Homegrown imagines and demonstrates architectural applications for non-traditional biomaterials.
Four walls composed of invasive plants (including kudzu, bamboo, and tree species) and forestry waste form an exterior room read alternately as a ruin or a topiary hedge.
The exterior is flat while the interior is undulating, suggesting possibilities for customization and integrated furniture. The resulting architecture is fuzzy, fluffy, furry, shaggy - simultaneously primitive and high-tech. Homegrown was fabricated with a scratch-built reusable pneumatic forming system, allowing the creation of complex surfaces accurately from a digital model without the use of wasteful molds.
This project has been longlisted in the installation design category of Dezeen Awards 2021.
Designer: After Architecture
Project: Homegrown