Natural Active Textiles: Computational Knitting to Enhance Material Intelligence
Name
Parker-agnes_p-march-arch-2026-thesis.pdf
Size
92.52 MB
Format
Adobe PDF
Checksum (MD5)
9419f7b74deab7a7a55c14e0f03b3c06
Author(s)
Parker, Agnes
Advisor(s)
Tibbits, Skylar
Date Issued
February 2026
Publisher
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Abstract
Our built and worn environments increasingly rely on synthetic materials that resist environmental conditions. Natural fibers offer an alternative paradigm: hygroscopic structures manage moisture, crimped geometries trap insulating air, and hollow cores regulate temperature— adaptive mechanisms refined through evolutionary processes. Despite these stimulus-responsive properties, natural materials remain underutilized in technical applications due to limited methods for controlling and orchestrating their climate behaviors across scales from garments to architectural systems. This thesis demonstrates how computational knitting enables precise control over natural fiber assemblies, creating functionally graded textiles that amplify material responses to humidity and temperature. Through two projects operating at garment and architectural scales, the research establishes design principles for deploying natural materials as active climate interfaces. Rain + Shine, an architectural shading screen for the Venice Architecture Biennale 2025, combines hydrophilic hemp and hydrophobic flax fibers to achieve passive evaporative cooling through differential moisture absorption. Natural Active Materials, developed at the Self Assembly Lab in collaboration with Atelier LUMA, explores moisture management at the apparel scale. Both projects employ industrial knitting to create functionally graded structures that enhance rather than suppress inherent fiber properties. Together, these investigations demonstrate that textiles can function as intelligent environmental interfaces when natural material properties are computationally assembled. The research contributes fabrication methods, material characterization, and design strategies for transitioning from petrochemical to bio-based materials across textile and architectural applications.
MIT Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Architecture
Terms of Use
In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted
Copyright retained by author(s)
Persistent DSpace Link
