Seven French designers and artists joined forces to bring attention to a biomaterial based on mycelium dubbed Reishi with the Mycelium Muse exhibition. The team creates a range of products from the material including folding screens, lighting solutions, and desks. The installation was a part of the Paris Edition of Design Miami 2024 and it was done with collaboration with MycoWorks and Paragone.
The creative director of Mycoworks, Xavier Gallego shares with Dezeen, "The idea behind this project was to show how this new material can inspire art and design through its amazing story, spanning from its incredible natural origins to its groundbreaking production cycle. Each designer was given creative control to show the different ways in which the material could be used and translated. The variations and irregularities of some of our sheets became expressive entry points for exploring the mysteries of mycelium."
Image Credit: Felix Speller
What's Driving This Trend
- Sustainable Design
- The Mycelium Muse exhibition highlights the potential for integrating eco-friendly materials like mycelium into mainstream design practices.
- Biomaterial Innovation
- The use of Reishi in creating folding screens, lighting solutions, and desks opens new avenues for biomaterial applications in everyday products.
- Art-tech Collaboration
- Collaborations between artists and biotechnologists, as seen in the Mycelium Muse exhibition, showcase the fusion of art and cutting-edge technology to create unique design pieces.
Who This Affects Most
- Interior Design
- The exhibition's innovative use of mycelium-based materials presents fresh opportunities for sustainable interior decor solutions.
- Biotechnology
- Advancements in mycelium-based materials like Reishi point to a growing intersection between biotechnology and consumer product markets.
- Art and Design
- The Mycelium Muse exhibition demonstrates how unconventional materials can inspire new artistic expressions and approaches in the design world.
