As we’ve been reporting, One Island – Many Visions, the Portland Sculpture & Quarry Trust’s collaboration with the Royal Society of Sculptors, yielded an array of varied creative explorations inspired by the site.

For Artist Jane Fox that meant cultivating biodegradable “fossils” using probiotic microbial cellulose combined with kelp. Probiotic Fossils – Tiny Builders of the Natural World, takes direct inspiration from Portland’s ancient stromatolite formations - layered rocks created by the salivary secretions of Cyanobacteria. These microscopic organisms sit at the foundation of global life systems, constructing entire ecologies from coral reefs upwards and helping maintain environmental homeostasis. Cyanobacteria are also present in SCOBY (Symbiotic Colonies of Bacteria and Yeasts), which ferments tea and sugar to generate microbial cellulose within a miniature, self-sustaining ecosystem. Like the stromatolites they once built, Fox’s probiotic cellulose grows in successive layers through microbial by-products. 

Her research took a significant step in 2023 when her probiotic microbial cellulose samples were accepted into the Future Materials Bank at the Jan van Eyck Academie in Maastricht, a resource dedicated to non-toxic, next-generation materials for art and design. Classified as a smart bacterial bioplastic that is recyclable, regenerative and remarkably adaptable, Jane is now using the material to investigate the potential for probiotic-rich sculptural surfaces that influence the air we breathe in interior spaces. Her experiments also point towards medical applications, including burn treatment and wound healing, hinting at a future where living materials could shape both architecture and healthcare.