Future Screens
Future Screens
By Neil Sylva
Considering the continual advancement in screen technology, and how multiple screens pervade our everyday lives, I’ve thought of the screen being eventually applied to the body itself. The screen would be some kind of organic LED that is tattooed into the skin. The body could host multiple screens, in all varieties of shapes and sizes. The OLED tattoo screens would be powered from the person’s own body. Of course the brightness of the screen would be limited, and best viewed in a darkened room, or at night.
The content of the screens could be extremely varied by individual. Some may be very abstract, and respond to impulses generated by other senses. It could be a mood and/or music visualizer for instance, which might be popular at raves. Every person able to generate their own lightshow, that moves with their bodies to the music. For other types of images such as pictures, or small movies, a chip may be implanted with the screen that contains the memory needed to hold that information. New pictures and movies would be transferred to it from other devices, like a computer or iPhone, wirelessly. The fact that the screen is on the body, and that it can be located anywhere on the body, will likely make it suited for an intimate audience, and reflect personal narratives or qualities of the wearer.
The OLED tattoo would be a screen meant for very personal narratives and expression. It will enable people to place ever changing images on their bodies.