Huggable Nature

Huggable Nature

Workshop Statement

Huggable Nature is a short community workshop in which participants create playful interfaces using accessible art and craft materials to express their affection toward nature. The workshop lasts about three hours outside near parks or gardens. Around 10 to 15 people, such as families or local community members, participate in the workshop and each participant spends around 10 to 30 minutes. The workshop organizers wrap felt fabric interfaces around the tree with attached hardware such as micro-controllers, recorders, and speakers in advance. Participants leave voice messages on a recorder attached to the trees. After they leave messages, they are asked to create devices crafted from art materials that they can wear to touch or hug the fabric on the trees while expressing their affection for the trees. The Huggable Nature workshop motivates participants to rapidly and easily create playful interfaces that interact with nature using arts and crafts at minimal cost. Whereas many other similar workshops focus on groups of people with similar abilities, the Huggable Nature workshop is designed to accommodate participants with varied abilities and skill levels. Moreover, the structure of the workshop encourages the exchange of opinions during an open discussion among participants.