#digitalnativ

When I heard that we’re going to have ROBOT as our May global theme, I couldn’t be more… unenthusiastic. Sorry! Being a very stereotypical woman as I am, my understanding and interest towards machineries is pretty much nonexistent.

However, when our speaker, Miebi Sikoki, stepped into the room and started telling his love affair with digital fabrication that combines art, design and machinery, I was in awe. 

For a few years now, Miebi has been advocating awareness of tech culture through his digital fabrication studio, DigitalNativ. He dismantles the perception that tech is a cold, distant entity, and encourages everyday interactions by users to experience the possibilities technology provides. DigitalNativ are not just inventors—they’re artists.

For instance, they’ve made a goggle-earphone headpiece prototype that turns our vision into black and white, but translates colors into musical notes. So, for example, red is C, blue is D, and so on. Miebi attempted to use the headpiece for days non-stop, and see what would happened to his perception if he couldn’t see—but hear—colors? 

Miebi also stated that as massive technology continues to dominate our life, like it or not, we need to continually explore the role machines play in creativity and disruption, especially that now futuristic technologies in our childhood cartoons slowly becoming realities.