Symbion, 2017
Living spiders, natural spider silk fiber, stainless steel structure. Dimensions Variable
Derived from the project, Stabilimentum 2016
Symbion 2017 is derived from the project Stabilimentum 2016, and aims to better target vehicle emissions by applying the spatial and architectural characteristics of spiders’ communal web-building structure to site specific bridges, using computational design. Symbion targets highly populated, cities containing rivers, and thus bridges, including Seoul, Boston, and Paris. The structural application of spider web fibers on existing bridges is designed to not only catch dust and vehicle fumes in the air, but also help balance the number of insects residing near the water, without using chemical pesticides.
Including analysis of spider web morphology, the environmental conditions affecting the weaving of spider webs, and spider webs’ electrostatic ability to catch air particles and insects, the project is based on research undertaken for Stabilimentum 2016. Symbion is a project that illustrates the application of spider web fibers on public and urban architectural scale. This project expansion sees the creation of a module that codes and manipulates the way spiders weave their webs, allowing the material to adapt to the varying needs of urban locations. The almost transparent quality of the web fibers and structural design from the spider’s web contribute aesthetically, as well as practically.
The structural design of the frame is derived from the communal web of five Silver Argiope spiders, which Woo kept for six months under conditions observed at the Back River Wastewater Plant in Baltimore. The pattern was repeated in varying scales over three, seperate layers, for a better filteration process.
Varying concentrations of dust and air pollutants from vehicles are captured through three layers of installation on the bridge.
Symbion is a project that illustrates the application of spider web fibers on public and urban architectural scale. This project expansion sees the creation of a module that codes and manipulates the way spiders weave their webs, allowing the material to adapt to the varying needs of urban locations. The spiders are to communally weave natural web fibers on Symbion’s frame structure. The web fibers would need to be replaced regularly for effective filtration.
