Lab Research & Design Project
GROWING MYCELIUM MADE US GROW
GROWING MYCELIUM MADE US GROW is a laboratory research and design project by Ilkin Taşdelen, Javier Deyheralde, Cintia Guerrero, and Barbara Niveyro, and was produced in Matters of Activity, Humboldt University's Cluster of Excellence in Germany. It explores the dynamics of mycelium as an active matter and the effects it can have on society. It has been developed in Berlin with two goals in mind:
- To experiment as amateurs of soil, fungi, and science in a professional lab, a community lab, and a domestic lab.
- To question the lack of accessibility to these types of knowledge, hopefully working as connectors to bridge the gaps between scientific laboratories and regular people.
INTRODUCTION
First, there was heat, then gas, then clouds, then drops. No. Take two. First, there were clouds, then heat, then algae, then people. No. Take three. First, there were fields, then cotton, then candy, then from the fermentation of cotton candy humans were born.
The same happens when you put together a pedagogue, an architect, an industrial designer, and a storyteller. You miss the point of what happened first. Hierarchy becomes pointless, comfort gets lost in translation, and the automatic process of creating according to your area of expertise represents a threat to your teammate. Many times you imaginary kill each other, other times you enjoy brunch. Either way, patience, curiosity, and commitment are key ingredients for letting these strange fermentations grow.
In that context, Growing Mycelium Made Us Grow has been developed with two goals in mind. The first one was to experiment with the living matter as amateurs of soil, fungi, and science. The second one was to question the lack of accessibility to these types of knowledge, hopefully working as connectors to bridge the gaps among scientific laboratories and regular people.
A LIVING-SCULPTURE-PATIO
Tangibly, we observed the growth and interactions of various types of mycelium in different subtracts, experimenting in three contexts: a professional lab, a community lab, and a domestic lab. We translated mycelium’s activity in a controlled environment and scaled it to our faculty’s patio, a semi-public space that was later scaled to the shape of this living-sculpture-patio that is the installation that you have in front of you. This allowed us to play with the active material and make the hidden mycelium growth (that usually happens underground) more visible.
WITH THIS PROJECT WE AIM TO
- Tell the story of our intellectual adventures and moody moods during the two months process of growing mycelium and translating it to a speculative spatial structure;
- Share the sources, protocols, and tools that were useful for us;
- Give people the chance to see and touch our outcomes as an invitation for dialogue, play, and exchange.
DURING AND AFTER THE EXHIBITION
For the exhibition at Humboldt Forum, we constructed a “Living-sculpture-patio”. The invitation was to walk around it and learn about mycelium, fungi, our research and design process, and our intellectual and emotional adventures.
The result during the show was that people actually interacted with the space, pretending to be mycelium moving around the threads, and asking us questions about our project. With that feedback we noticed that:
Mycelium is not a popular topic and for many visitors it was hard to understand it.
The four months that we spent discussing this topic made the four of us speak a conversation that was a bit encapsulated inside our group, and we could still find ways to improve the information, turn it more educational, to be able to share it with a broader audience.
The timeline that supported the samples and the installation was very helpful, and some people highlighted that including a journal of our emotions and conflicts humanized our work.
We made mycelium (and other organisms) grow!!
A WORKING NET
Ultimately, our hope is to share the unknown-known through the activities involved in this academic experience and thank the community of mycelium lovers that opened the doors to this world while keeping the network moving. So far its steps are enlightening, feeding, and engaging us in different ways of making and thinking.
Enjoy the unpredictable journey!
Ilkin, Cintia, Javier and Barbara
