Digitally Produced Jewellery: Tactile Qualities of a Digital Touch

The importance of tactile contact between the artist and their jewellery has increased over the last decade. More and more artists now implement digital technologies into their work process. This raises questions about the notion of tactility, something that is usually associated as something tangible or given to touch. The authors show that there is a different sensorial mode of engagement with jewellery presented on the screen: during the 3D modelling process or 3D printing. This article aims to investigate the intangible qualities of tactility in the field of digital crafts, while focusing on the material, technical, performative, and psychological aspects. The outcomes include a set of tactile qualities evoked by screen-oriented labour and machinery production: resolution sensitivity, thin-skinned data, psycho-performative realism; and fingerprints, incompleteness and glitch.