Saturday, March 24, 2007

Symbiont by Pavel Sterec

An autonomous biorobotic plant climbing up a living tree. The installation searching for a feasibility of an intimite and balanced relationship between the artificial and the natural.

The installation consists of a water collector in place of a tuber, solar panels instead of leaves, rubber tubes and an artificial fruit. Inside the fruit there is nutritive soil in which microorganisms reproduce.
After gradual “ripening” the “fruit” is released due to excessive pressure. It falls down, where it fertilizes the host tree. A “seed”, which is actually a SD card is placed inside the fruit. All the data necessary for the breeding of a new symbiont is put into the card. A microcontroller guarantees the accuracy of the growth process and is in control of the whole procedure. Symbiont offers nutrients, which promote growth of the host plant, in exchange for a better access to light (i.e. Solar panels in the treetop).

Link | Via orgamism: making art with living systems