People are arranging skincare and haircare products on a white marble surface, with a person's hands reaching into a jar of cream. A person with curly hair is lying down, and there are various bottles, jars, a brush, and a makeup bag on the surface.

Touch.

Systems Intelligence applied to material perception.

An ode to presence made real

AI-generated image using Gemini. See the prompt here.

Touch is one of the only senses you can't turn off.

You can close your eyes, cover your ears, hold your nose, refuse to taste.
But touch? You’re always touching something: the surface under you, the air resting on your skin.

I write about touch not just in terms of pleasure or comfort,
but as information.

Think about your phone: every swipe, tap, and pinch is touch as command.
Your fingers speak to technology.

Touch reveals structure and teaches affordance:
what actions are possible,
what materials permit,
what your body already knows before your mind.

We say “it feels nice” or “it’s soft” and leave it at that,
as if touch is too obvious to examine.

But texture tells you construction, quality, age, care.
Weight reveals density, value, and intention.
Temperature signals aliveness;
whether something’s been touched recently or left alone.

When I write about touch, I’m tracking its properties:
texture, weight, temperature, responsiveness, and maintenance.

And how it speaks through the materials we design, wear, or inhabit.

Because to design for touch
is to design for presence.

Touch is systems intelligence made physical.
It’s feedback embodied: pressure, texture, temperature, and response forming an ongoing conversation between matter and attention.

How Touch Connects to the Other 7

TASTE → Texture is half of eating. Crunch, creaminess.

SCENT → Body temperature affects scent diffusion.

SIGHT → We see texture before we feel it.

SOUND → Touch produces sound. Glass clinks.

SPACE → Smooth walls vs. rough brick.

TIME → Touch reveals age. Worn leather, faded fabric.

SYSTEM → Supply chains, cost, upkeep, culture, ethics.

Where Touch Becomes Experience

These aren't sponsorships, just examples:

Hair Care (Texture Management):

  • TGIN

  • K18

Skincare (Biochemical Systems):

  • Dermalogica

  • SKIN1004

Supplements (Internal → External):

  • Creatine

  • Amazing Herbs Black Seed Oil

Training (Somatic Intelligence):

  • Solidcore

  • Apple Fitness

Material Goods (Design Intelligence):

  • Patagonia

  • Loro Piana

Tech & Tools (Interface Texture):

  • Apple

  • Dyson