MIRIAM JOSI AND STELLA LEE PROWSE

Their proposal for the Boisbuchet Residency Award was an extension of their individual diplomas; while Miriam’s research examines myco-collaboration and vernacular design, Stella’s thesis explores the role of observation in bio-inspired design methodologies. The two define their joint project Back to dirt as a bio-inclusive exploration with mycelium – ‘bio-inclusive’ is a term borrowed from environmental philosopher Freya Mathews to reinstate the human as part of nature with interwoven needs.

While myco-fabrication produces bio-circular materials from waste through life-friendly processes and is a promising alternative to traditional industrial fabrication methods, this inquiry recognizes a disparity between how mycelium is used in design and its role in the ecosystem. In the lab mycelium is grown in a sterile and isolated environment, while in nature the organism thrives on the diversity of the soil and  relationships. It is in this disconnect that they identified an opportunity to expand on myco-fabrication by integrating the full potential of mycelia (such as remediation) into the process. Back to dirt looks to challenge the current trajectory of myco-fabrication, instead of isolating the organism, the aim is to embrace its interrelationships in order to imagine  new ways of making that benefit the more-than-human.

Boisbuchet offered the opportunity to bring the lab to nature, rethinking the tools and environments of the design process and ultimately challenging the methods of control in bio-collaboration. An immersive week involved framing their project in relation to the locality of Boisbuchet’s domaine; surveying the local fungi, studying soils, sourcing local waste materials as substrates, leaving the sterile lab and rethinking finite molds to the possibility of being permeable, flexible and biodegradable. An ongoing exploration into considering the soil as the mold imagines more integrated processes for fabrication with the potential to regenerate our ecosystems.

Josi and Lee Prowse’s practice Aléa blurs the boundaries of disciplines and aims to establish a deeper relationship between design and environment. In this project myco-fabrication becomes an immersive and reciprocal collaboration with living systems, offering valuable lessons in humility and multispecies interdependence. The experience extends agency and ultimately defines a design approach that embraces the unknown and acknowledges the limits of human control.