A system that rethinks how we share images in the age of social media, encouraging us to slow down and engage with photography in a more thoughtful, tangible way.
Connet
Thesis Project by G. Iannone - Undergraduate course in Product Design - IED Roma
Academic year
2025/2026
What if sharing a photograph meant taking the time to appreciate it, rather than immediately scrolling to the next one? This question inspired Giovanni Iannone to develop Connet, an alternative approach to conventional social media. His thesis forms part of a broader investigation into the relationship between people and technology, set against an imagined global internet shutdown. It explores how photo sharing might encourage slower, more mindful interactions and a greater sense of physical presence.
Giovanni designs a system that connects smartphones to fabric surfaces through a local network, without relying on conventional social media platforms. Photographs are transferred onto thermochromic fabric, where heat generated by embedded metallic filaments gradually reveals the images before they fade away. Users interact with the system through a digital interface and a physical controller featuring a rotary dial for browsing and selecting photographs. The fabric displays can also become part of everyday interiors, turning curtains and other textile surfaces into new ways of experiencing images.
Giovanni takes his exploration further with Konnet, a DIY kit that allows users to create interactive textiles using metallic filaments and fabric materials. By bringing together product design, material experimentation and interaction design, he proposes a different relationship with photography: one that values the experience of viewing an image over the constant stream of content offered by digital platforms.
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