Since July 18, 2024, visitors to Walther Park in Innsbruck can marvel at the xeno-tékton art project by architects and university alumni Ingrid Mayrhofer-Hufnagl and Benjamin Ennemoser. As one of the three selected artworks of the Art in Public Spaces Tirol 2024 initiative, it critically engages with the definition of solidarity space against the backdrop of the alarming speed of environmental destruction caused by human activities.

Construction activities and land sealing lead to the loss of natural habitats and a decline in biodiversity. In response to the consequences of environmental destruction, the artists, in collaboration with artificial intelligence, designed new three-dimensional habitats intended for both humans and non-human entities such as animals and plants. The installation challenges viewers to experience the built environment through the eyes of other living beings and invites them to expand conventional notions of communal living.

Artistic Implementation of the Project
Life on our planet is complex. Xeno-tékton visualizes the idea of human and non-human interdependence by representing coexistence as a network of relationships where everything is connected. In this network, shared by humans, flora, and fauna, community and solidarity are crucial for the survival of all life forms.

The multi-species habitat combines ancient building materials such as clay and earth with artificial intelligence and robotic fabrication techniques. The result is a habitat seamlessly integrated into an urban landscape, using natural and living materials. The project generates life where there would otherwise be inert matter and minimizes the carbon footprint by pushing the boundaries of renewable design.

Humans, machines, and natural systems become joint creators: printed by robots, the structure is stabilized by nature through plant growth and biomineralization. This process forms microhabitats and a food network for flora and fauna, thus increasing biodiversity..

Integration of Biological System Properties
The installation is not a finished artwork but one that reinvents itself daily, giving nature space to act as artist, architect, and habitat designer. Changing environmental conditions throughout the year alter the artwork. Xeno-tékton thus integrates the adaptability and self-healing properties of biological systems. The seasonal changes of the artwork are recorded by integrated sensors and serve future scientific material analysis and the development of a digital installation.

Design and Concept: Ingrid Mayrhofer-Hufnagl, Benjamin Ennemoser
AI & Machine Learning: Ingrid Mayrhofer-Hufnagl, Benjamin Ennemoser
Sensing: Benjamin Ennemoser, Simon Hildebrand

Scientific Advisory Board:

Arwyn Jones, Calogero Schillaci - Soil Care Project, Joint Research Center (JRC) of the European Commission, Ispra, Italy, Anil C. Somenahally - Department of Soil and Crop Sciences, Texas A&M University, USA

Scientific Collaboration Partner:

Thomas Pümpel, Institute of Microbiology, University of Innsbruck
Jonathan L. Baker, Quaternary Research Group, Institute of Geology, University of Innsbruck

Production Partner, 3D Printing:

Marjan Colletti and Georg Grasser, Tutors Simon Hildebrand, Theresa Biesalski, Amy Ehinger, as well as the students of the "Prototype Construction" course in the summer semester of 2024 at the REXLab Institute for Experimental Architecture, Building Construction, University of Innsbruck Jan Contala, Cera-Lab, Innsbruck, Incremental3D, Innsbruck

Funded by: State of Tyrol, KÖR (Art in Public Spaces) 2024
Developed with: Artist Association of Tyrol, Green Spaces-Park
Maintenance Department of the City of Innsbruck