Zest Bio-Pendant
A free-form lighting pendant, consisting of a floating cascade of rings made entirely of homemade bio-foam colored with curry powder and seasoned salt.
CLIENT:
Completed in course curriculum.
Final project - Bio-Materials in the Dark
Instructor: Amanda Huhyn
COMPLETED:
04/23/2026
SKILLS LEARNED:
Bio-material exploration & assembly.
Illumination properties and prototyping.
PROCESS
I made about four batches of bio-foam which contained glycerin, gelatin, dish soap, and water. I hand mixed the first one and then used an electric mixer for the rest to incorporate more air. And colored them with curry powder, and seasoned salt.
I designed and 3D printed a 11×11 inch, pinstripe mold in Fusion 360 and Bambu Studio. I poured the gelatin like bio-foam into the mold and let cure for a week.
I cut the bio-foam, using the pinstriping as a guide to make sections of varying widths and glued them to pre-soldered rings I had made beforehand.
I used a curved sewing needle in order to seperate the bio foam from the soldered ring at four points.
I used earring brad’s in order to connect the rings from one end to another. This also meant each spacing was the same distance.
The bulb I had designed my project around was initially way too bright and was distracting to the actual form. I decided to use glass frost paint and sprayed two coats to diffuse the lightbulb’s brightness.
My bio-foam had cured for over a week at this point and had changed shape even more. I used extremely sharp brand new sewing scissors in order to precisely clean up the edges of each ring once assembled.
I modeled a ring for the base of the pendant as well as two rings for the top of the pendant as the bio foam rings started before the pendant itself and I thought the pendant was too contrasting to the form itself.
REFLECTION
The process for this project was significantly rewarding because we were tasked to actually make our materials. This was my first time working specifically with bio-materials as well as lighting structures. Throughout this process, I really wanted to develop a piece that I could see myself actually using in my own home, I ideated many concepts most of which featured an inclused normal lightbulb. I decided instead of using the bio-foam as a shade, I would like to feature it alongside a dynamic lightbulb as well. I designed the zest pendant to cascade rings of yellow around my light source mimicking the look of citrus rinds.
This project taught me so many things, I made many batches of bio-foam as well as bio-plastic which I ended up not using, but along the way I learned how much patience and prototyping it takes to get a good bio-material. I made many form’s of the mixture and each time I learned new things and tried new tecniques which only made my form better. The best advice I learned throughout this project, was work with what the bio-material naturally wants to do. Bio-foam wants to naturally form a rubber styrofoam textured material and I wanted to utilize this to make a very rigid form to wrap around the light!