Superorganism
These sculptures were made from mycelium, the underlying fiber structure of mushrooms. They were created as part of my capstone project in the Digital and Material Technologies program at the Taubman School of Architecture at the University of Michigan. Mycelium has become a fascinating area of material research. It grows quickly under controlled conditions and molds easily into forms that are strong, lightweight and water-resistant.
To finish the structure, mycelium is either air-dried to put the mycelium into a suspended state, or heat-dried to kill it.
Fabrication Process
This molds was made from foam on a CNC router as seen above.
The mycelium was purchased from Eco-vative, a leader in commercial mycelium production.
Here is the mold filled with the mycelium material. The brown color comes from the hemp stalks that feed the mycelium. The form takes 3-5 days to grow.
Mycelium Macros
These images show the delicate mycelium fibers that make the underlying formal structure. Watching mycelium grow on this micro-scale cultivated a love for the mycelium itself. This inspired my desire to create with mycelium as a living being, rather than as merely an art material. Suddenly working with living materials as co-creators became an imperative goal.
Installation IN THE FIELD
Because of this shift in my perspective, I wanted to install the sculptures in the forest, and allow them have a natural life cycle. I documented how the mycelium would wear, decay and interact with other life forms within the ecosystem.
Life Cycle and Decay
The sculptures lasted about a year. They would get soft when wet, but maintained their shape and re-hardened when dried out.
Trail Cam Timelapse
Although this commercial material does not seem to support the forest as food or housing for animals, my sculptures were met with acceptance and relative disregard. This made me want to work with native species mycelium, to try to find ways of creating with live fungi and pushed me to learn more about mycelium’s role in soil health.
