jammer coat by coop himmelb(l)au protects the wearer from unwanted data collection

the ‘CHBL jammer coat’ by vienna-based architecture firm coop himmelb(l)au protects its wearer from unwanted data collection. according to CHBL,  the oversized tech garment ‘enables its user to disappear: google cannot find you anymore.’ the piece of clothing has been designed using metallic fabrics, which have the inherent ability to block radio waves and signals, shielding the wearer against tracking devices such as GPS.

‘the wave circle pattern of the fabric gives an illusion of strange multiple body parts,’ coop himmelb(l)au adds, ‘which hides and frees the individual physicality.’

jammer coat by coop himmelb(l)au blocks radio waves for device privacy
all images © markus pillhofer

inside, the coat is lined with pockets that accomodate smart devices inluding phones and tablets. the textile cloak essentially makes users virtually un-reachable via mobile phone, and information from credit cards can no longer be tracked.

the coat was created for an exhibition titled abiti da lavoro

the coat was originally created for the ‘abiti da lavoro’ exhibition at the triennale design museum in milano back in 2014. curated by alessandro guerriero, it featured 40 items of clothing created from designers all over the world including alberto aspesi, gentucca bini, andrea branzi, antonio marras, alessandro mendini, issey miyake, tarshito, and vivienne westwood.

detail of the wave circle fabric pattern

rear view

project information:

design team: coop himmelb(l)au wolf d. prix & partner zt gmbh
principal in charge: wolf d. prix
design team: wolf d. prix, sophie c. prix
project team: theresa lusser, maxime lefebvre
model: lucija grabic, ivan grabic
photography: markus pillhofer