Explore the Tactile storytelling collection
Our sense of touch is so important to us in ways we completely overlook every day. And as the digital world continues to invade our physical world, that sense of touch is often left behind. UX designers will always point to haptic feedback as a way of bridging this gap but is it enough?
I worked with a picture framer exploring our relationship with tactility not too long ago. She explained how, when she was teacher, children at the age of five were struggling with their fine motor skills; they were clasping pens and paint brushes ham-fistedly as opposed to with their fingertips. This is only anecdotal, but we can鈥檛 deny that there are concerns regarding our sense of touch. Especially when physical interactions are increasingly had with touch screens that offer little tactile feedback.
So how can we restore our relationship with the physical world? Well, it鈥檚 always healthy to greet the great outdoors and get our hands dirty in nature. Be mindful about textures too. Our fingertips are extremely sensitive and can detect a dip in the surface just 13 nanometres deep. As our world has slowed down slightly due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many people are stopping to smell the roses and notice the smaller, tactile details.
But imagery is also a great way to explore our sense of touch. Images tend to carry a lot of emotional weight and this can be useful in conveying tactility. It could also prove to be effective in connecting audiences with brands. That鈥檚 why we put together our tactile storytelling collection which has been curated to highlight visual aspects which trigger a sensory response in the viewer.