National Endowment for the Arts Grant to Terreform ONE

[Brooklyn, NY] – Terreform ONE's recent initiative, the Fab Tree Hab, has been honored with a Grants for Arts Projects award from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), recognizing its revolutionary approach to architectural design. Fab Tree Hab focuses on creating multispecies dwellings using 100% living grafted woody plants, aiming to redefine green architecture.

 “The NEA is delighted to announce this grant to Terreform ONE which is helping contribute to the strength and well-being of the arts sector and local community,” said National Endowment for the Arts Chair Maria Rosario Jackson, Ph.D. “We are pleased to be able to support this community and help create an environment where all people have the opportunity to live artful lives.”  

Project Narrative:

The Fab Tree Hab is a terrestrial reef and grafted living tree structure that serves as a habitat shared by both humans and animals. It is sublimely located on ten acres of land in New Windsor, New York, just a few minutes from the Storm King Art Center.

Created by Terreform ONE, this innovative project combines indigenous tree-grafting techniques and computationally designed wooden arch scaffolds. The primary objective is to prototype a dwelling seamlessly integrated into its natural landscape while replacing harmful industrial materials with decarbonizing, bio-based alternatives. This aligns with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 15, which focuses on Life on Land, as it promotes sustainable land use and biodiversity.

Spanning approximately 1,000 square feet, the structure ingeniously incorporates locally sourced 30-foot-tall tree clusters, meticulously shaped on-site using large cross-laminated timber (CLT) arch scaffolds. Harvested from a nearby biomass farm, these willow trees form the backbone of the construction. The infill wall modules, treated with a combination of beeswax and pine rosin, serve as the canvas for a unique blend of handmade crocheted jute fibers and 3D-printed bioplastic volumes, fostering multispecies habitats. The end result is a vibrant living habitat that significantly enhances biodiversity, creating micro-habitats and intricate food webs for both flora and fauna.

The project is in alignment with the mission of Terreform ONE, a 501c3 nonprofit art, architecture, and urban design research group dedicated to addressing the extinction of planetary species through innovative design solutions. Founded in 2006, the group is led by Mitchell Joachim, Ph.D. (Co-Founder) and Vivian Kuan (Executive Director). The Fab Tree Hab stands as a testament to their dedication to creating inclusive spaces and implementing strategies that promote environmental and social justice for all living beings. Joachim, reflecting on the project, noted, "It has taken over fifteen years of research and development, dating back to my time at MIT, to bring this vision to fruition."

The National Endowment for the Arts, established in 1965, is the largest funder of the arts and arts education in communities nationwide.

For media inquiries, please contact:

Mitchell Joachim at (617) 285-0901 | info@terreform.org.

Photos and video are available at Terreform.org/fab-tree-hab.

For more information on the NEA’s grant announcement, visit arts.gov/news.