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Mycelial Mat
Mycelium, the roots of mushrooms, provide essential nutrients that allow others around it to thrive. So much of the earth is covered with mycelium. Below our feet, in the soil, it supports trees and plants and contributes to healthy ecosystems. It is vital to the world around us, yet we rarely see or directly interact with it. I was wondering what it would be like if we could feel and sense the ecological fabric within the soil. I designed and created a mat to unearth mycelium so that we can interact with it and hopefully form a deep appreciation for the world beneath our feet. I was also inspired by weaving patterns and by sashimono, the Japanese technique of assembling furniture and other wooden items without nails, to construct this mat. The zine accompanies this piece to tell the fuller story behind the process.
Caroline Chou was born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area. She is a first year masters student at Gallatin concentrating in Mycology, Community, Health, Art, and Technology. With a background in microbiology, working alongside Asian youth challenging the stigma of mental health, and partnering with Bay Area residents building community power through art and storytelling, she recognizes that collaborative relationships are integral for community resilience not only in ecological environments but also in our vulnerable and marginalized communities. Inspired by the replenishing and symbiotic relationships fungi have with the world around them, she is interested in exploring ways to regenerate fractured relationships with the land, community, and systems of power through storytelling and interactive art.
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