Skin and Textile Interaction and the Future of Fashion as Therapeutics

The bodies interaction with clothing and how this influences the skin microbiome have gained a lot of interest within the sciences in the last few years. There has been a fundamental shift in our understanding of the innate chemistry of the body and the role the microbiome plays in shaping it. Textiles are an integral part of our lives, and these insights into bacterial cell communities on our skin have led us to question the clothes we live in and who is living on us, and how this plays a role in our overall health. This chapter will explore the current research and future developments in the field of skin and textiles microbiomes. Firstly, it will discuss textiles and skin in relation to out health and the notions of self, including the nature of modern production methods in clothing which can disrupt skin health and the benefits of more natural and microbiome-friendly therapies. These include probiotic-encapsulated textiles, antioxidants and bioactive ingredients and will also touch on more speculative futures of the textile and skin interaction. This multispecies ‘inter and intra action’ between humans and non-humans is what Donna Haraway describes as an ‘extended synthesis’ where transdisciplinary science and arts practices become entwined to form ecologies, technologies and performances. By exploring the current and future possibilities of these therapeutic materials, it becomes possible to view clothing and the body as one entity.