Master's in Design for Emergent Futures: Research, Design Experiments, & Interventions

Designing for

Emergent

Futures

JULIA STEKETEE

RESEARCH, DESIGN EXPERIMENTS & INTERVENTIONS IN SUMMARY

Contents

3

4

6

7

8

Introduction

Background & Experience

Threads of Interest

Tapestry of Weak Signals

Finding my Fight

10

Design Experiments & Interventions

11

16

25

30

34

38

42

46

50

54

57

62

66

70

76

My Circular Apartment

Bio-material Explorations

Molding Mycelium

Myceliation: Introductory Workshop

Myceliation: In-depth Workshop

DIY Mycelium grow lab

Myco-remediation experiments

REsource: Concept, Communication & Conversations

REsource: Communal Collection System

Open-source Dehydrator & Incubator

Natural Dyes & Bioplastics Explorations

REsource: Workshop on bio-based & Circular materials

Sewn to Stay, Sewn to go @ CON-serve

Bio-shoe & Bio wearables @ Symbiatipico

Bibliography

Designing for

Emergent

Futures

INTRODUCTION

Design is a powerful tool for transformation. If we, as designers, look to be

critical agents of change we must expland our perspectives and skillsets beyond

isolated and self-referential processes. Amidst the plethora of complex and

interconnected problems that we face today–our environmental emergency,

social inequity, and the centralization of wealth and power–I aim to use design as

an instrument to facilitate change. Here, I embark on an investigative and transdisciplinary

design practice that addresses environmental responsibility, social

and educational equity, and evolving cultures of craft and fabrication. I look to

ecology, craft traditions, and lo-tech solutions for inspiration. In collaboration

with fellow students and members of my local community, I use my skills as

a maker, designer, and material researcher to create new narratives around

emergent futures. The philosophical theory of emergence describes small things

forming bigger things that have different properties than the sum of their parts.

In short, emergence is complexity arrising from simplicity.1 In tune with this field

of thought, I disregard moonshot or massive solutions, and instead, I approach

change through small, sustained and scalable solutions that embrace iteration

and adaptation amidst diverse communities and contexts. The series of projects

that follow present the research, prototypes, and design interventions that I

worked on over a 9 month period.

INSTITUTE OF ADVANCED ARCHITECTURE OF CATALONIA

ELISAVA (Escola Superior de Disseny)

FABLAB BARCELONA

INTRODUCTION 3

BACKGROUND, EXPERIENCE, & CONTEXT

maker

artist of craft

inquisitive

climate conscious

JULIA STEKETEE | BARCELONA, 2021 | PHOTO REBECCA VAN EIJK

As a furniture designer and artist of craft, my past work finds its roots in material

exploration, cultural symbology, and the geometries of language. I express my curiosity

and inquistive nature through working with my hands. I love to explore new materials,

methods of making, and new and ancient craft traditions. I pair these interests with a love

for nature and a deep respect for the elegance of biology and the unmatched intelligence

of our ecological systems. As we face multifaceted and complex crises, I look for ways

to leave my parasitic behavior behind, and adopt a practice of reverence and reciprocity.

Design is a tool for change, but it is our responsibility as individuals, communities, and

organizations to choose the direction that we take. I aim to use this tool to give back to

our natural systems and foster communities that support this shift.

PORTFOLIO : JULIASTEKETEE.COM

4 BACKGROUND, EXPERIENCE, CONTEXT

READY FOR A MATERIAL REVOLUTION | OCTOBER 2021 | TERM 1

We live in a material world. Materialism is embedded in the mantras of my home nation, the USA, and

these messages of mass consumerism have spread globally like an epidemic. As we witness materialistic

attitudes flourish, we neglect our material intelligence. We dispose of our material sensitivity, respect,

consciousness and responsibility.

For millenia we have developed technology to extract, collect and manipulate material. Our ability to control

and master these physical elements has revolutionized the way that we live and has marked our societies

with strenght and power. Yet we often take the constructed environment and physical objects for granted.

We lack understanding of the geographical origins, histories, craftspeople or fabrication techniques, and

the physical elements and energy needed to produce our built world. As we loose this intelligence, we

loose appreciation for material objects. They become disposable, replaceable, and rid of value. And for this

reason, we send them to the dump.

My background in furniture design and sculpture changed the way that I interacted with my material world.

My studies were centered around detailed craft and encouraged us not only to admire something for its

aesthetics but rather for the way in which it was made. I could no longer dismiss the objects that I used

everyday, instead I tried to understand what material they were made of, how their parts joined together,

were they made by hand or machine, and what tools and techniques were employed. Learning about

materials and working with my hands anchors me to reality and in turn, invites me to take part in traditions,

histories, cultures, science, innovation, and industry.

According to the World Economic Forum, “Building operations and construction account for nearly 40% of

global energy-related CO2 emissions”.2

How are we going to reduce these emissions when our population is exploding, our economies are predicted

to grow, and demand for housing stock and infrastructure increases? The European Union and organizations

like the Ellen MacArthur Foundation insist that a shift to The Circular Economy could provide a promising

solution.

The circular economy is based on three principles, driven by design: 1. Eliminate waste and pollution, 2.

Circulate products and materials (at their highest value), and 3. Regenerate nature. It decouples economic

activity from the consumption of finite resources.3 W

The concept is crisp and clean but in practice is messy and complex. The proposal is not yet well understood

by much of the world and today the methods and strategies are being implemented at a relatively small

scale. We are at the very beginning of something utterly revoutionary. We have a long way to go and it will

take all of us to instrument such a systemic change. The Circular Economy can not ride on the back of just

a few large companies. Rather, common values, behaviors, consciousness, and financial investments must

bolster this economic and social metamorphosis. Just like a currency or the housing market, The Circular

Economy is based on shared values, trust, and dedication. We will need to change our actions, and inspire

a lot of minds, hearts, attitudes in order for The Circular Economy to gain traction and have meaningful

impact.

Building and bolstering material consciousness will play a critical role in instigating change. In addition we

will have to work restore our long term vision, improve our organization and inter-sector communication,

and celebrate creativity with a critical eye. I am ready for a material revolution. Are you willing to join the

fight?

BACKGROUND, EXPERIENCE, CONTEXT 5

THREADS fo

THREADS OF INTEREST | OCTOBER 2021 | TERM 1

6

Text, textile, and technology all originate from the same Proto-indo-european language family. I believe that

recognizing and respecting our roots, and the complexity of our natural ecosystems and social networks

can help us design a more sustainable and harmonious future. A knitted fabric relies on one thread to hold

the entire structure together and when cut a single point, it can be unravelled completely. In contrast, a

woven relies on countless individual threads and will retain its structure even when slashed several times.

