Architectural Innovation at the Venice Biennale: Biofabricated Living Structures That Breathe
As part of the 19th International Architecture Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia, the Living Room Collective presents a striking installation titled Picoplanktonics at the Canada Pavilion. This project is especially relevant for architects, interior designers, and landscape architects interested in bio-based materials, sustainable construction, and regenerative design practices.
Living Structures for a Living Planet
At the heart of Picoplanktonics are large-scale, 3D printed architectural elements embedded with living cyanobacteria, developed in a pioneering biofabrication lab at ETH Zürich. These cyanobacteria actively sequester carbon dioxide, showcasing a futuristic material approach that works in harmony with natural systems. The structures are not inert—they grow, thrive, and even decline over time, requiring caretakers on-site to tend to their living conditions throughout the exhibition.
This concept transforms conventional ideas of architecture by embedding ecological care and stewardship directly into the built environment. It suggests a future in which buildings could contribute positively to planetary health, rather than merely minimizing harm.
Material Innovation Through Biofabrication
The materials and methods employed in Picoplanktonics push the boundaries of architectural production. A first-of-its-kind biofabrication platform enables 3D printing of living materials at architectural scale, blending computational design, robotics, and biological research. The process integrates ancient biological processes with cutting-edge digital fabrication, representing a significant innovation in the quest for carbon-neutral or even carbon-negative construction.
Such technologies hold immense potential for architects and designers working at the forefront of material innovation. For landscape and interior designers, the approach offers insights into how micro-ecologies and responsive materials could be integrated into environments that support both human and non-human life.
A Regenerative Approach to Design
The exhibition is not just a display but an ongoing material experiment, inviting visitors to reflect on architecture’s role in planetary remediation. The Living Room Collective—an interdisciplinary team of architects, biologists, artists, and engineers—uses the project as a platform to explore core questions: What does it mean to build with life? How do we care for materials that are alive? Can architecture become a tool for healing the Earth?
These questions resonate strongly with sustainable design disciplines, encouraging professionals to move beyond extractive models of production and towards circular, regenerative practices.
Context and Impact
Commissioned by the Canada Council for the Arts, Picoplanktonics represents four years of research and development. It is supported by leading institutions, including ETH Zürich, the University of Toronto, and Toronto Metropolitan University, and was selected by an esteemed jury of architects and curators.
By highlighting the synergy between living systems and technological innovation, Picoplanktonics offers a powerful blueprint for future architectural and material practices rooted in sustainability, circularity, and ecological integration.
Source: Canada Council for the Arts
Photos: Living Room Collective, Valentina Mori, Clayton Lee, Girts Apskalns