Rene Siebum manipulates door handles to explore the sense of touch
Eindhoven designer Rene Siebum has added textures to a set of commercial door handles to investigate ways of making them more interesting to touch (+ slideshow).
![Touch A Sense of Nearness by Rene Siebum](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/12/Touch-A-Sense-of-Nearness-by-Rene-Siebum_dezeen_468_4.jpg)
Rene Siebum's Touch study resulted in 24 iterations of an aluminium door handle bought from a local hardware store.
![Touch A Sense of Nearness by Rene Siebum](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/12/Touch-A-Sense-of-Nearness-by-Rene-Siebum_dezeen_468_5.jpg)
"I noticed it is one of the most commonly used in new-build housing in the Netherlands, but also when traveling abroad it's a recognisable model," Siebum told Dezeen.
![Touch A Sense of Nearness by Rene Siebum](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/12/Touch-A-Sense-of-Nearness-by-Rene-Siebum_dezeen_468_7.jpg)
"I took this model as a metaphor and realised that the round hand grip like this one evokes the least sensorial stimuli."
![Touch A Sense of Nearness by Rene Siebum](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/12/Touch-A-Sense-of-Nearness-by-Rene-Siebum_dezeen_468_6.jpg)
The designer added a range of different materials to the handles, including sand and different types of plastic.
![Touch A Sense of Nearness by Rene Siebum](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/12/Touch-A-Sense-of-Nearness-by-Rene-Siebum_dezeen_468_8.jpg)
He also used a variety of processes to alter the metal, grinding and sanding it back to make it thinner and more delicate, and carving it to provide texture.
![Touch A Sense of Nearness by Rene Siebum](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/12/Touch-A-Sense-of-Nearness-by-Rene-Siebum_dezeen_468_3.jpg)
"I first looked at how our sense of touch communicates with us, I realised the basic elements for our touch sense are texture, structure, volume and temperature," said Siebum.
![Touch A Sense of Nearness by Rene Siebum](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/12/Touch-A-Sense-of-Nearness-by-Rene-Siebum_dezeen_468_2.jpg)
"I started the research with the idea, to take the basic known model and distort it, exploring what the model would 'give' me. From there on I started to explore the change of texture, volume, structure and changed the materiality to play with temperature as well."
![Touch A Sense of Nearness by Rene Siebum](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/12/Touch-A-Sense-of-Nearness-by-Rene-Siebum_dezeen_468_1.jpg)
In one instance, the handle was chopped up into slices along its length then stuck back together haphazardly.
![Touch A Sense of Nearness by Rene Siebum](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/12/Touch-A-Sense-of-Nearness-by-Rene-Siebum-b_dezeen_468_2.jpg)
Another version is wrapped in a coil of metal wire, while another copies the shape of the handle with an open web of the same material.
![Touch A Sense of Nearness by Rene Siebum](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/12/Touch-A-Sense-of-Nearness-by-Rene-Siebum_dezeen_468_0.jpg)
Other recreations were formed from wood, chipboard and soapstone – chosen for their different tactile qualities.
![Touch A Sense of Nearness by Rene Siebum](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/12/Touch-A-Sense-of-Nearness-by-Rene-Siebum-b_dezeen_468_3.jpg)
For more experimental designs, Siebum built up layers of sand and latex to create a light, flexible model that is malleable when warm.
![Touch A Sense of Nearness by Rene Siebum](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/12/Touch-A-Sense-of-Nearness-by-Rene-Siebum-b_dezeen_468_0.jpg)
He melted a plastic version until it bubbled, then left it to cool so it set with smooth bumps across its surface.
![Touch A Sense of Nearness by Rene Siebum](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2014/12/Touch-A-Sense-of-Nearness-by-Rene-Siebum-b_dezeen_468_1.jpg)
Touch was presented during Dutch Design Week in Eindhoven earlier this year.