Ecoshroom is an art-science project that reimagines life in urban areas. Emphasizing the need to bring agriculture back to cities, this installation experiments with the merging of natural and technological systems toward a more sustainable future.

The exhibition features a custom-built AI that analyses and reveals the exchange of nutrients and carbon between mycorrhiza (a fungus) and plants. The installation engages visitors with a visual data stream as well as sounds that represent the plant and fungi communication. Visitors can also participate in the communication chain by eating fruit and leaving leftovers in a compost container, thus contributing to the functioning and cycle of the installation.

Ecoshroom critically engages and provokes discussions about which technologies we want to develop from a vision on sustainability, climate change, and biodiversity by envisioning a harmonious coexistence between plants, fungi, and humans through technological innovation. Asking “What if plants were the brain of the building?”, Ecoshroom shows the possibilities for an innovative approach to architecture design: creating an autonomous system, guided by the cognition of plants and fungi, together with artificial intelligence.

The glass pavilion where the work is presented is incorporated into the installation. Sensors are placed on the plants and fungi that generate signals to be analysed by the AI. The AI will then adjust the atmosphere such as temperature, light, CO2, and humidity according to the organisms’ needs.

With the world’s population surpassing 8 billion, transformative narratives are crucial, addressing climate change, food security, and biodiversity. The continuing vast rates of deforestation and rampant overuse of fertilisers have depleted soils and ecosystems, threatening biodiversity. Ecoshroom invites us to reimagine a world co-created by plants, fungi, humans, and technology by shedding light on the possibilities of interspecies communication.

Read the brochure here

Opening hours Ecoshroom
Thursday 13:00–17:00
Friday 13:00–17:00
Saturday 13:00–17:00
Sunday 13:00–17:00

The idea for Ecoshroom was conceived during Ivan Henriques Machine Wilderness residency, organised by Zone2Source and FoAM at ARTIS Royal Zoo in 2022. There he met with professor Toby Kiers (evolutionary biologist at V.U.) for his research on mycorrhiza, a cohabitation of fungi and plants. Ecoshroom was further developed in the Hungry Ecocities residency of S+T+ARTS EU for Hungry Eco-Cities, in collabioration with various international partners.

Read more about Ivan Henriques’ AiR at ARTIS Royal Zoo here.

Watch the video on Ecoshroom research here.

Credits
Artist: Ivan Henriques
Software and hardware engineer: Simon de Bakker
AI engineer: Michiel van Overbeek
Biology technician: Sandrine D’Haene
Interactive interface designer: Noémi Biró
Assistant: Paul Mogwitz
Advisors: Vasilis Kokkoris (VU Amsterdam), Joske Ruytnx (VUB), Elly Morrien (UvA), Stephan Petermann (OMA/ARCHIS), Monika Löve and Chiara Borghi (CRA), and Cristina Varese (Torino University).
Produced by: K.O. Productions & Imagining Other …

This project was made possible with the support of the Amsterdam Fund for the Arts (AFK) and the Creative Industries Fund NL.