Haptic Lab Fish Windsock

Haptic Lab is an interdisciplinary design studio founded by Brooklyn architect Emily Fischer in 2009. Specializing in tactile and sensory design, our custom handmade objects and spaces are designed to playfully explore the sense of touch and feel. Emily made her first quilted maps when her mother was diagnosed with glaucoma; these early projects were meant to be wayfinding tools for the visually impaired.

Haptic designs counter the rapid digitization of our lives by privileging the real, physical world our bodies occupy. Like a cane that safely guides someone down the sidewalk, their projects serve as tools for sensation. They make intricate quilts, kites, and objects that combine new technologies with traditional craft techniques -- infusing a sense of play and timelessness into everything they make.