To build a reslient system we can look to a diversity of individuals, inputs and intelligences. Our diverse

skills, knowlegde, and attititudes exist in relation to each other and as we develop them, we strengthen

our networks on a personal, community and global level. I began this course by mapping our my skills,

interests, and aspirations into a simple weave. As I grow as a designer, an artist of craft, and a person, I hope

to strenthen the fibers of my personal weaving project (see above).

r THOUGHT

TAPESTRY of WEAK SIGNALS | OCTOBER 2021 | TERM 1

Every future scenario is built by detecting “weak signals” that set trends and point to certain directions, based

on the analysis of the main change factors we can detect in the present. Mariana Quintero, in collaboration

with students and fellow professors, has developed a deck of signals that constitute the ongoing Atlas of

weak signals, designed to help us navigate and position ourselves in this complex panorama. We selected

topics, themes, and terms that resonated with our personal and professional passions. I used these cards

to create threads of interest which I composed and connected into a woven framework. Topics such as

Ecology, Indigenous TEK, Bio-Architecture, Bio-Materials, Material Literacy, Re-use and Refurbishment,

and the Circular Economy guide the overall composition and Regenerative Design ties many seemingly

disparate topics to a central core.

7

egenerati

REGENERATIVE DESIGN is a process-oriented whole system approach to design.

The term “regenerative” describes processes that restore, renew or revitalize their

own sources of energy and materials. Regenerative design uses whole systems thinking to create

resilient and equitable systems that integrate the needs of society with the integrity of nature.1

8 FINDING MY FIGHT

FINDING MY FIGHT | DECEMBER 2021 | TERM 1

Books such as Lo-TEK Design by Radical Indigenism by Julia Watson, Braiding Sweetgrass by

Robin Wall Kimmerman, and Entangled Life by Mervin Sheldrake have helped me to recalibrate

my compass. I came into this masters’ course with a more human-centered perspective but

I am begining to re-orient my practice to foster planetary mutualism and inter-species

collaboration. These books present concepts such as inter-species collaboration,

reciprocity, lo-TEK (in contrast to hi-tech), radical wisdom, and radical mycology.

Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) has been widely dismissed in western

thought and “developed”populations but is ironically deeply grounded in

science and recognizes complex ecological systems, and environmental

ve Design

As an increasingly urban dwelling species, fast paced, addicted

to producing and polluting, we humans have a lot to learn from our

Indigenous peoples, other animals, plants, bacteria, and fungi. Pablo

Amaringo reminds us that “If they burn what’s left of the rainforests, it’s

the same as burning a whole library of books without ever having read them”.

Our natural world is rich with knowledge but ironically, to borrow Julia Watson’s

words, “we are searching for wisdom while drowning in information”4. As I explore the idea of

circular living, and the circular economy, and material intelligence, I look to TEK and our natural

ecological systems for inspiration.

FINDING MY FIGHT 9

Design

Experiments

& Interventions

10 DESIGN EXPERIMENTS & INTERVENTIONS

My Circular

Apartment

OCTOBER - DECEMBER, 2021 | TERM 1

I will never forget the human rights lawyer and activist, Bryan

Stevenson’s words during a talk in 2019. He spoke with conviction,

“the power is in proximity”5 and gave us one piece of advice, “get

closer”. As citizens and as designers we tend to design for our users

as opposed to designing with our community. During this course,

we were encouraged to break this pattern by approaching a our

design research from a first person perspective. Whatever the idea

is, get close to it, live it, breath it, struggle with it, and share it. In this

project, I take on an and autobiographical approach to the question:

Can we eliminate the idea of waste and the linear economy? I apply

the circular economy’s rule of Rs: refuse, rethink, reduce, reuse,

repair, refubish, repurpose, recycle, return, recover, regenerate and

rot, at an individual (apartment-size) scale to better understand what

is possible or painfully inconvenient and how our systems could be

improved to ease others into less wasteful behaviors.

DESIGN EXPERMINENTS & INTERVENTIONS 11

CONCIOUS CONSUMERISM

REfuse &

Buying in bulk where I could

refill old jars, tuperwares or

containers helped me to

reduce on packaging.

REduce

HOMEMADE ALTERNATIVES

Making Nut milks at home

allowed me to reduce the

amount of TETRAPAK

cartons that I was

consuming.

DESIGNING ALTERNATIVES

To replace disposable waterfilters with plastic

casings, I designed re-usable ceramic alternatives.

12 MY CIRCULAR APARTMENT

REpurspose &

REuse

MY CIRCULAR APARTMENT 13

REcover &

REfurbish

DEHYDRATOR MADE FROM STREET TRASH & WOOD SCRAPS

After finding the carcas of a wooden cabinet on the street, I decided to refurbish it in order to further explore

how I could bring a second life to my discarded re-use my food waste. Later on, I used it to dehydrate orange

peels and coffee grinds and bio-material experiments.

14 MY CIRCULAR APARTMENT

APARTMENT SIZE VERMICOMPOST

REgenerate &

Rot

Nature is the champion recycler and has been doing

perfecting the art over billions of years. I employed the

help of some hungry red wriggler worms to help speed

the process of turning the nutrients from my food waste

into a balanced biome for my plants. The two black bins

provide the architecture for the double layer compost at

an appropriate size for a small apartment terrace.

TOP LAYER

FOOD SCRAPS ADDED HERE

BOTTOM LAYER

COMPOST READY TO USE

MY CIRCULAR APARTMENT 15

Bio-material

Explorations

OCTOBER 2021 - JUNE, 2022 | TERM 1, 2 & 3

We have entered a new geological era, the Anthropocene, one paved

with concrete and polluted with plastic. We lust for toxic objects that

are designed to last one use and to live in on the top of a trash heap for

thousands of years. We design monstrous structures, only achievable

in concrete. We are leaving a mark on the geological record while

leaving the traditions, health and well-being of our ancestral origins

and craft practices behind. In efforts to learn about nature based

alternatives, I explore bio-materials at different scales, using waste

ingredients from the home kitchen and local food industrieds to make

small material samples for packaging or interior design applications,

to the architectural scale, as I learn natural building techniques using

local materials such as earth, straw, cane and recycled cork.


PHOTO JULIA STEKETEE

MATERIALS from

Food

Waste

& Natural

Binders

JANUARY - JUNE 2022 | TERM 2 & 3

Designers are often taught that materials can be purchaed off a shelf or in a catalogue

and are acustomed to working with homogeneous and highly industrialized products

which may have a high carbon footprint and be produced far from home. To explore

the idea of local production and up-cycling, I and my fellow classmates collected waste

materials from our homes, local restaurants and food industries and combined them

with natural binders to create bio-based material alternatives to their plastic based

counter parts. I explored working with algal binders such as agar agar and alginate,

animal based binders such as gelatin and natural resins like pine resin, shellac, and

damar gum. I was inspired by the recipes that were compiled as part of the EU funded

project, Remix el Barrio and the Materiom.org community.

BIO MATERIAL EXPLORATIONS 17

BIO MATERIAL EXPLORATIONS

PHOTOS JULIA STEKETEE

Agar

Aliginate

3D PRINTING BIO-COMPOSITES | TERM 2

I collected spent beer grains from a local brewery, Freddo Fox and eggshells from my own home and a local

restaurant, LEKA. I dried and ground these waste materials into powders and mixed them with different

algal and plant based binders, agar, alginate, and xatana gum and water into a paste. I fed 3D printed

material samples using a 3D printer, adapted for printing paste. I altered the recipes in an iterative process,

adding glycerin (a natural plasticizer), calcium chloride orother natural additives such as salt and sugar to

achieve chemical bonds and different levels of strenghth and flexibility.

