Studio Polpo

Heeley Mushroom Project

The Heeley Mushroom project was initiated by Studio Polpo with funding received from the Arts Council to explore issues of waste, circular economy, and natural materials through a series of workshops and a structure.

We worked at Anns Grove Primary school in Sheffield where pupils made a series of tiles using mycelium spawn and waste cardboard that they had brought in. These panels grew in strength and developed mushrooms over the course of six weeks. In parallel we grew a series of large mycelium roof panels in Arts Catalyst's Soft Ground space which has allowed us to test other processes, and also do this a space open to members of the public.

We designed and built a green-oak timber framed structure, using small section, locally sourced timber, and connected with timber dowels. Pupils took part in workshops run by an artist Sally Barker around mushrooms and plants, natural dyes and sculpture, and also the hanging of the mycelium tiles. The structure is now at the school and in time, we hope that it will allow for different material experiments and uses thrpoughout the seasons.

The project has not only allowed us to experiment with new processes, but also to engage the pupils, staff and parents with crucial issues around the ecosystem and built environment. The panels demonstrate the use of ‘waste’ as a substrate for the mycelium, and are then themselves compostable, and the structure itself is demountable and avoids the use of glues and screws. This, along with the local origin of the materials starts the conversation about embodied carbon as well as reducing it in practice. The engagement of the school pupils has made them aware of all the stages of bringing the project together, and the dowelled construction makes the assembly method of the pavilion legible.

The project was shortlisted for the Initiative category of the ASBP (The Alliance for Sustainable Building Products) Awards 2023.