Abstract: This paper presents novel design and fabrication techniques with mycelium composite materials (myco-materials) demonstrated through Phoenix: a large-scale hanging sculpture (Figure 1). These increasingly popular biomaterials show promise to offset the negative impact of plastics and petrochemical materials in buildings. Myco-materials are renewable, biodegradable, and possess tunable performative properties that are relevant in buildings.
A fascinating characteristic of myco-materials is they are flexible during their intermediate stage of cultivation, when they are alive. This inherent flexibility before desiccation makes it possible to craft expressive three-dimensional curvatures into flat myco-material sheets by hanging them from precise support points, actively bending them, and drying them in place until they are lightweight and rigid. The addition of augmented reality (AR) guidance facilitates translating complex digitally generated geometries into physical materials without the need for arduous measuring or wasteful formworks.
This paper will (1) detail the innovative combination of computational design methods and sustainable fabrication protocols developed for Phoenix, (2) discuss craft and complexity of cultivating fungi-based structures, and (3) reflect upon limitations remaining with growing myco-structures as grounds for future research.
Authors: Jonathan Dessi-Olive, Omid Oliyan, Rebecca Buntrock