18

PHOTO FABLAB BARCELONA

Gelatin

Pine Resin

EGGSHELL EXPLORATIONS | TERM 3

I mixed eggshell waste from LEKA with natural

binders such as gelatin, alginate and agar in

efforts to achieve a ceramic-like material that

could be scupted by hand, cast, or poured over

a mold. See examples above.

PINE RESIN EXPLORATIONS

| TERM 2

Using simple molds repurposed from household

objects or milled on the CNC, I experimented

with casting food waste and pine resin mixtures

into hard bio-composites. The examples in this

image show orange peel waste from Santagloria

Café and spent beer grains from Freddo Fox

brewery.

BIO MATERIAL EXPLORATIONS 19

MATERIAL

RESEARCH

at BIOMA

Bio-cons

OCTOBER 2021 - JUNE 2022 | TERM 1, 2 & 3

A collective of climate conscious architects, Bioarquitectura

Mediterranea have joined forces with

ConnectHort, a community garden in Poble Nou,

Barcelona and local community members to form

BIOMA. In the corner of the garden, we are constructing

a house made of natural and local materials. Here I have

been able to learn about techniques that have been

practiced for centuries and adapt age-old recipes to our

local context and the materials available locally. Many

of these techniques are well described and illustrated in

Jonsan Van Langen’s book, the Barefoot Architect.

20 BIO MATERIAL EXPLORATIONS

PHOTOS REBECCA VAN EIJK


truction

ADOBE BRICKS

The recipe contains: earth, sand, straw, lime, and water.

We mixed the dry ingredients first and then water is

added slowly while mixing by hand or an electric mixer.

We pressed the mixture into a mold, remove the mold

while wet and let dry for up to week.We used these

bricks to build some of the structure’s walls.

21

Bio-archi

QUINCHA WALL

We tacked cane strips onto a either side of a

wooden wall frame and filled the void with straw,

dunked in water and earth. We pressed the straw

down using a wooden press at frequent intervals to

ensure that it was well compacted. These walls are

later plastered using earth and lime.

22 BIO-MATERIAL EXPLORATIONS

PHOTOS REBECCA VAN EIJK

tecture

REBOQUE TECHNIQUE

Using earth, lime, sand, or small rocks, we plastered a the

adobe brick and quincha walls. The plastering is done in

layers. The first layer is coarse due to the addition of sand

or small rocks. The final layer is smooth and the dirt used

must be filtered beforehand to remove any aggragates.

BIO-MATERIAL EXPLORATIONS 23

Co-creatio


PHOTO REBECCA VAN EIJK

CORK & LIME BRICKS

Using recycled cork which was

recovered from a demolished bioarchitecture

project, we mixed in lime

and sand to create a light weight and

insulating brick. We experimented

with different ratios to achieve

a easily workable and replicable

outcome. We filled the mixture into

molds, removed the mold while still

wet, and dried the bricks for up to a

week.


24

Molding

Mycelium

NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2021 | TERM 1

Mycelium is the root structure of mushrooms. It is known to grow fast

on cellulose and lignin based substrates such as wood, hemp, or other

agricultural products. Designers, architects, and material scientists

are exploring how these myco-rhizal networks can be grown to create

bio-composites that can be implemented in architectural, textile and

interior design applications. I wanted to explore how to make mycomaterials

from a hands-on approach and I ordered a pre-inoculated

substrate from Mycelium Materials Europe, a company based in the

Netherlands. Using this sawdust and Reishi mycelium substrate,

I was able to grow materials into molds and better understand the

materials properties and possible applications.

n

DESIGN EXPERIMENTS & INTERVENTIONS 25

Mold

making

MYCELIUM

TETRIS


NOVEMBER 2021 - DECEMBER 2021 | TERM 1

I created a series of molds made from vacuum

formed polystyrene. I recognize the irony of using a

petroleum based material to mold a natural material

but chose polystyrene because it is easy to clean

and allowed for rapid prototyping. Replacing the

plastic mold will be paramount when planning how

to scale this production process. In collaboration

with Roberto Broce, we filled the molds with the

pre-inoculated mycelium substate and let the

roots grow for 7 days. The image below shows the

mycelium substrate. We broke this up into a fine

dust in order to fill the molds. The mycelium grows

in the mold and serves as the glue in between the

sawdust particles.

26 MOLDING MYCELIUM

PHOTO CHRIS ERNST

+

Growing


material

samples

MOLDING MYCELIUM 27

DESIGNING & PROTOTYPING

Mycelium

Planters

NOVEMBER 2021 | TERM 1

Mycelium composites are characterized by being hydrophobic, lightweight, insulating and 100%

biodegradeable. Because of these characteristics I wanted to test the application of the Reishi mycomaterial

as a hanging planter, to provide and alternative to common place plastic hanging pots. I made

two part mold, using wood, blue polystyrene foam, and a vacuum formed polystyrene sheet. Although this

element was not made from renewable materials, the mold is designed to be reused repeatedly to produce

many modules. The modules can be removed from the mold and later grown together so long as the other

modules are kept alive. After the connections have been made the structure should be dried to remove any

water for other undesireable fungus to contaminate and deteriorate the Reishi root network’s structural

integrity. See the process & prototype in the images on the following page.

28 MOLDING MYCELIUM

MOLDING MYCELIUM

REMOVING MYCELIUM

COMPOSITE FROM MOLD


29

Myceliation:

Introductory

Workshop

DECEMBER 2021 | TERM 1

In collaboration with Roberto Broce, we organized a workshop about

Mycelium for bio-remediation and fabrication. Bioremediation is the

treatment of pollutants or waste by the use of microorganisms (such

as bacteria) that break down the undesirable substances. Mycoremediation

describes fungi’s ability to bio-remediate. Most fungi

like to feed cellulose based substrates and as they feed, they excrete

enzymes that catalyze the breakdown the reaction of long polmer

chains into monomers into their single elements. Many species have

been discovered to remediate toxic substances such as crude oil,

polyurethane, and polyethylene. and other petroleum based plastics.

Fungi, like Reishi are known to grow fast and form a dense mycorhizal

network that can be used to make myco-composites and pure

myco materials that are now being introduced into architectural,

packaging, and apparel industries. During this workshop we introduce

the participants to the wonders of the fungi kingdom, essential mycovocabulary.

We also organized a group activities to help participants

learn about myco-remediation and how to make their own mycomaterials.


PHOTO VIKRANT MISHRA

Mycoremediation

Pleurotus Ostreatus can

bioremediate CIGARETTE BUTTS

(cellulose acetate)

Aspergillus niger, Asperigillus

flavus, Paecilomyces lilacinus,

& Lasiodiplodia theobromae

can bioremediate LOW-DENSITY

POLYETHYLENE (LDPE)

Trametes villosa, Pyconoporus

sanguineus, Asperigillus niger,

Aspergillus Flavus, Paecilomyces

lilacinus & coriolopsis can

bioremediate POLYPROPYLENE (PP)

MYCO-REMEDIATION ACTIVITY | PHOTO VIKRANT MISHRA

Many scientific studies have proved that a variety of fungi species can degrade a wide variety of toxic

substances. It is widely understood that you can train fungi species to eat (& degrade) certain toxic

substances by weaning them off their more prefered diet and onto the toxic diet. I designed a deck of 17

fungi species cards, each of which has been proven to degrade 1 or more of the 12 toxic substances which I

presented in petri dishes during the workshop. We asked the participants to pair the fungi species with the

toxic substance that they can degrade.

