In this age, we need to find new ways to integrate the modes of inquiry to confront the issues that will worsen over time. Air pollution is rising from what humans have done to the environment, personal privacy is diminishing at every corner of our lives, and the global pandemic has become the new normal. The use of facial garments in society and culture has been a longstanding tradition in history, either to obscure one’s identity, offer protection in combat, or as a declaration of class. In recent times, as COVID-19 sweeps the globe, facial garments take on a new role in our society: protection from the air as we breathe.

This project aims to create a customizable face mask through generative design processes with parametric algorithms that could be altered to an individual’s liking, as well as the physicality of their face. Through the process of 3D printing, it makes the product very much feasible and fast to work with as we can efficiently evaluate in real life how the computation has translated. We live in a society that is rapidly changing and evolving as technology advances every day. As architects, we often see ourselves as mediators between efficiency and beauty.  We question what it means to be within a larger part of the social-political entity and as designers, it’s our duty to tackle these issues to build a viable future.