FIELD
2021
Material Research
w/ Mrinalini Aggarwal, Jessica Fertonani Cooke, Ane Gonzalez Lara, Emily Gordon, Merav Gil Ad
Material Research
w/ Mrinalini Aggarwal, Jessica Fertonani Cooke, Ane Gonzalez Lara, Emily Gordon, Merav Gil Ad
Field is a research-led intervention that investigates the widespread use of manicured lawns in public spaces, turning grass clippings into biomaterials that then form organic sculptures, encouraging a cycle of life.
Field looks at Urban manicured grasses. They represent the homogeneity, control, and order visible in most contemporary civic spaces. They are ecologically unsustainable, require extensive resources, and comprise of mono-cultured, usually genetically modified seeds that do not flower. We have developed a consortium of grass-based (biodegradable) bioplastics that utilize lawn clippings harvested from our sites. In collaboration with city partners, we temporarily pause the routine mowing and fertilizing of civic lawns for one season.
Field looks at Urban manicured grasses. They represent the homogeneity, control, and order visible in most contemporary civic spaces. They are ecologically unsustainable, require extensive resources, and comprise of mono-cultured, usually genetically modified seeds that do not flower. We have developed a consortium of grass-based (biodegradable) bioplastics that utilize lawn clippings harvested from our sites. In collaboration with city partners, we temporarily pause the routine mowing and fertilizing of civic lawns for one season.
The wide range of biomaterial experiments were applied to varying fabrication techinques, which included Molded Castings, Extrusions, and Sheets. The Moldings were 100% Grass pulp molded over plaster forms. The Extruxuions are a bioplastic recipe containing 30% grass pulp and extruded through caulk guns and synringes. The sheets were make with 50% pupl and poured into metal trays.
A sculpture was constructed and exhibited at Pavilions & Projects on Governors Island in 2021. The bio-sculpture gradually dissolved into the surrounding grasses, initiating new birth cycles on the lawns. It facilitated unexpected interactions among people, birds, animals, weeds, and flowers, creating a living archive—a transient zone of exchange between natural and constructed systems that reimagined materiality within a constantly evolving landscape.
Molding the large sculpture over blue foam proved unsustainable, prompting an exploration of additive manufacturing techniques. Through collaboration with Streetlight Collective, access was granted to the Pratt Consortium of Robotics, leading to the assembly of a team to extrude the biomaterials.