experience a hug with elena lasaite’s emotional first aid kit

in a world full of uncertainty, excess media and limitless distractions, designer elena lasaite developed a solution to people’s rising emotional needs. the social project, ‘emotional first aid kit’ brings the experience of a hug to people in need of a warm embrace. the result is an inflatable vest that simulates a hug aiding people who feel lonely or just want a cozy cuddle.

elena lasaite’s social project ‘emotional first aid’ seeks to draw attention to loneliness and emotional safety and the stigmatization of these problems in modern society. it provokes thought about natural human needs and artificial solutions such as social networks, artificial intelligence and robots that don’t necessarily meet the person’s desires.

the designer’s first inspiration was a hug box. the hug machine, or squeezebox, is a deep-pressure device designed to calm hypersensitive persons, usually individuals with autism spectrum disorders. ​ the most important thing for the designer was to find the best way to squeeze the user gently. after various prototypes and consulting with psychologists, lasaite chose safety equipment as the main visual inspiration. this refers to the multiple gadgets for physical safety, and the lack of products that aid people’s emotional safety. 

project info:

design: elena lasaite

project name: emotional first aid kit

designboom has received this project from our ‘DIY submissions‘ feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.