Sensing/Touching Virtuality

Virtuality is not experienced on an exclusively visual level. Whereas visual properties are often the focus of the study of virtual worlds, this volume centers their tactile and sensory potential. From skin contact with sensors and textiles to questions of communal environments and global perspectives, the interdisciplinary contributions examine how encounters of virtuality are shaped by and connected to all senses. A wide range of themes, encompassing the Jacquard loom and haptic gaming vests, sensitivity in prosthetic technologies and the senses of non-human bodies, converge on the exploration of what sensing virtuality may entail. What happens when we attempt to touch virtual objects? And does virtuality, in turn, touch us?