An innovative experimental pavilion in Seoul is showcasing the future of sustainable architecture through the groundbreaking use of mycelium, the dense fungal network that naturally binds and regenerates organic matter. The Mycelial Hut, designed by Yong Ju Lee Architecture, represents a pioneering approach to bio-grown architecture that combines cutting-edge robotic 3D printing technology with biological growth processes to create large-scale building materials.
The pavilion's unique structure consists of a wooden frame that provides essential stability, wrapped in a series of specially grown mycelium panels that form the building's outer skin. Each panel was carefully cultivated inside customized 3D printed molds that were precisely shaped by industrial robotic arms and filled with carefully selected substrate materials. Prior to the construction phase, the research team conducted extensive testing of multiple mycelium mixtures, thoroughly evaluating their growth rates, density characteristics, and structural performance capabilities.
Developed through a collaboration between the Seoul- and New York-based Yong Ju Lee Architecture firm and the Robotic Fabrication Studio at Seoul National University of Science and Technology, the pavilion stands as a response to the environmental crisis facing modern construction. In an era where architecture and construction represent the largest global sources of carbon emissions, the Mycelial Hut proposes a fundamental shift in building materials. While concrete and steel have long symbolized progress and economic efficiency throughout the modern period, their environmental impact has become increasingly unsustainable.
The pavilion, installed in the open landscape of Seoul National University of Science and Technology's campus, embodies a revolutionary vision of bio-integrated architecture that literally grows from its surrounding environment. This innovative approach turns toward organism-based composite materials that offer biodegradable, recyclable, and regenerative properties, fundamentally challenging traditional concepts of what constitutes sustainable building practices.
The Mycelial Hut makes eco-friendly design tangible and accessible to visitors, inviting them to envision a future where buildings are not manufactured in traditional factories but instead cultivated like living organisms. This groundbreaking structure represents architecture that is alive, naturally decomposable, and deeply interconnected with the ecosystems that sustain them, offering a glimpse into a more harmonious relationship between human construction and the natural world.
