A Nanotechnology Studio on Growing Architecture
The Revival of the Growing Architecture Collective
Contemporary science has brought us to understanding and directing molecular actions and furthermore allowing us to build systems based upon these understandings. Nanotechnology is a term for this current arena which is the length scale upon which chemical actions and molecular assembly take place. This Nu Vu Design Studio will apply scientific principles of Nanotechnology into the applied space of Growing Architecture. We will find those who participate in developing and deploying Growing Architecture are part of an ancient lineage of the universal processes of life, love and novelty.
The Nu Vu Nanotechnology Growing Architecture Collective Design Studio will have a core educational mission of teaching contemporary molecular science balanced with applied holistic intentions of growing healthy systems. The Studio will cover the historical application of the Nanotechnology of Growing Architecture. We will embark collectively on developing Seed Design Theory while initiating the collection of geometries, available materials and flow profiles required to build a Seed Atlas for all of Life’s Systems.
Dr. Ryan Wartena
Chemical Engineer & CEO/President, Growing Energy Labs, Inc. (GELI)
Dr. Ryan Wartena is a chemical engineer and proprietor of the energy system design firm Growing Energy Labs Inc. (GELI). Dr. Wartena holds degrees in Chemical Engineering from UC San Diego and the Georgia Institute of Technology, where he earned his Ph.D. in 2001. A post-doctoral research opportunity led him to the Naval Research Lab to set up a battery development and testing laboratory and work on energy harvesting methods. As a research associate at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, he developed micro- and nano-batteries and co-led the engineering team that introduced the world’s first self-assembled battery. Building on his experience with nanomaterials, Ryan assisted in the creation of microscopic masterpieces like the millimeter-high “Seed of Life” grown from carbon nanotubes.
For all his technical expertise, Ryan considers himself equal parts scientist and artist with a calling to converge art, technology, and consciousness. Balance of the three is a constant in his projects, from the carbon nanotube structures and interactive LED sculptures to botanically inspired solar panels and energy storage systems.
