time. Although we all like to think of ourselves as individuals, it will be much easier for an individual to feel comfortable wearing Google Glass or a gaze-activated dress out of the house if everyone else is doing the same.

Although Gao’s gaze-activated dresses fit in with the wave of wearable technology, I can’t imagine anyone wearing them in public in the near future. For now her frocks and other collections remain as intricate and beautiful pieces of art.

Ying Gao’s other creations involve garments that react to light and others that appear to be breathing with the wearer. Her dresses will be displayed in November at the Shanghai Museum of Contemporary Art and are likely to be the first of many future frocks that incorporate technology to intrigue viewers.

So you tell us, how comfortable are you with wearing technology as a fashion statement?

To see Ying Gao’s other collections and garments mentioned check out her website and this demonstration video.