MYCELIATION: INTRODUCTORY WORKSHOP 31

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MYCELIATION: INTRODUCTORY WORKSHOP

© Joooooooosssssé Roooooooobbeeeeeeeerrrrrttttttoooooooo PPeeeeeeeerrrrruuucccccccaaa

PHOTO VIKRANT MISHRA

PPhoooooooottttttoooooooo

MYCELIATION MYCO-REMEDIATOR CARDS | PHOTO VIKRANT MISHRA

I designed the myco-remediator cards to encourage the participants to learn about the diversity of the fungi

kingdom and the diverse range of toxic substances that they can degrade. During the workshop activity,

the answers were written on separate cards hidden below the toxic substances. I created a version of the a

deck with the answers visible on the cards for educational use. Four cards from this deck are shown above.

32

Mushroooom®

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Paackaaggingg

Reeeiishhii Leeeathheeer

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Leeatheer

The Hy-Fiii Paviiilllliiion

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Biiiooooreemeeddiiiatiiioooon | Foooooooodd


MYCELIATION: INTRODUCTORY WORKSHOP

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Mycofabrication

MYCELIATION APPLICATION CARDS | PHOTO FABLAB BARCELONA

Mycelium materials are emerging in a variety of different industries such as, packaging, interior design,

apparel, architecture. We see them appearing as a regenerative alternative to leather, acoustic panels,

insulation, flooring, and even coffins. I compiled a deck of cards that show some of the most successful

examples of how designers, architects, individuals and companies are growing fungi species into previously

unthinkable creations.

33

Myceliation:

In-depth

Workshop

JANUARY 2021 | TERM 2

Roberto Broce and I got the opportuntity to share some of our

research and experiments with a group of undergraduate design

and engineering students at ELISAVA for a two-day workshop. This

workshop was part of an elective course on Mycelium materials.

During the first day’s session we started with a presentation about

the wonders of the fungi kingdom, myco-remediation, and techniques

that other designers and architects have used to fabricate mycomaterials.

Together we did the myco-remediation activity that we had

trialed during our first workshop and later broke into groups to discuss

the student’s individual myco-designs. During the second session,

we prepared myco-remediation experiments and filled molds with a

myco-substrate and stored them to monitor their growth.


LECTURES & ACTIVITIES on BIO-

REMEDIATION & APPLICATIONS of

MYCO MATERIALS

We started the workshop with some theory

about the fungi kingdom, mycelium, and

myco-remediation. Next, we covered

mycelium fabrication methods and

discussed the difference between mycocomposite

materials and pure mycelium

materials. The students were had many

questions about how to grow the material,

how to achieve strength, flexiblity, or give

it color.

Theory

PHOTOS ROBERTO BROCE

MYCELIATION: IN-DEPTH WORKSHOP 35

MOLDING WITH MYCELIUM DEMONSTRATION

MYCO-REMEDIATION EXPERIMENT

We demonstrated to the group of students

how to prepare an agar-potato starchdextrose

medium, fill the petri dishes with

medium and a toxic substance such as

LDPE or OXO degradable plastics, sterilize

the petri dishes and medium with a pressure

cooker, and innoculate the medium with

Pleurotus Ostreatus mycelium around a

bunsen burner. The petri dishes should then

be left in an incubator to facilitate mycelium

growth. Alternatively they can be left at

room temperature in a humid and protected

environment. This demonstration also allowed

the students to understand that the mycelium

can grow on a variety of different substrates.

We asked students to bring molds to the class.

We discussed what forms work for molding

and how to make molds. It is important that

the mold is sterile and will not stick to the

mycelium. Therefore the mold should not

be made of wood or other cellulose based

materials because the mycelium may feed on

and adhere to the mold.

First, we sanitized all our surfaces and tools

with alchol. Next, we mixed Pleurotus Ostreatus

grain with sawdust and filled the mixture with

the substrate.

Unfortunately, we could not work with preinoculated

substrate and therefore we

improvised using grain spawn. Usually you

mix the grain spawn with the substrate (e.g.

woodchips) and let the mycelium colonize the

Hands-on


36 MYCELIATION: IN-DEPTH WORKSHOP

substrate before filling the molds. Because we

were offered to give the workshop with much

advanced warning, we were not able to grow

the mycelium on the woodchips beforehand.

We filled the molds with the innoculated

substrate but explained that in an ideal

situation the molding process should happen

after the mycelium has colonized the substrate

and white fuzzy growth is visible throughout

the mixture.

PHOTO ELISAVA PHOTO ELISAVA

We answered many of the students queries

and shared practical tips that would help the

students carry on with their own projects.

At the end of the workshop, we collected some

of the students emails and introduced them to

the Notion board (a collaborative note taking

board) that we created to share knowledge on

the topic of fungi fabrication.

PHOTO ROBERTO BROCE

MYCELIATION: IN-DEPTH WORKSHOP 37

DIY

Mycelium

GrowLab

JANUARY 2021 | TERM 2

Keeping your workspace sterile and organized is key to working with

mycelium. The substrates can get easily contaminated by other

bacteria and molds and wil weaken or choke out the desired fungi

species. In my previous experiments, I was working with substrate

that I ordered from the Netherlands. This substrate is known to

grown fast and have low risk of contamination, but I wanted to shift

to using local waste products as substrate for growing mycelium and

localize my production. Because I am based in Barcelona, I identified

some local mushroom growers and spore and grain spawn suppliers

in Catalonia. Next, i set forth creating DIY laboratory space in my

apartment. Unfortunately my space was limited and my air unfiltered

but I made do with some easily accessible and affordable equipment.

My simple and storeable set up allowed me to sterilize, innoculate

and grow Reishi mycelium on a variety of different substrates,

monitor their growth, and grow them into natural fabric (as opposed

to polystyrene) molds.



Tools

to

EQUIPMENT & MATERIALS

I created an DIY incubator with a controlled

temperature and a water tray to increase the

humidity. In order to innoculate (add mycelium

spores or grain spawn to) the substrates, I used my

pressure cooker which kills all bacteria at 150 psi.

Aditionally, I made my own mushroom growing

bags to grow the mycelium on the substrates while

reducing the risk of contamination. Below you can

see some of the other tools that I found essential

my myco-experiments.

