In understanding how generative design can design for and with growth, Many-Headed Self attempts to compare the growth of identity through the movement of a non-human species, specifically Physarum Polycephalum, a slime mold that explores for food sources in an algorthimic pattern. The comparison is meant to reveal the abstract and multidimensional nature of the self, which struggles to rationalize where and when identity forms. The project incorporates physical and visual elements which impose and provoke our cultural understanding of elements that control who the self becomes. These elements include a map of decision points, the imprinting of knowledge and experience, and cultural ceremonies of fortune telling to uncover the self.

The Space Between : The search to understand how we (humans) became ourselves is never ending. The self is multifaceted, thus every explanation of its origin or determination of how it will change feels dissatisfying. Slime mold's generative pathways serve as a cross-species model to inform individuals of their own generative nature. Blurring the boundary of self reflection through a brainless creature is both provocative and liberating. This project aspires to create a new understanding of what it means to live a life.

Designer : Roxanne Hoffman

Course : Generative Design

Instructor : Zach Pino