Sexy Biomaterials, Shared Consequences | Tech & Design Meetup

Creating responsible desire in a world of living materials.

What happens when sustainable materials stop behaving and start seducing?

Biomaterials aren’t just necessary alternatives to plastics or petroleum-based products. Making them desirable is not a cosmetic choice, it shapes behaviour and, ultimately, systems.

At this edition of the EHV Innovation Café, we explore how desire can accelerate sustainable transformation — without repeating extractive patterns — and what shifts when we stop designing materials as objects and start relating to them as systems we take part in.

What you’ll get

• Fresh perspectives on biomaterials, biodesign and living systems
• Insights into how aesthetics influence behaviour and change systems
• Real-world practices from designers and researchers working with living materials
• An open, moderated discussion, no pitches, no panels, just conversation

Featuring

• Beatriz Sandini & Alessia Pasquini (Materia Futura) on seductive, expressive biomaterials rooted in care, craft and living systems
• Sam Edens (Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences) on working with biomaterials as relationships rather than technical solutions

Moderated by Charlotte Grün

Thursday, February 26th, Walk-in from 17:30 | Talks from 18:00
@ Kazerne, downtown Eindhoven
Free entrance, English Spoken, Open to All

Stop Making Materials. Start Making Relationships.

Special Guests

Beatriz Sandini & Alessia Pasquini
Designing desire for biomaterials —connecting care, craft and responsibility.

Materia Futura is an experimental design and research project that redefines the visual and sensory language of sustainable materials. Through iridescent, glossy and brightly coloured biopolymers, they prove that sustainability does not have to look rough or understated.

By merging biobased chemistry, traditional craftsmanship and immersive storytelling, Materia Futura creates fashionable materials that are sensory, playful and emotionally engaging — while deeply rooted in ecological awareness.

Their work asks a radical question:
What if sustainable materials didn’t just perform better — but felt irresistible?

Sam Edens
Turning biomaterials into relationships rather than solutions

Sam Edens is a biodesigner and researcher working at the intersection of design, biology and culture. With a background in product design and cultural studies, Sam explores living and biobased materials such as algae, fungi, yeasts and bacteria. At the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences, Sam works on projects that rethink how materials are grown, cultivated and understood, and coordinates the Biomaterials Studio — a hands-on research environment where designers, students and researchers experiment with living materials.

Need more context? Take a look at EHVinnovationCafé.org.

Be part of the conversation. Come curious. Leave with new questions.

Our city is full of hidden Tech & Design gems that fuel transformation. Now is the time to unite their superpowers. What visions do they hold for creating an attractive, sustainable world for us and future generations? What groundbreaking experiments and prototypes are they developing to boost our society forward? How can we learn from each other and contribute to this shared mission? Join us for an inspiring event where ideas and connections come to life!