Megan, Painting 2026
Project Overview
“As Though I Had Wings”
Reishi mycelium, soldered reclaimed glass, bridal veil, mussel shell pigment, wood.
This is a sculpture made from reishi mycelium, soldered reclaimed glass, bridal veil, mussel shell pigment, and wood. The item I used to create the initial mold was my father’s trombone bell. I have been thinking a lot about themes of loss and growth, particularly how we record time and attempt to hold onto the past. I think the mycelium is an excellent metaphor for the idea of growing into our grief and holding pieces of our past together with our future. I was also considering the bell as a symbol for welcoming in the new and leaving parts of the old behind.
Process
I set out on this project with the intent to create a hanging bell-like sculpture. I began by sterilizing the oak substrate and inoculating it after a short delay with an additional flour slurry to jumpstart growth. After a few days in the incubator, I packed my mold with the inoculated substrate, adding an extra grate for additional oxygen, and returned it to the incubator for a week. The Mycelium grew very well with no contamination, but was not strong enough to demold, and where it was pressed to the plastic, little of the white coating appeared. I then removed the mold on one half of my object, and returned to the bag and incubator. After four more days of growth, the substrate was well-connected, and the coating was fairly dense. Due to time constraints, I decided to demold at this time, but given the opportunity, I would have left the mycelium to grow for a bit more time. After demolding, I placed the object in the incubator at 60 degrees Celsius for five hours and left overnight at 42 degrees Celsius. The next day I heated the mycelium at 60 degrees for another few hours, after which it was dry enough to remove. To complete my piece, I made an oil-based paint out of mussel shell pigment and linseed oil. (Water-based paints will not work on mycelium as it is hydrophobic.)
Learn More
insta@megan.hillaker
Website: https://readymag.website/u1513306282/5421058/