Looking into the ground
Looking into the Ground is an ecological infrastructure bridging three interconnected systems: the biological (mycelium), the human (community), and the technological (bio-electric energy). Inspired by the discovery of local fungi on-site in November 2025, the project correlates with the planetary ecosystem in Avatar (2009), where the environment functions as a vast communication network akin to human neural synapses. By utilising real-time electrical impulses of mushrooms, the project translates hidden systems into an immersive nocturnal soundscape, framing the local human network as a living extension of the mycelial family.
On-Site Infrastructure
The spatial scheme is divided into two synchronised layers:
The Bio-Electric Layer: On-site bio-electric sensors monitor live voltage fluctuations within cultivated networks of Oyster (Pleurotus ostreatus), White Button (Agaricus bisporus), and Shiitake (Lentinula edodes) mushrooms. These data sets are translated into an immersive nocturnal auditory landscape where the local ecology becomes audible to gather residents and establish an interconnected family network.
The Kinetic Layer: A network of kinetic paving captures and stores the physical energy of pedestrian footsteps across Broadhurst Field. This stored energy directly powers a site-wide blue LED installation, turning community movement into a luminous nocturnal display that enhances public safety and animates the landscape after dark.
Exhibition Piece
The final exhibition piece makes this invisible network tangible. A centralised collection of 'Mushroom Identity' bottles is tethered together by a web of off-white thread, acting as a physical manifestation of mycelial hyphae.
As visitors remove a bottle, they are not merely taking a souvenir. But they are actively expand a new community by unthreading and extending this invisible network. The Moston mycelium moves from the gallery into domestic spaces, transforming each resident into a living node within an expanded human network.
Ultimately, as the installation stand becomes empty, the physical structure vanishes so the project can achieve its true, decentralised form. The material intervention recedes, allowing invisible social bonds between strangers to become alive, permanent, and unified day and night.
