Façade Ideas #2 | Growing building materials
Can façades be made from fungi?
Concrete, steel and aluminium dominate today’s façades.
But what if tomorrow’s building materials could actually grow?
During OpenFace Day 2026, Fiamma Morselli from Politecnico di Torino presented a research project exploring the potential of mycelium-based composite materials for the built environment.
Building with local resources
Rather than developing a universal material, the project investigates a bioregional approach, where building components are produced from locally available biomass and endemic fungal species.
Using mycelium—the root structure of fungi—as a natural binder, agricultural and forestry residues can become lightweight composite materials with a significantly lower environmental impact.
The research explores:
- regenerative building materials;
- local production chains;
- circular resource use;
- place-based design strategies.
The result is a material system that connects architecture with local ecosystems and circular economies.
What could it mean for the future of the façade and construction sector?
By rethinking not only what we build with, but also where materials come from, projects like this help move façade engineering towards more regenerative practices.
About the author
Fiamma Morselli is a PhD researcher at the Department of Architecture and Design, Politecnico di Torino. Her research focuses on bio-based materials, regenerative design, and mycelium-based composites for sustainable construction.