Collection of woven willow structures at Mediamatic Biotoop, forming an living experiment - a shared space to observe and navigate the relationships between local species, habitats, human presence, and traditional craft.
Contemporary spatial design remains almost exclusively built by humans, for humans, a practice that frequently severs our connection to local ecosystems and marginalizes non-human life. In response to this rigid, anthropocentric paradigm, this project explores how architecture can function as a living, collaborative bridge between species, decentralizing human dominance to restore ecological balance.
Humans are welcome to enter the growing willow dome in the Tumulus garden and spend time inside — but we are not its only inhabitants.
Rooted in Tradition
Basket weaving, one of humanity’s oldest crafts, serves in this project as a symbol of how design can care and protect, across different shapes and scales.
The foundation of this practice relies on a core ethical principle: designing with a species rather than simply exploiting it as a raw material. Central to this exploration is the willow tree (Salix), an ancient organism deeply interwoven with both Dutch and Croatian cultural heritage and craft traditions.
Roots and Zinkstuks
This willow woven installation tells the story of willow tree roots and human made "zinkstuks" while being offered to Mediamatic water biotope as a possible shelter or nesting habitat for canal species such as ducks, fish and algae.
Willow tree roots are fibrous and shallow spreading root systems which allows them to hold land, riverbanks and dykes against erosion, while doing phytoremediation of the soil and water from toxic contamination. The root system provides crucial habitat for diverse species such as fungi, microbes, macroinvertebrates, fish and amphibians. Similarly to willow roots, since centuries Dutch have been weaving “Zinkstuks” - massive willow woven mattresses that hold soft underwater beds & banks of rivers, dikes and coastlines against erosion. Zinkstuks are sinked to the bottom of a waterbody where they can last for decades while serving as a habitat for many species such as aquatic invertebrates, fish, algae, mosses and waterbirds. Today zinkstuks are getting replaced by geotextiles - synthetic fabrics made of polypropylene or polyester - that by degrading pollute the water ecosystem.
Knotwilg
This willow woven installation tells the story of the Dutch knotwilg while being offered to Mediamatic biotope as a possible shelter and nesting habitat for birds and insects.
Knotwilg is a nickname for a white willow tree (salix alba) that developed a knot crown at the top trunk due to being pollarded (cutting branches) every few years. Winter pruning of the willow tree branches throughout history provided Dutch people with long straight branches practical for creating zinkstuks, fences, furniture, products, baskets and clogs while managing the height of softwood willow trunks that easily break due to strong wind or their own weight. The hollow knots and trunk serve as habitats for insects, birds, invertebrates, amphibians, mammals, fungi, mosses, lichen and small plants. As willow flowers called "catkins" are a critical early spring food source for pollinators, today's pollarding practice is becoming more careful to always leave some trees uncut.
Fallen Tree Trunk
This willow woven installation tells the story of a fallen white willow trunk while being offered to Mediamatic biotope as a possible shelter and nesting habitat for small mammals and insects.
White willow trees (salix alba) naturally grow fast and tall reaching heights up to 25–30 meters. With their tall canopies and dense spreading branches they offer shelter, nesting sites, and food for birds, small mammals, amphibians, mosses, fungi, lichens, plants, and insects, while their wide roots system is essential for the landscape. Willow trees as a soft wood can easily break and fall, which makes humans cut most of the willow trees as a safety prevention measure. However, a fallen willow trunk has an enormous beneficial role for the ecosystem providing shelter, habitat and food for many species, while it often continues growing despite falling.
"We are often obsessed with making something no one has ever seen before. Yet so many vital practices already exist, they are simply getting lost. Real innovation lies in rediscovering these traditions and adapting them to today’s world."
While modern design often prioritizes radical novelty and hyper-innovation, this research turns toward existing, forgotten wisdom. Rather than yielding to the pressure of creating something entirely unprecedented, the project re-evaluates traditional crafts and ecological knowledge, recontextualizing them to meet contemporary environmental needs.
At Mediamatic, the living structure takes the form of an ongoing, open-ended experiment situated within the garden’s tumulus. Developing living architecture within an urban, managed environment
Information
Multispecies Baskets
by Anđela Zora Brnas
The installation is located in Tumulus garden next to the Sluisdeurenloods (Barn)
