WHAT CAN FASHION LEARN FROM THE AUTISTIC SENSORY EXPERIENCE?

During the Fashion Tales conference, June 17-19 2021, I presented a paper on sensory nourishment through clothing. I avocated for the inclusion of the autistic sensory experience in fashion design practices. It was such a pleasure to share my research and thoughts with a wider audience and spark the many conversations that sprung up afterwards. An edited version of the abstract is below:

“ Clothes are the most intimate artefacts that touch our skin and therefore their sensations shape our everyday interactions. For some people on the autism spectrum the more unpleasant sensations can be overwhelming with the potential to disable these interactions. I argued that we design disabilities by failing to consider the multi sensory experience of clothing in its everyday context.

We all have a unique relationship with our bodies and we all benefit from understanding how it can be enabled and disabled. We all have an intimate relationship with our clothing and benefit from understanding the role it plays in enabling and disabling our bodies. In the last year all our interactions have become physically restricted. Comfort has been escalated as a priority within fashion; indulging soft textiles and loose silhouettes in response to the prohibition of touch and movement elsewhere. Whilst the pandemic has brought great sadness in the absence of human touch it has provided an opportunity for us to re-evaluate what allows us to thrive. I suspect many have turned to clothing as a tool to provide sensory nourishment in a time of great tension in the world.

I believe that fashion can learn a considerable amount from gaining empathy for those with more amplified sensory experiences. People on the autism spectrum have always had to develop great self-awareness around the sensations that can support their well-being. We all benefit from pausing to cultivate our own sensibility.”