How does one digitize a pop-up book? A fragile flap-book that is over one hundred years old, with parts that must be unfolded, pulled, or spread apart? A book with mechanical parts made out of paper, such as a cryptography manual from the fourteenth century with working cipher disks that must be rotated on a glued swivel?

The Touch Lab begins with these questions and focuses on three-dimensional textualities and the development of encoding and 3D modeling methods that can finally represent the tactile experiences of reading and composing and the possibilities of virtual interaction. Using high quality imaging and animated models to capture the textures, surfaces, movements, and even the grooves of writing are goals of this lab.