Living Materials

Crafted bioplastics

Introduction

The first day of the course focused on the intersection of regenerative design, bio-design, and sustainable material crafting. Regenerative design, which prioritizes creating systems that restore and replenish ecosystems, goes beyond the human-centered focus of traditional sustainable design. Tools like Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) and Cradle to Cradle (C2C) frameworks emphasize the importance of sourcing biomaterials locally and from waste streams, ensuring minimal environmental impact.

Bioplastics are categorized by their origin (bio-based or fossil-based) and their end-of-life behavior (biodegradable or non-biodegradable). A key takeaway is the importance of sorting and identifying materials through a “passport” system to improve waste management. Compostable materials are a subset of biodegradable ones, while oxo-degradable plastics, often falsely marketed as sustainable, are not truly biodegradable.

Two main classes of bio-fabricated materials were introduced: crafted materials (man-made mixtures like biopolymers, plasticizers, and additives) and grown materials (developed through natural processes, like mycelium). This session centered on crafted bioplastics, their recipes, and techniques. The process of creating crafted materials involves cooking, casting, drying, and post-processing, and can produce diverse textures and properties by tweaking the biopolymer-plasticizer ratios or adding pigments and reinforcements.

Recipes

Name

Materials

Properties

Sodium Alginate

Water (400 ml), Sodium Alginate (8 g), Glycerol (16 g for mold / 60 g for extrusion),

Calcium Chloride (10 g), Water for Calcium Solution (100 ml)

Water/fire-resistant; cold recipe.

Gelatin

Water (240 ml), Gelatin (48 g), Glycerol (0 g rigid / 24 g normal / 48 g elastic)

Non-vegan, non-recyclable, hot recipe. Add soap for foam effects.

Agar Agar

Water (300 ml), Agar Agar (10 g), Glycerol (4 g rigid / 16 g normal / 32 g elastic)

Vegetarian, algae-based, not water/fire-resistant.

Cold recipe

The sodium alginate recipe involved preparing two different mixtures: one for mold casting and another for extrusion. Both utilized a calcium chloride solution to activate and solidify the material. To prepare the sodium alginate mixture, water, sodium alginate, and glycerol were blended until uniform.

For the mold casting, the glycerol content was kept low, while for extrusion, more glycerol was added to increase flexibility. The mold was sprayed with a calcium chloride solution, which aids the drying and setting process. Once the mixture was poured into the mold, it was left to dry, allowing the semi-waterproof woven fabric to enable proper ventilation.

For the extrusion, the mixture was drawn into a syringe and extruded directly into a container of calcium chloride solution, creating flexible strands as it solidified.

Hot Recipes

The hot recipes, gelatine and agar agar, were prepared through gradual heating and continuous stirring to dissolve the ingredients fully. Pigments (like spirulina and mica) and waste material (ground orange peels) were incorporated into these recipes to enhance their visual and recycle material.

For both recipes, molds with patterned fabrics or holographic surfaces were used to impart unique textures to the final material. After cooling slightly to prevent deformation, the mixtures were poured into the molds and left to dry completely before being demolded.

Visit to Hangar and WetLab

Hangar is an art production and research center in Barcelona that supports creators by providing resources, expertise, and spaces tailored to their artistic goals. Among Hangar's impressive facilities, the Ricson audiovisual room stood out, offering cutting-edge tools for audio-visual experimentation. Our visit included an introduction to the WetLab, a space focused on living technologies and bioart practices.

Artist Ce Quimera presented their work, including transplanta*, a project exploring transhackfeminism through living organisms and bio-technological integration. The WetLab encourages questioning the intersections of biology, technology, and identity, fostering methods that emphasize care, collaboration, and knowledge-sharing among human and non-human entities.

Hangar and WetLab websites

S-biotica and growing materials

S-biotica Studio, based in Barcelona, is a collaborative initiative by Lara Campos and Jessica Dias, former IAAC students, focusing on the intersection of biomaterials, science, and design. Their work involves biological collaborators such as mycelium, algae, and waste materials, aiming to democratize bio-design by creating accessible infrastructures, tools, and methodologies for material innovation. Through biomaterial research, educational workshops, and transdisciplinary collaborations, S-biotica fosters sustainable and circular design practices that challenge our perceptions of the material world.

Kombucha and SCOBY Material: Lara Campos introduced the use of SCOBY (Symbiotic Culture of Bacteria and Yeast), a by-product of kombucha fermentation, as a sustainable biomaterial. SCOBY consists of cellulose fibers formed during the fermentation process, which can be dried and transformed into leather-like sheets. Its characteristics include:

High water absorption (like a sponge), with significant shrinkage upon drying.
Edibility, though primarily considered for material applications.
Non-water resistance unless coated with wax for moisture protection.

To prepare SCOBY material:

Brew tea using 8g of green or black tea, 1L of water, and 80g of sugar.
Cool and mix with 150ml of vinegar or mother liquid.
Add a piece of existing SCOBY to promote growth.
After fermentation, the SCOBY layer can be dried directly or ground, shaped, and dried for specific forms. Natural pigments or other materials can also be incorporated.

Mycelium material: Jessica Dias highlighted the versatility of mycelium, the root structure of fungi. Mycelium offers remarkable properties such as:

Fire resistance, slowing fire spread.
Insulation and moisture resistance.
Potential to degrade oil and pollutants via enzymatic action.

Mycelium has applications in food, medicine, waste management, and biomaterial development. It can be cultivated in sterile environments using substrates like wood chips or hemp. We worked with pre-prepared mycelium substrate bags (wood powder and hemp chips). The process included:

Chopping and grinding the mycelium substrate.
Adding nutritional supplements (flour) and consolidating powder for improved moldability.
Moistening with distilled water (minimal amounts to avoid contamination).
Shaping the clay-like mixture into molds or free-formed shapes.

The material then grows and solidifies in a sterile environment, forming lightweight and durable structures. However, working with mycelium demands care due to its high contamination risk.