DIY MYCELIUM GROWLAB

TEMPERATURE SENSOR & CONTROLLER

COTTON BALLS (New / Clean)

GLOVES

HEATING PAD

DIY MUSHROOM BAGS

ALCOHOL (Isoprol)

PLASTIC TRAY (for water)

SCALE

PRESSURE COOKER

DIY INCUBATOR

REISHI GRAIN SPAWN

STEAMER

39


Substrates

CREATING SUBSTRATE MIXES

USED COFFEE GROUNDS

I collected waste from different sources, coffee

grinds from my house, sugar cane waste

collected from visit to Brazil, woodchips from

TMDC, a woodshop in Barcelona and spent beer

grains from Freddo Fox, a local brewery. I mixed

these 4 substrates together in different ratios,

sterilized them using the pressure cooker and

innoculated them with Reishi grain spawn from

Bolets de Soca, a local fungi grower. Sugar cane

grew the best by far and the fibrous nature of

the plant allowed for increased strength.

SUGAR CANE WASTE


Monitoring

40

WOODCHIPS / SAWDUST

SPENT BEER GRAINS

GROWTH & CONTAMINATION

I placed the growing bags into my home made

incubator box and monitored their growth over

the course of two weaks. Two of the 8 bags

got contaminated after one week of growth.

Once contaminated, I was forced to compost

the contents immediately in fears that it might

spread to the other substrates. After the first

week, I moved the contents of the remaining

bags around, breaking apart and mixing

the white mycelial growth to promote more

even colonization of the substrate. After the

second week, I filled fabric molds with some

of the myco-substrates that showed sufficient

growth (a pleathora of white fuzzy hyphae). If

I did not see sufficient growth, I waited a few

more days before using the contents to fill a

mold. Unfortunately, most all of my fabric mold

myco-samples were later contaminated.


Growth

41

Mycoremediation

Experiments

NOVEMBER 2021 - JUNE 2022 | TERM 1, 2, 3

In collaboration with Roberto Broce and Annah Ololade Sangosanya,

we set up some experiments to try to observe two different fungi

species–Pleurotus Ostreatus (oyster mushrooms) and Pestalotiopsis

Microspora–degrade a number of different toxins: OXO petroleumbased

“biodegradable” plastic bags, Low Density Polyethylene

(LDPE) plastic bags, Polystyrene (PS) foam, Polyurethane (PU) foam,

and synthetic textile waste and denim textile waste. To perform the

experiments we prepared a petri dish with a sterilized cellulose based

substrate for the mycelium to feed on and added the toxic substance

to the petri dish. We hypothesized that the mycelium would start to

eat the toxic substance as the cellulose substrate began to run low.

We did these experiments in stages and monitored the growth of the

mycelium over the course of weeks and sometimes months.


Pleurotus Ostreatus &

MYCO REMEDIATION EXPERIMENTS


Pestaliopsis Microspora

EXPERIMENTS TO DEGRADE LDPE

& OXO PLASTIC WITH OYSTER

MYCELIUM | NOVEMBER 2021

Roberto Broce and I started

experimenting with Oyster (Pleurotus

Ostreatus) mycelium. We were

inspired by the Livin studio’s project,

the Fungi Mutarium. In this project

they mix an agar (algae) substrate

mixed with OXO degradeable plastic*

and allow the oyster mycelium to grow

in an incubator. The oyster mycelium

degrades the plastic, rendering the

final product edible. We prepared a

agar and potato dextrose medium,

sterilized and poured it into a petri

dish with pieces of OXO degradeable

plastic, and added some oyster grain

spawn. We repeated this with LDPE

instead of OXO plastic. The mycelium

visibly engulfed the plastics but

we would need to perform more

sophisticated laboratory tests to see

if the toxic sustances were fully or

partiallly bio-degraded.

*OXO degradeable plastics are composed

of PP, PS, or PS petroleium based resins,

bio-additives and regulated metal

additives that catalyze the break down

of the material. When they degrade

they break up into microplastics.

These bags are often falsely lableled as

biodegradeable or compostable but are

very harmful to the environment.


43

MYCO-REMEDIATION EXPERIMENTS

Degrading

EXPERIMENTS TO DEGRADE PLA

& PU & PS with PESTALIOPSIS

MICROSPORA | MARCH 2022

44

Next, Roberto Broce and I experimented

with Pestaliopsis Microspora (PM),

a fungus that was discovered in

the Amazon and has been proven

to bioremediate Polyurethane. We

prepared a agar and potato dextrose

medium, sterilized and poured it into a

petri dish with pieces of Polyurethane

(PU) foam, and added some PM spores.

We then repeated this but replaces the

PU foam with Polylactic Acid (PLA) and

Polystyrene (PS). Some samples (image

on next page) were contaminated but

the successful attempts showed that

the fungus was engulfing the PU foam

and PS foam however we would need

further lab tests to prove how much the

toxins were degraded.


PHOTOS FABLAB BARCELONA

MYCO REMEDIATION EXPERIMENTS

Plastics

PHOTO

JULIA STEKETEE

COLLABORATIVE EXHIBIT WITH

ANNAH OLOLADE SANGOSANYA |

JANUARY - JUNE 2022

Annah, a student of Fabricademy

researched the fungi’s ability to

degrade denim and synthetic textile

waste. She worked with Pleurotus

Ostreatus (oyster mushroom) and

Pestaliopsis Microspora. Together we

created a display (images above) for

the Symbiatípico (more info on p.74)

exhibit which showcased 4 different

fungi growing on petri dishes, and

a variety of our bio-remediation

experiments.

45

REsource:

Concept,

Communication

& Conversations

APRIL 2021 | TERM 3

I am working to strengthen my material intelligence, integrate this understanding

into my design practice and cultivate this knowledge through communities of

makers and creatives. If we want to design for regeneration we need to learn

to source second hand and locally, build an understanding of material histories,

properties, lifecycles, and calculate carbon footprints. This will mean looking back

to ancient techniques and traditional ecological knowledge while simultaneously

researching and innovating with new recipes, techniques, tools and technologies.

After many bio-material experiments, online and hands-on material research,

a visit to the Barcelona Design Museum’s material library, MATERFAD, and

discussions with designers, architects and change makers in my community, I

started to ideate on ways to engage makers & creatives in circular and bio-based

design practices. I surveyed students, designers and architects to ask them about

their interest in incorportating natural, recycled, or waste materials into their

practices and what online or physical resources they use to explore such topics

and materials. Their responses and further discussions with relevant stakeholders

guided me as I developed a concept for designers to learn about material science,

lifecycles, applications, local sourcing, a material library, events, and an opensource

toolbox. The online and experiential platform would encourage designers,

architects and artists to re-think the way that they source materials.


REsource WEBSITE CONCEPT |

APRIL - MAY 2022

I created a online landing page to illustrate the concept. The platform

is divided into three sections, an online material library and sourcing

platform, a event bulletin board and an open-source toolbox. The

online material library that serves as an educational tool to learn

more about material science, lifecycles, and applications. Here

designers would also be able to search for available waste or recycled

materials in their region and link them up with local suppliers. The

event section provides a platform for educators to advertise

workshops, classes or other events about bio-based or

circular material learning and sourcing. The opensource

toolbox allows a global community to

upload and share designs for tools or

educational materials that inspire

and facilitate bio-material

fabrication.

