AMAM-Agar Plasticity

The design group, AMAM and their project Agar Plasticity explores the use of agar as a biodegradable substitute for conventional plastic packaging. They discovered that by boiling certain types of algae and dehydrating the resulting soup, it’s possible to create a variety of shapes and textures that could replace plastic film or foam packaging. For example, the frozen solution takes on a soft, cushioning structure, and when it’s compressed, it forms a plastic-like film.

This project gave me the idea of experimenting with the material at all stages. I should boil it, shred it, freeze it, microwave it, compress it to explore the potentiality of the material properties. I should design a more systematic approach to testing materials. By creating a list of action words or compile a list a manufacturing process, I will have a bank of words that I can act upon when I am trying to physically manipulate materials.