This project is a simple exploration in the cultivating bacterial cellulose for use an artistic medium. The finished project is a light-hearted commentary on unsustainable nature of air travel. All of the materials used in this project are renewable and biodegradable.
This project used Grey Dove (Pleurotus Ostreatus) oyster mycelium to “weave” a basket-like nest out of straw. This nest was then populated with egg-like objects sculpted from polymer clay. These “eggs” each reference other biological materials or processes. They appear here out of their typical context, just as basket weaving is not the typical behavior or context of mycelium.
The goal of this project was to recreate the appearance of a traditional “gummy worm” using lab materials. The material used here were agar agar, xanthan gum, and E. Coli that has been modified to produce a variety of fluorescent proteins.