REsource: CONCEPT, COMMUNICATION & CONVERSATIONS 47

CONVERSATIONS WITH ACTORS

IN THE FIELD

I discussed the concept with different

actors who are developing projects

and practices that align with the ethos

of the REsource platform. I spoke

with Barcelona based architects

who work extensively with natural

materials and some of the designers

who participated in the Remix el Barrio

project. This project brought together

10 designers and each explored using

food waste to create new products

from bioplastics, to dog biscuits. Two of

the members, Lara Campos and Laura

Freixas expressed excitement about

the idea and were keen to collaborate.

I also spoke to Pilar Bolumburu from

Materiom, an open-source library of

bio-material recipes, to learn a bit

about how the initiative started and

what sorts of expertise are needed to

Circular

48 REsource: CONCEPT, COMMUNICATION & CONVERSATIONS

REsource: CONCEPT, COMMUNICATION & CONVERSATIONS

Materials

maintain the site and strenghten the

global Materiom community. I drew

inspiration from the Materiom platform

but aim to create complementary

platform that can address material

sourcing and material education at a

local level, with the potential to scale.

Next, I spoke to Milena Calvo Juarez

about MakeWorks, a project funded by

EU Horizon to promote local fabrication

faciliites, makers and artisans in the

industrial neighborhood of Poble Nou

and Sant Martí. I was curious to learn

more about their project to map maker

spaces, studios, and factories and

the materials that flow through them.

The technology and methods could

be applied to REsource’s material

mapping section. I also spoke to

Guillem Camprodon from FabLab BCN

about how the technology developed

for the EU funded ReFlow and WeLoop

projects could be applied to other

platforms like REsource.

49

REsource:

Communal

Collection

System

APRIL - JUNE 2022 | TERM 3

What sort of tools does a designer need to start working with bio-materials?

I ideated on this question from a first person perspective as I had been

experimenting with bio-materials such as mycelium, bio-plastics and other

bio-composites created from food waste. First, I built a dehydrator (see more

information on page 14) and next, I needed a way to sort and store the dry food

waste for material creation and experimentation. I joined together with Fiorella

Jaramillo and Pippa Formosa, two classmates who had also been collecting and

sorting their waste for bio-material research. Together we designed a simple

system to sort and store waste ingredients (see on next page). After drying,

grinding, and sorting, we managed to convert waste into a resource. We placed

this collection system in our studio classroom and encouraged other students

to add to and use the material library. We created a digital repository on GitHub

where students could find out more information about each ingredient: properties,

storage and processing instructions, recipes, and design examples. This digital

material library provided me the initial research needed to present the REsource

platform’s concept. In addition, the documentation and assembly instructions of

this communal collection sytem can be uploaded to the REsource open-source

toolbox. This would allow other design schools, art centers, or designers to

incorporate bio-materials into their studios, curriculum, and practices.



DESIGN of COLLECTION SYSTEM

REsource: COMMUNAL COLLECTION SYSTEM 51


Prototyping,

EXHIBITING CONCEPT & PROTOTYPE at DESIGN

DIALOGUES & POBLE NOU OPEN DAY | TERM 3

I exhibited REsource’s concept, website prototype, the communal

collection system prototype & some bio-material samples at

MDEF’s Design Dialogues II and the Poble Nou Open Day Exhibition

at IAAC. This display was made possible by Audrey Belliot, Paula

Bustos, Gerda Meleskin, Fiorella Jaramillo and Pippa Formosa’s

contributions. These oppourtunities allowed me to survey and talk

to local citizens, students, and designers about their familiarity

and experience with bio-materials. Many of the local visitors who

I spoke with from the Poble Nou open day exhibition were familar

with the concept of the circular economy but unfamiliar with the

idea of using waste products to grow mycelium or craft plastic

alternatives. I created a survey (photo on right) for makers and

creatives in order to understand what resources designers are

using today to expand their knowledge of bio-based, recycled

or waste materials. Most all of the designers, architects, and

educators expressed enthusiasm for the idea of a bio-based or

ciruclar material library , indicated that there is a critical need to

make such resources more widely available, and recognized the

complexity and rigor involved in building such a platform.

52 REsource: COMMUNAL COLLECTION SYSTEM


Testing,& Feedback

DESIGN of MOBILE COLLECTION CART

I designed a mobile collection and creation system that allows users to collect, dehydrate, store ingredients,

and make bio-materials on the go. The dehyrator can be heated using a heating element. I built the electrical

dehydrator (see the design on page 14) but I wanted to add a drawer for solar heat capture, requiring less

electricity. The final prototype is still in progress but the design is outlined below. Once completed and

documented, this design could be uploaded to REsource’s open-source toolbox.

REsource: COMMUNAL COLLECTION SYSTEM 53

Open-source

Dehydrator &

Incubator

MAY - JUNE 2022 | TERM 3

In collaboration with Audrey Belliot, Gerda Melesckin, Roberto Broce,

and Fiorella Jaramillo, we created a system of 4 modular units that

can be paired accordingly to regulate heat and humidity. They can be

used as a dehydrator to dry food scraps to eat or dry food or other

organic waste in preparation for bio-material creation. Alternatively,

the temperature and humidity can be set to be used as an incubator

in order to grow bacteria or fungi. The temperature is regulated

by a heat sensor and a PID, while the humidity is controled by two

small fans at the back of the two larger modules. A microcontroller

programed with arduino code allows you to set the ideal temperature

for dehydration or incubation and the setup requires very little (5V)

electricity. The smallest module houses an electrical heating pad

which heats the boxes. Alternatively, the boxes can be heated by the

sun capture module, which has a drawer that captures the heat from

the sun and guides it to the boxes above. The design is open source

and we have published the Rhino, CNC and Arduino files on github

with instructions to allow others to replicate the design. On the

following page, you can see the different components of the module.


Modular


DESIGN of Modules | TERM 3

OPEN-SOURCE DEHYDRATOR & INCUBATOR 55


Solar & Electric


OPEN SOURCE DEHYDRATOR & INCUBATOR

CON-serve EXHIBITION

In conjunction with Gerda Meleskin

and Audrey Belliot from SlowLab, we

exhibited the Dehydrator and Incubator

Modules at a group exhibtion, CONserve.

This exhibition brought together

designed objects, community based

projects, a short documentary, and

interactive activities and a workshop to

generate consciousness about ancient

traditions that are still in force today

and revitalize ancient crafts, tools and

techniques in today’s and tomorrow’s

context. We present the dehydrator

as a low-energy solution to food

preservation as well as a helpful tool to

dry organic waste in order to produce

bio-materials using both age-old and

innovative techniques.

56

Natural Dye

& Bioplastic

Explorations


The textile and plastics industries are heavily polluting. Today, many

designers and researchers are exploring ways to use bio-based

and non-toxic alternatives to chemical dyes adn petroleum based

plastics. I explored how I could create a plethora of colors and plastic

like materials using things from my natural environment and waste

products. I was inspired by Anastasia Pistofidou’s Pantone Project

and the bio-materials created as part of the Remix el Barrio project.

DESIGN EXPERIMENTS & INTERVENTIONS 57


DYE TESTS USING PLANTS AND

FOOD WASTE

I got the opportunity to experiment

dying wool using natural dyes from

food waste and foraged wood bark

during Wool Mondays, a workshop

hosted by the Fabricademy. We boiled

a variety of natural materials such as

onion skins and carrot stems in water

and added natural additives such as

iron, alum, or sodium carbonate to

lighten the color or help the color to

adhere to the wool.


