Built to Grow – Blending Architecture and Biology

12.10.2015 - 07.11.2015

Angewandte Innovation Lab, AIL, Wien / Österreich

Growing As Building

The exhibition explores different pathways of Living Architecture, experimentation with biology, architecture and engineering.

The underlying research work looks at growth patterns and dynamics from nature to apply them to architectural visions of a self-growing house. The exhibition presents ideas, approaches and concepts for grown structures evolved by an interdisciplinary team from the fields of architecture, art, biology, robotics and mechatronics. Work of 2,5 years artistic research will be presented in videos, photography, grown materials and objects and an artistic installation of a metabolic system including algae.... Further, this includes the outcome of hands-on experiments in a Biolab with biological role models such as the pathfinding slime mould, mycelium structures and metabolic systems around a novel 3D printer concept. Two cable driven mobile 3D printers evolved through the research questions of the project GrAB and will be shown in the exhibition. Videos of conversations with different experts about agency, emergence and resilience including the immanent values and ethical aspects of this research will be on display to reflect and contextualize the work within our world of change.

On the opening day 12.Ocotber 2015 a panel discussion with prominent experts of this field such as Rachel Armstrong, Thomas Speck, Angelo Vermeulen and Petra Gruber will take place.


About

GrAB – Growing As Building

takes growth patterns and dynamics from nature and applies them to architecture with the goal of creating a new living architecture. GrAB has brought an interdisciplinary team from the fields of architecture, biology, art, mechatronics and robotics to the University of Applied Arts Vienna, in order to initiate a process of biomimetic transfer in which models from nature are applied to architecture and art.

In GrAB, specific biological processes are studied in-depth to identify principles of growth and translate them into exemplary architectural ideas and visions. An essential part of the project is the Biolab, which is used as a hands-on experimental platform, where basic research as well as prototype development is carried out.

Specifically, the team is looking at material systems like the ones generated by mycelium, and growth principles found in the self-organizing, ‘explorative’ growth nature of slime mould. Furthermore, metabolic systems are developed, in which organisms like algae and bacteria are integrated into semi-closed loops generating, depositing and recycling building materials.

The mycelium experiments target the creation of solid building material, produced directly from cellulose–based waste products. As mycelium grows, it solidifies the shapeless matter (matter-generating process) within a specific timeframe. Different models are used for defining the form, such as organic shells, cotton membranes, 3D printed forms, and cardboard structures.

The slime mould experiments are intended to research the networking capacity of the organism. Through growth, slime moulds explore their environment and are capable of “knowing” their surroundings. The team uses the slime mould as “co-designer” to tackle design problems such as spatial configuration and circulation. The 3D space grid experiments use the agency of the organism and exemplify an approach to nature from a less anthropocentric view.

The metabolic system integrates a newly developed 3D printer that allows free locomotion of the print head, and integrates calcium carbonate as print material. Accuracy and precision are two main aspects for any kind of fabrication, and in nature, growth has low accuracy, but extremely high precision. This principle is transferred to the local printer by defining a reference coordinate system based on the built part itself. This feedback loop creates self-organized behaviour, capacitating the printer to cope with any change and delivering a form of resilience to the system. The input and ‘waste’ materials of the printer are part of a semi-closed system where different organisms participate.

The project will terminate at the end of November 2015. Final work efforts are focused on specific experiments and summarizing the output in publications and exhibitions.

GrAB aims towards influencing current developments in architecture to create more sustainable and smart building shells which react to, and interact with, their environment and inhabitants. Furthermore GrAB’s project goals are to contribute to alternative building techniques, and an integration of biology and technology to design our future vision of a resilient urban architecture.

Project lead: Dr. Barbara Imhof, Dr. Petra Gruber

Project team: Mag.arch. Waltraut Hoheneder, Dr. Tanja Oberwinkler, MA. Arch. Damjan Minovski, Viktor Gudenus, Ceren Yönetim, Mariya Korolova, Ioana Binica, Rafael Sánchez Herrera, Laura Mesa Arango, Andreas Körner, Mohammedneja Shikur

Cooperation Partner:

Dr. Angelo Vermeulen, Delft University of Technology, Participatory Systems, NL

Prof. Julian Vincent, University of Bath, Biomimetics, Mechanical Engineering, UK

Prof. Thomas Speck, University of Freiburg, Botanischer Garten, Plant Biomechanics Group, DE

Funding body:

FWF, Austrian Science Fund, PEEK Programme for Advancement and Development of Artistic Research

Connection at Angewandte:

Institute of Architecture, studio Greg Lynn

[Quelle: www.ailab.at]