The Israeli architect and designer Neri Oxman has created a range of 3-D printed garments inspired from ancient planetary explorers.
Representing the life sustaining elements earth, water, air and fire, the range is infused with synthetically engineered microorganisms which when exposed to specific extreme environmental conditions can transform into essential life supporting elements such as oxygen for breathing, photons for seeing, biomass for eating, biofuels for moving and calcium for building.
The collection titled Wanderers comprises four pieces named after the famed astronomers in the Islamic medieval world, such as Mushtari (a wearable for Jupiter), Zuhal (a wearable for Saturn), Otaared (a wearable for Mercury) and Al-Qamar (a wearable for the Moon).
The Mushtari resembles a gastrointestinal tract, Zuhal is a whorled bodice with a hairy texture, Al-Qamar resembles the spherical pockets found on the surface of the moon and Oraared is a bone like structure in an elevated form.
The wearables are designed to interact with a specific environment characteristic of their destination and generate sufficient quantities of biomass, water, air and light necessary for sustaining life: some photosynthesize converting daylight into energy, others bio-mineralize to strengthen and augment human bone, and some fluoresce to light the way in pitch darkness. Each wearable is designed for a specific extreme environment where it transforms elements that are found in the atmosphere to one of the classical elements supporting life: oxygen for breathing, photons for seeing, biomass for eating, biofuels for moving, and calcium for building. Design research at the core of this collection lies at the intersection of multi-material 3D printing and Synthetic Biology.
Known for her work in environmental design and digital morphogenesis, Neri is the founder of the MaterialEcology design lab. She has won several internationally recognized prestigious titles including Earth Award for Future Crucial Design in 2009, Holcim Foundation for Sustainable Construction's Next Generation Award in 2008, a Graham Foundation Carter Manny Award, and the AICF Award of Excellence. (PB)