DYEING MYCELIUM COMPOSITES

I tested natural dyes that we had created from logwood bark, carrot

stems, onion skins, avocado pits and pomegranate skins, on mycelium

composite materials to see how well they took the dye and if it would

last on the surface. It was able to rub some of the color off with friction

and water and concluded that the dye should be dense to have effect.

I heated the dye and the mycelium samples to get the color to adhere.

58 NATURAL DYE & BIOPLASTIC EXPLORATIONS

INGREDIENTS USED IN NATURAL DYING

SODIUM CARBONATE

used to brighten the color

IRON

used to darken the color

ALUM

used as mordant to make

the color adhere and used to

brighten or lighten the color

POMEGRANATE SKINS

give a red color

ONION SKINS

give a reddish orange color

AVOCADO PITS

give a pink color

CARROT STEMS

give a yellow color

COCHINEALBEATLES

give a red color

LOGWOOD

give a blue or purple color

NATURAL DYE & BIOPLASTIC EXPLORATIONS 59


ONION SKINS & ALIGNATE BASED BIOPLASTIC RECIPE

Mix 200 ml avocado pit dye, 4g Sodium Alginate, and 8g Glycerin

together using a blender. Let sit overnight to allow bubbles to

disappear. Mix a calcium chloride solution: 10g CaCl, 100ml H20

into a spray bottle. Spray a flat water proof fabric mold with the

solution. Pour the liquid into the mold and spread 15g wool into the

mold. Spray with the calcium chloride solution and let dry.

Food Waste &

60 NATURAL DYE & BIOPLASTIC EXPLORATIONS

BIOPLASTICS FROM FOODWASTE

Together with Marina Lermant, we gathered

food waste and other ingredients from home

kitchens and local restaurants to create a variety

of natural dyes that we used to give color to bioplastics.

I collected onion skins, avocado pits,

and coffee grinds from home to and orange

peels from Santagloria Café in Poble Nou. These

ingredients along with spirulina, a green microalgae

allowed us to achieve a wide range of colors,

seen in the images below. We were inspired by

recipes that found on Remix el Barrio’s youtube

channel, and Materiom, a collaborative and

open-source online bio-material recipe platform.

We used agar agar and alginate, derived from

red and brown algaes, as the binding agent. We

added bits of waste wool that had been donated

to the universtity from a Catalonian producer.

The wool had been discarded as it did not reach

the producer’s quality requirements. The wool

fibers gives strength and a leatherlike quality to

the material.

NATURAL DYE & BIOPLASTIC EXPLORATIONS

Algae-based


BIOPLASTICS FROM FOODWASTE

During a workshop that I hosted about bio-materials made from

food waste (more info on p.62), we presented a variety of samples

to familiarize the participants with nature’s color palette.

61

REsource:

Bio-material

workshop


Can we imagine a future without waste? Can we design, make and

source with circularity? During this hands-on workshop, we explored

how food waste can be transformed into a resource, discussed the

concept of a material lifecycle and got our hands dirty as we made

bio-plastics and other bio composites using food waste from local

industries in Poble Nou. I organized this workshop in collaboration

with Marina Lermant, Catalina Rubio, Baru in Bioma (ConnecHort), a

community garden space in Poble Nou.



FROM

Collection TO

Craft

EGGSHELL-ALGINATE COMPOSITES

I collected eggshells from LEKA, a

sustainably driven restaurant in Poble

Nou and the kitchen’s of my fellow

classmates. Before the workshop, I

washed, dried , and ground them into

a fine powder and tested a variety

of different recipes with the help of

Catalina Rubio and Baru. We showed

the workshop partipants these tests

and demonstrated one of the recipes

that contained alginate, water,

ground eggshells, and recycled paper

pulp, and calcium chloride. The

participants mixed these ingredients

and shaped the clay-like mixture over

glass cups. After 2 hours we removed

them from the molds and let them

dry on a clean surface.

REsource: BIO-MATERIAL WORKSHOP 63

Bio

Natural

DISCUSSION ON CIRCULARITY

During the workshop, we discussed

the concept of the circular economy

and how we can take in this shift

at an individual and community

based level. Dihue Miguens from

Remix el Barrio came to talk about

his partipation in the project and

show his most recent samples of

paper made from Nomad coffee

husks, a bi-product of the coffee

industry.

64 REsource: BIO-MATERIAL WORKSHOP

BIOPLASTICS

Marina Lermant and I tried out a variety of

bioplastic recipes from the Remix el Barrio

project and Materiom. We showed samples

of our material studies to the participants

and demonstrated an orange peel and

wool bioplastic that resembles leather. This

recipe requires alginate, water, dried and

ground orange peels, coconut oil, wool,

and glycerin. You can see an image of this

material on p.61. The participants were able

to experiment with other bioplastic recipes

using natural dyes that we had preprared.

Each group of 4 created a bio plastic sheet

that dried over the course of 1 week. They

could collect there bioplastic at the garden

once it had dried.

POSTER DESIGN JULIA STEKETEE

REsource: BIOMATERIAL WORKSHOP

plastics

binders


65

Sewn to stay,

Sewn to go @

CON-serve


Textiles tell stories. They require time, patience, and good conversation. As part

of a group display, Crafting the Anthropocene, I created a piece titled Sewn to

stay, Sewn to go. I drew inspiration from traditions that find roots in my home

country, the United States. I looked specifically at Native Navajo Nation’s Chief

blankets, American Amish quilts, and the quilts of the African American women

of Gee’s Bend, Alabama, descendents of slaves. These three traditions, deeply

divided, share unexpected similarities. With each stich of their bold geometries,

they strengthen their communal bonds and manifest collective care in a material

form; a blanket. Today, we are losing the link between material and community.

We pave our planet with plastic. The U.S. produces more plastic than any other

nation. We have become obsessed with a material that pollutes our streets, soil

and water systems. We lust for toxic objects that are designed to last one use

and to live in on the top of a trash heap for thousands of years. We are leaving a

mark on the geological record while leaving the traditions, health and well-being

of our brothers and sisters behind. As we craft for the anthropocene, I propose a

speculative future scenario, “in 2122, our petroleum reserves have been depleted.

Resources of all kind have become scarce. We transform waste into materials for

fabrication and we craft emphemeral, natural plastic replacements.” This scenario

informs the artifact, Sewn to stay, Sewn to go. The Crafting the Anthropocene

display is part of a larger group exhibition titiled CON-serve.



Crafting

THE ANTROPOCENE

SEWN TO STAY, SEWN TO GO @ CON-SERVE

EXHIBITORS: ANGEL CHO, VIKRANT MISHRA,

RUBEN VAN HAAN, & JULIA STEKETEE

Drawing inspiration from ancient knowledge and traditional

craft processes, we take this moment to reflect on how

these traditions can be used to imagine and speculate on

the rituals of our future. Each exhibitor focuses on a local

indigenous craft processes or traditions from their home

countries (Korea, India, the Netherlands, & the United

States) and pair them with a weak signal present in that

part of the world in order to create a speculative tool based

on the rituals of food. Together we re-interpret our craft

traditions, and food rituals in the context of our current

present and our futures’ weak signals.

