1. What is Biodesign?
How can Biology inform Design and Technology, or vice versa? Sustainability has reached the mainstream, many companies are becoming increasingly eco-aware and creating biodegradable, recyclable and reusable products. However, manufacture still makes a very significant contribution to the amount of greenhouse gases in our atmosphere. What if we could design products which could be manufactured by nature, or by combining nature with current and future fabrication methods? Enter; biodesign.
This discipline is still emerging, and universities are instigating this by launching degrees which will inform the designers of tomorrow. The University of Arts London is one of the first institutions to do this, the following excerpt from their course overview summarises biodesign quite well;
“Despite a growing number of publications and exhibitions, there is no universal definition of biodesign as such. Other terminologies exist, such as biophilic design, bio-integrated design, biomimetic design and bio-informed design. While they vary in definition, they all relate to a similar principle: that we can learn from nature to create more sustainable ways of living.”
Studying and understanding what nature has designed, through the process of natural selection and evolution is the starting point for this industry. Companies like Biophilica are already creating and releasing products made from carbon negative materials by using plant waste to formulate new materials. The MIT Mediated Matter Group, lead by Neri Oxman is taking it a step further by showing the potential of combining biology with digital fabrication techniques. A great example of their work is the ‘Silk Pavilion’, which involved releasing 6500 live silkworms onto an incomplete silk dome structure which manipulated the behaviour of the live silkworms in order to fabricate a pavilion.
As with all new ideas, there are more questions than answers at this point. The idea of an amalgamation between biology, design, engineering and architecture has extremely diverse implications. It is a way of creating carbon negative materials, which would fight climate change by removing carbon from the atmosphere. This could change the way we design buildings, create art and recreate the design process, driving humankind to a more ecological future.
