Description

The project Metamorphonic is an exploration of an alternative relationship between humans and silkworms. Yuta Ikeya focuses on the unique duality between the utilitarian origins of the domesticated silkworm (Bombyx mori) and its sacred position in the history of Japanese sericulture, conducting research-through-design around the exchange of care, control, and reward.

A triad of habitats was designed for the different stages of their life cycle, in which capacitive sensors pick up the insects’ movements to generate synthesiser tones. The improvised and ever-changing ambient soundscape reflects the species’ temporality. By receiving something uncontrollable in exchange for care, the project contests our utilitarian attitude towards this species. Simultaneously, Yuta Ikeya critically reflects on how his relationship with them shifts throughout the process of rearing the insects in preparation for the exhibition of this very piece.

Press

Article by Bare Conductive

Article by 4TU Design United

Article by Theo Ploeg

Article on WeVux by Teo Sandigliano

Article on Plural Magazine by Nina Zulian

Exhibition

Dutch Design Week 2022 (Design United Expo)

Guest lecture at CSB Amsterdam

Dutch Design Week 2024 (Dutch Design Awards 2024)

Guest lecture at Laurus International School of Science Tokyo

Publication

Yuta Ikeya, Ron Wakkary, and Bahareh Barati. 2023. Metamorphonic: A Reflective Design Inquiry into Human-Silkworm Relationship. In Proceedings of the 2023 ACM Designing Interactive Systems Conference (DIS '23). Association for Computing Machinery, New York, NY, USA, 808–819. https://doi.org/10.1145/3563657.3596053