In reaction to today’s throw away

culture, I seek inspiration from the

past as I search for ways to be more

resourceful, make for longevity, and

treat our materials as agents from

their raw to their recycled form.

The piece below, is fashioned from

renewable and wasted sources

serves as placemat for dining

directly upon or for wrapping food

to take to go. It can be gently

washed and if treated well will last

far longer than standard single use

plateware. Two simple utensils are

used for wrapping.

SEWN TO STAY, SEWN TO GO

Bioplastics made from, orange peels, onion skins, avocado peels,

alginate, glycerin, and discarded wool, & two wooden utensils

67

CRAFTING THE ANTHROPOCENE: PARTICIPANTS PROJECTS

Vikrant Mishra, Angel Cho, and Ruben Van Haan and I tackled the topic from different angles. Vikrant

Mishra’s object explore the concept of dishware in a future context where water is dangerously scarce and

users are unable to wash their plates. Angel Cho chose sever air pollution as her “signal” and created a bowl

that protects food for airborn contaminates. Ruben Van Haan’s eating or growing tray aims to embrace

traditional dutch architecture and use these structures as inspiration to develop new ways to cultivate food

in the future.

VIKRANT MISHRA

ANGEL CHO

RUBEN VAN HAAN


68 SEWN TO STAY, SEWN TO GO @ CON--SERVE

OBserve

PREserve

CONserve

CON-serve EXHIBITION

Our cultures, relationships, tools and rituals are in constant

flux. They evolve based on our resources, climates,

economies, industries, and rhythm of life. These crafts and

customs bring us together and can help us to understand

what is to come. We cannot imagine our futures without

understanding our past. We invite you to join us as we

speculate on how to observe, conserve, and preserve

traditions from the past in order to give life to future

rituals that allow us to serve-WITH others and safeguard

and strengthen relationships. This collective exhibition at

LEKA–a local restaurant that supports local and sustainably

sourced cuisine–seeks to generate consciousness about

ancient habits that are still in force today, redefine our

perceptions of preservation, and contemplate alternative

future scenarios around food, crafts, and tools. I addition

to my participation in the Crafting the Anthropocene, I also

got the opportunity to exhibit the modular dehydrator and

incubator in conjunction with SlowLab, a design collective

that explores both ancient and modern lo-tech design

solutions to reduce energy use in the kitchen and beyond.

POSTER DESIGN GEORGES HANNA

SEWN TO STAY, SEWN TO GO @ CON-SERVE 69

Bio on the Body

@ Symbiatipico


In collaboration with Paula del Rio Arteaga, Pippa Formosa,

Marina Lermant, and Aparna Pollod, we organized an exhibition,

Symbiatípico, in efforts to celebrate the intersection of biology and

design through a series of artworks and design experiments. Marina

Lermant and I collaborated on two projects that celebrated algae and

fungi as collaborators in creating materials that can adorn the human

body. These projects sat adjacent to Paula del Rio Arteaga’s Spirulina

make-up and her Bio-borg Shoe which featured a pump in the shoe’s

sole that could control the flow of Spirulina microalgae around the

sandal’s straps. Artistic and provocative in nature, we intended for

the objects to start conversations about how we can live among and

design with companion species.



BIO ON THE BODY @ SYMBIATIPICO

Bio wearables

AlGAE-BASED ACCESORIES |

COLLABORATION with

MARINA LERMANT

PHOTO JERRI SALMOND

Seaweed algaes are some of the world’s

oldest lifeforms. Alginate is derived

from a variety of different brown

seaweeds and and agar agar from two

types of red algae. They are renewable

resources found in different regions

across the world. Today, you typically

find these algal companions in gourmet

kitchens and scientific laboratories but

more and more they are appearing in

the designer’s studio. We combined

alginate and agar agar with glycerin,

natural dyes, food waste, and wool to

create a variety of interesting textures

and colors of bioplastics. We lasercut

the bioplastics and added fasteners so

that guests could adorn themself during

the event. We 3D printed rings using

a GrowLay filament. This wood-based

filament provides an environment for

seeds to germinate and sprout. Above,

you can see chia sprouting from the biobased

ring.

71

Bio-degradeab


BIOSHU PROTOTYPES with MARINA LERMANT

A knitted fabric relies on one thread

to hold the entire structure together

and when cut a single point, it can be

unravelled comple

72

footwear

PHOTO MARINA LERMANT

BIOSHUs with MARINA LERMANT

le

This shoe design presents an alternative to petroleum-based plastic

fashion. Here, we replace highly processed, non-recyclable footwear with

natural, non-toxic, and 100% compostable materials. The shoe’s sole is

grown with mycelium, the fungal root structure from which mushrooms

grow. The straps are composed of algae and wool-based bioplastics. In

today’s context of fast fashion and mass consumption, we ask, could our

garments be compostable? Can we work with living organisms to grow

our accessories? Can we imagine a fashion industry that embraces and

embodies co-creation, care, and circularity?


BIO ON THE BODY @ SYMBIATIPICO 73

BIO WEARABLES & MAKE-UP

SYMBIATIPICO EVENT

During this celebratory exhibition, we invited

guests to re-interpret our relationships with

our ecological systems. On display, visitors

found designed artifacts, bio-remediation

experiments, symbiotic wearables, interactive

art displays, and audiovisuals that push us to

re-think our parasitic role in the Anthropocene.

Participants were able to enjoy the view from

Atípico’s restaurant & terrace, live music

and Spirulina cocktails as they dress ed up

as bio-borgs or contemplated ways to bioremediate

our plastic planet, form symbiotic

relationships with microorganisms, and live in

balance with our natural systems.

74

POSTER DESIGN PAULA DEL RIO ARTEAGA

LIVE DJs, MUSICIANS & BANDS

MYCO-REMEDIATION ACTIVITY: JULIA STEKETEE



MYCO-REMEDIATION EXHIBIT: JULIA STEKETEE

BIO-BORG SHOE: PAULA DEL RIO

75

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Kurzgesagt. (2017, November 16). Emergence – how stupid things become smart

together. YouTube. Retrieved September 7, 2022, from https://www.youtube.com/

watch?v=16W7c0mb-rE

We can’t tackle the climate change crisis without changing construction. here’s why.

World Economic Forum. (n.d.). Retrieved September 7, 2022, from https://www.weforum.

org/agenda/2021/01/planet-warming-emissions-buildings-construction-climate-goalsrisk/

Circular economy introduction. Ellen MacArthur Foundation. (n.d.). Retrieved September

7, 2022, from https://ellenmacarthurfoundation.org/topics/circular-economyintroduction/overview

Watson, J., & Davis, W. (2020). Lo-Tek: Design by Radical Indigenism. Taschen.

(2022, August 29). The power of proximity. AAC&U. Retrieved September 7, 2022,

from https://www.aacu.org/liberaleducation/articles/the-power-of-proximity

Master's in Design for Emergent Futures: Research, Design Experiments, & Interventions

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