Innovation

Danielle discovered a living material that was not very common- evocative mushroom mycelium material. This material was used as packaging material to replace styrofoam. She loved how sustainable it was as well as the process of it. After ordering samples, she developed an entire lighting collection using this material. Today mycelium is well known in design schools. One project in particular that utilizes this material that Danielle implemented was in the 1Hotel in NYC. The Lampshades utilized were grown from this exact material. These lampshades take approx 7-10 days to grow.

"Hydroponic Vertical Garden - A vertical, self-sustaining planter system that harnesses hydroponic technology making indoor gardening for the space-constrained urban dweller an easier and exciting possibility. This self-watering system simplifies the process of growing your own plants so that interior gardening becomes much more accessible for those seeking a greener lifestyle."

How does it work?

"An energy efficient air pump, concealed within the structure, distributes water from an internal reservoir up to the top planter tier. The unique design then uses gravity to deliver water to each of the subsequent planter pods. A soilless medium such as clay rocks is used in each pod, thus eliminating the risk of soil-­borne diseases. The Vertical Hydroponic Garden also provides easy access to test the pH levels and add nutrients to the water, giving greater control over providing the most ideal growing conditions."

The core of Danielle's design is driven by the creation of sustainable solutions.

"Nature is the source of all innovation. Nature's really solved a lot of the challenges that we're looking to solve right now..."

Inspiration

• Moved to NYC and had an internship to get involved in product design.
  
• Won an award after graduate school for this design
  
• Created a prototype, presented it in Manhattan during NYC design week and showed it in the world's largest furniture fair in Milan.
  
• Started with an idea, then became a fabrication, and with multiple revisions to include more sustainable parts and technologies.
  
• "Nature is the source of all innovation. Nature's really solved a lot of the challenges that we're looking to solve right now..."
  
• "It's really starting to look at the natural world as a pure source of inspiration that really fits in to the whole system of life in the planet"
  

Overall impact

"I always knew that a lamp isn't going to save the world"

The overall impact of the innovation comes down to material and the process.

By using a unique material and being able to process it in a way that has never been done before. Then being able to apply it in the home in a way you wouldn't normally consider has transformed the way people view sustainable design within the home.

"It was basically creating the question - can we question what all of our goods are made of how they're made and how their effecting us in our interior environments"

This raised awareness to how toxic our interior environments actually are, and exposing how metal, glass, plastics are produced and how there are much more beneficial ways to create our interior environments.

In terms of long term effects, this type of design is being incorporated into school curricula. Danielle is currently teaching a bio-design class at the Masters level. The intent is to train the next generation of designers to have a different mind-frame when approaching design

Business benefit

Since starting her company, Danielle has had many business opportunities such as the design of the 1Hotel Brooklyn Bridge, BMWi, ABC Carpet & Home, Brooklyn Botanical Garden, and Campbell's.

1Hotel was another project that Danielle took on. 1Hotel Brooklyn Bridge is a luxury hotel brand inspired by nature that cultivates the best of eco-conscious design and sustainable architecture. The MushLume Lighting Installation in the hotel was composed of more than 100 lampshades grown from mushroom mycelium. Each lampshade varied in size and height and covered the ceiling of the Riverhouse suite.

"Danielle Trofe Design partnered with BMW i to create a sculptural vertical garden installation that climbed 20 ft. high and spanned two floors for the Born Electric World Tour 2012/13. The installation is designed to promote urban gardening and the integration of living plants into interior spaces by using vertical hydroponic technology."

Social and environmental benefit

"The fundamentals of sustainable design is all about, deeply understanding the entire process from sourcing, to energy and water consumption during the production process, to where the product will ultimately end up. Cradle to Grave. The mushroom material utilizes a waste product (corn stalk) and combines it with a rapidly renewable material (mycelium) and harnesses only the power of nature to GROW an object that, in turn, can return safely to the earth, adding nutrients back to the soil rather than pollutants.

It allows for consumers to turn away from toxic materials and to bring into their home a more eco0friendly, sustainable design solution that can be beneficial to them as well as the environment. By doing so, people are learning about alternative ways to functionally design their homes.

Interview

Danielle Trofe, Owner, Creator