Architecture of Reforestation: Mycelium as a New Building Material and Design of the Fibrous Woven Scaffolds

The research presented in this paper explores mycelium as a new building material and presents research investigating how fibrous woven scaffolds can be used to grow large scale mycelium structures. This living material has potentials to be discovered in many fields as well as in architecture. However, strict application technics currently used in the industry is a challenge for scaling up and geometry explorations. Also, mycelium not always been investigated fully to discover the architectural potentials during its growth, because it is dried during the making process. Most of the early applications found in the literature produces mycelium by placing it inside mass-produced rectangular moulds and, because mycelium is dried afterwards, the natural growth of mycelium in its environment is not investigated. The sterilization protocols used during making is another concern which result as a scaling up problem.