Rachel Freire is a trans-diciplinery artist, designer and researcher working across clothing, costume and wearable technology. They are self taught in pattern cutting and trained in Design for Performance at Central St. Martins. Inhabiting the spaces where disciplines meet, their works focuses on intricate, evocative detailing, narrative garments and exploring the relationship between futuristic applications and traditional techniques. They accidentally launched a conceptual fashion label in 2009 to explore the idea of clothing as armour, embarking on a self taught fashion degree live on the catwalks of London Fashion Week.
Rachel Freire Studio focuses on value attribution and how to make sustainability inherent in future design logic, contributing to the roadmap of boutique production and scalability for wearables: integrating technology, craftsmanship and experimental techniques with high-end garment manufacture processes.
Focusing on the essential role of collaboration between the arts and sciences in constructing more sustainable, equitable and aesthetically pleasing futures, Rachel believes knowledge should be free. And that if we want better futures, we must tell better stories and nurture the skills to create them.
current status 2024 IRL + SenSInt at Max Planck + free range antics… ☽◯☾
2023 IRL + guest researcher with Sensorimotor Interaction Group [SenSInt] at Max Planck Institute for Informatics [MPI-INF]
2022 Secret Scifi Budapest adventures [edit: Dune part 2!] + relocating to Santiago De Compostela with Intangible Realities Laboratory [IRL]
2021 Lacklustre Apocalypse downtime. remote VR + psychedelics research + EU lab building adventures
2020 apocalypse gardening. actually sleeping. ISNESS + MiMU round 2 + actual spacesuits!!!!!
2019 visiting tutor RCA. RA EECS Queen Mary. secret scifi costume adventures [edit: DUNE!!!!!!!]. MiMU Gloves preorder + building an Athenaeum in Dalston
PUBLICATIONS
Body Lutherie: Co-Designing a Wearable for Vocal Performance with a Changing Body Rachel Freire, Courtney N. Reed NIME2024 [open access]
RaveNET: Connecting People and Exploring Liminal Space through Wearable Networks in Music Performance Rachel Freire, Valentin Martinez-Missir, Courtney N. Reed, Paul Strohmeier TEI2023 ACM
Group VR experiences can produce ego attenuation and connectedness comparable to psychedelics R. Glowacki, Rhoslyn Roebuck Williams, Mark D. Wonnacott, Olivia M. Maynard, Rachel Freire, James E. Pike & Mike Chatziapostolou 2022 nature scientific reports
Skill-Sleeves: Designing Electrode Garments for Wearability Jarrod Knibbe, Rachel Freire, Marion Koelle, Paul Strohmeier TEI2021 ACM
Knit Stretch Sensor Placement for Body Movement Sensing An Liang, Rebecca Stewart, Rachel Freire, Nick Bryan-Kinns TEI2021 ACM
Isness: Using Multi-Person VR to Design Peak Mystical-Type Experiences Comparable to Psychedelics David R. Glowacki, Mark D. Wonnacott, Rachel Freire, Becca R. Glowacki, Ella M. Gale, James E. Pike, Tiu de Haan, Mike Chatziapostolou, Oussama Metatla CHI2020 BEST PAPER ACM
Effect of bonding and washing on electronic textile stretch sensor properties An Liang, Rebecca Stewart, Rachel Freire, Nick Bryan-Kinns. ISWC 2019 ACM
Embodisuit: A Wearable Platform for Embodied Knowledge Sophia Brueckner and Rachel Freire TEI2018 Arts Track ACM [open access]
Embodisuit: A Wearable Platform for Embodied Knowledge Sophia Brueckner and Rachel Freire ISWC2018 ACM
Designing eTextiles for the Body: Shape, Volume, & Motion Rachel Freire, Paul Strohmeier, Cedric Honnet, Jarrod Knibbe, Sophia Brueckner TEI2018 ACM
Second Skin: An Exploration of eTextile Stretch circuits On The Body R. Freire, P. Strohmeier, C. Honnet TEI2017 Arts Track ACM
EXHIBITIONS
2018
ART IN FLUX Experiments in Media Arts Now, London, UK - Embodisuit
Digital Fancies Bioresponsive E-Textiles and 3D Printing in Fashion, London Tech Week, London, UK - eTextile Crystallography
TEI2018 Stockholm, Sweden - Embodisuit
ISEA2018 International Symposium on Electronic Arts, Durban, South Africa - Embodisuit
Intersections 16th Biennial Symposium, The Ammerman Center for Arts and Technology, CT, USA - Embodisuit
2017
SIGGRAPH Mind-Body Dualism, Asia, Bangkok, Thailand - Embodisuit
Technarte Los Angeles, CA, USA - Embodisuit
IoT2017 Ars Electronica Center, Linz, Austria - Embodisuit
HASTAC2017 The Wearable and Tangible Possible Worlds of Digital Humanities, Orlando, FL, USA - Embodisuit
eTextile Cuveé eTextile summercamp, Les Moulins de Palliard, France - Embodisuit and eTextile Crystallography
TEI2017 Yokohama, Japan - Second Skin
2016/17
On You: Wearing Technology Museum of Design Atlanta [MODA], Georgia, USA - MiMU Gloves prototypes and Me, The Machine bolero
2014/5
Nirvana: Strange forms of Pleasure MUDAC, Lausanne, Switzerland - AW10 jumpsuits
IN PRINT
Handmade Electronic Music: The Art of Hardware Hacking 3rd Ed | Nicolas Collins | 2020
Make: Wearable Electronics | Kate Hartman | 2014
W: STORIES | Stefano Tonchi | 2014
Nirvana. Les Etranges Formes du Plaisir | MUDAC Museum catalogue | 2014
ROCK STAR CHIC | Patrice Farameh | 2013
ReFashioned: Cutting-Edge Clothing from Upcycled Materials | Sass Brown | 2013
Design Behind Desire | Farameh Media | 2012
1 Brief, 50 Designers, 50 Solutions in Fashion Design | Natalio Martin Arroyo | 2011
Shoreditch Unbound | Limited edition | 2011
Aberrant Necropolis | Ellen Rogers | 2010
AWARDS
2020 Worshipful Company of Glovers Golden Glove Award for Innovation for MiMU Gloves
2017 WEARsustain sustainable technology funding [MiMU Gloves textile development]
Artist in Residence at Autodesk Pier 9
2016 The Arts Foundation Fellowship for Materials Innovation [shortlisted]
2009 On|Off Presents.. On schedule launch show at London Fashion Week
GUN FOR HIRE
CLIENTS include: Hermes, Giles Deacon, Alexander McQueen/McQ [leather specialist] | Legendary/Warner Bros [Dune 1+2 - Cutter. Designer: Jacqueline West] | Marvel [Fantastic Four, The Flash, Guardians of the Galaxy, Avengers: Age of Ultron - leather and gloves. Designer: Alexandra Byrne] | HBO, Sony Music, Warner Bros, Universal Music, NBC, Lexus, Virgin Media, Glastonbury, RSC, Wilton's Music Hall, Bloomsbury Theatre [costume design/set design] | Emporio Armani, Temperley London, Coach, Kanye West, Victoria Beckham [LFW/PFW shows/sample machinist]
