Date: Saturday, 08 November 2025
Time: 09:30-14:00
Location: Varia (Gouwstraat 3, Rotterdam)

Household organic waste, as diverse as it can be in your bin – but excluding meat remains, bones, poop and large seeds – can be turned into biobased stuff. Powered by a fungus, it grows into shape, becoming a biodegradable material. Come grow a mycelium formed object, using household organic waste as substrate.

Catinca Tilea, socially curious artist and designer, is your guide through this process. Since 2018 she’s been experimenting with a main question in mind: what if everybody could build something from their own organic waste, nearby home?

This is a DIY-meets-biocraft workshop and it extends on Catinca’s research. After studying, experimenting and a whole trend forming around biobased tinkering, it’s time to find out what it’s like to grow objects from your own food scraps.

If you live in a neighbourhood, have biowaste in your bin and are curious about how you can turn it into new stuff, then this workshop is probably for you. You need no prior knowledge to join and your organic waste is welcome to join too.

This is a half day workshop with 3 parts - fermenting biowaste, creating your own object to be grown, and preparing the mycelium mixture in shape. Vegan lunch is included (free of charge).

9:30 - 10:00 coffee/tea and informal introduction
10:00 - 13: 15 workshop
13:15 - 14:00 round-up & discussions over shared lunch

Attending is free of charge. However, each workshop has a capacity of only 12 participants. Reserving a spot in advance is necessary. You can book by emailing Catinca: hi@catincatilea.com.

Please feel empowered to bring your own organic waste, we will use it. The biowaste should be no older than 1,5 week to spare our smelling senses. You can separate your biowaste in any container, even a plastic bag is alright. Needless to say, you are welcome without organic waste as well.

You will not be able to take your object home the same day. This will have to incubate for about 10 days after which it will be ready to meet you.

Children accompanied by an adult are welcome to join too. Little ones can attend from the age at which they understand the importance of washing their hands and not putting everything in their mouth.

Catinca Tilea is a Rotterdam based artist and designer who’s work puts together creativity, participation and future-oriented visions. Since 2018 she has been experimenting with bio-tinkering as social practice, in exploration of our relationship with nature. HOW TO HOPE TO BE and NIMMA CAN DO are two examples of growing art together with the community. Her projects highlight how sharing knowledge can foster cultural change, making her approach relational. Catinca’s work forms the body of a social practice where collective creativity becomes both medium and message.