Sophie Declerck: On Touching And When Less Is Not More

This Technē Cast episode addresses the theme of ‘touch’ and the different ways of thinking the tactile sense is subjected to in Western culture. Whilst touch is central to our aesthetic experiences of food, sex, music, art and design, it is also shrouded in taboo and loaded with negative associations. This episode touches on all these debates – the perceived neglect of touch, touch hunger, and the impact of sensory marketing, haptic technologies, and COVID-19 on our tactile encounters – and expresses hope for a rehabilitation of the sense of touch and our feelings of connection with the material world.Sophie Declerck is a AHRC technē Doctoral Researcher in the Institute for Design Innovation at Loughborough University London. Her research interests span sensory design, design aesthetics, and semiotic meaning-making practices. Her PhD project explores the meanings, material expressions and affective atmospheres of tactility with the aim of formulating an aesthetics of touch to inform the design of material artefacts. Sophie holds an MA in History of Design from the Royal College of Art/V&A Museum, and brings to her research an academic background in Classics, Applied Linguistics and Photography.