Heartree: Weaving Tree Trunk Sensor (Studio 3 - Week 9-10)

By Helen Kwok

NOTE: Lights and soundscape are still to be finalised. I'm still waiting for my final string lights to arrive in the mail, and soundscapes are still in draft format.

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Weaving the touch sensor that will be wrapped around the tree trunk of Heartree.

As the Heartree installation is based in the Weaving section of A Maker's Trail, I wanted to the central sensor to have a weaving component. So I decided to follow this tutorial on how to weave baskets from scratch using paper raffia, but adapted it to create a woven mat with paper raffia and coloured twine.

I then wove in string lights to visually animate the heart beat of The Land Before soundscape.

The end result is a physical woven sensor that is portable and can be attached to any tree.

Some reflections:

• It was interesting to go back to a craft way of working and using my hands to make something physical (and not on a computer screen). 
• The act of weaving can be incredibly meditative, as you repeat the same action over and over again.
• It can also cause repetitive strain injury - a note to myself to take breaks. Weaving for 6 hours straight isn't the smartest thing to do.
• The concept of "measure twice, cut once" cannot be more important when working with physical materials, as there is no undo button.
• When working on a physical installation, so much consideration is needed in regards to how you are going to wire things up. Planning is essential.
• Working on something physical can be quite rewarding, as you have a tangible product at the end of the process.