Abstract
Why does our environment look so different from nature? Why do we consider certain organisms unwanted while carefully curating others? What if we designed materials and spaces that embraced biological growth rather than resisted it? This document gathers the research, process, and final outputs of "Printing Herbarium". The project questions how to add textures and embellishments to surfaces and explores new ways of printing and creating with living organisms, specifically mosses. Following a phytocentric approach, this "Printing Herbarium" challenges traditional methods of adding textures and embellishments to surfaces. It explores new ways of printing through the incorporation of living organisms, specifically moss. This research project aims to co-create a collection of living textures that embraces nature's rhythms and processes and combines these with traditional printing techniques. Additionally, it hacks conventional tools to create an ideal environment for the samples to grow, allowing for the exploration of new creative possibilities for living materials. The main focus of the research was to test whether it is possible to grow moss on textile surfaces using screen printing. To achieve this, many variables were tested, including different fibres, moss species, and nutrient binders. The outcome of this experimentation was a collection of living textiles that showcased 6 different species of mosses all growing into cotton fabric. Looking forward this project wants to test different materials and try different material applications. The challenges remaining like many other projects working with living organisms is how to keep these organisms alive in the materials.