Softest Words considers a private love letter, written in unique ink shared by two lovers who also share a bacterial infection in their saliva. Couples create this combination of the unique ink and the bacterial infection as a sign of their commitment to each other. A video created by Grennan shows a woman decoding the letter with her saliva by licking each letter. The fact that it’s a handwritten letter creates a further, physical connection between the two lovers.

CV: Kevin Grennan is a multi-disciplinary designer currently completing his Design Interactions Masters at the Royal College of Art. He uses design to explore the boundaries between humanity and technology.

Read "To form or multiply", an investigation into what design can contribute to synthetic biology, written by Alexandra Daisy Ginsberg.