Beyond sustainability… Materials to watch

Innovation in design never stops and these cutting-edge ideas may be the decorating solutions of the future

MYCELIUM

Everyone from global brands such as Hermès and Adidas to furniture designer Sebastian Cox has experimented with this material made from renewable mushroom fungi – a few years ago, the latter teamed up with design strategist Ninela Ivanova to make a series of stools and lights made with the fungus ( 1). Most often used as a substitute for plastic and leather, it’s a potential game-changer, as it also boasts qualities that make it excellent for insulating and fire-proofing homes.

CLAY

One of the world’s oldest building materials may also be the saviour of the modern housing industry. Forget traditional mud structures, though; the innovators in this field use cutting-edge technology. Take Bologna-based Mario Cucinella Architects, which has created a low-carbon, 3D-printed housing prototype ( 2) in collaboration with 3D-printing specialists WASP. The completed property’s 350 layers of clay not only make its structure stable, but also provide a thermal barrier.

SALT

Until now, this abundant resource has been mostly overlooked by designers, but it has huge potential. Look at the lifts clad in salt panels ( 3), made by Atelier Luma, for Frank Gehry’s tower at the Luma Foundation in Arles. They were produced by submerging metal-mesh panels into the nearby Camargue salt flats, allowing sun and wind to fuel natural crystallisation processes. Elsewhere, Studio Nir Meiri has produced ‘SeaSalts’, a range of lampshades made from mixing bioresin with salt, which crystallises in the manufacturing process.

CARBON-CAPTURING CONCRETE

Concrete may seem an unusual choice to include in this list – the industry is one of the world’s biggest emitters of carbon dioxide – but a few brands are looking to reduce its negative impact on the planet. Montreal-based Carbicrete has developed a method for capturing carbon in concrete blocks. The process involves replacing the cement content in concrete with steel slag, which can be injected with CO2 to form limestone. Meanwhile, in India, Carbon Craft Design (a finalist for the 2021 EDIDA Sustainable Achievement Award) mixes carbon emissions collected from factories with cement or marble to create a series of innovative, patterned tiles ( 4).

ALGAE

Many uses have been found for this natural, biodegradable aquatic resource. Bioplastics have been made with it, while Danish designers Jonas Edvard and Nikolaj Steenfatt have combined it with paper pulp to make furniture. Perhaps the most exciting recent use, however, is Frama’s revolutionary seaweed curtains ( 5), produced in collaboration with Natural Material Studio. Able to biodegrade in just three months if put into contact with soil and bacteria, they are currently just a prototype, but have promising potential.