recycled 3D printing waste transforms into a resonant field of sound, light, and space

recycled 3D printing waste turns into a distributed sound field

Ninefold: A Distributed Resonant Field transforms recycled 3D printing waste into nine large-scale resonant forms that shape sound, light, and spatial experience. Developed by architect Hyojin Kwon, founder of Pre- and Post-, percussionist, composer, and multimedia artist Jeremy Muller, and architect and material researcher Misri Patel, the installation brings together architecture, music, computation, and digital fabrication. The project works with discarded PLA collected from fabrication laboratories. The material is shredded into pellets, combined with virgin material, and reprinted into nine large-scale artifacts using pellet-based additive manufacturing. Instead of concealing the recycled content, the fabrication process leaves variations in transparency, opacity, color, and layered deposition visible across the surfaces, allowing each object to register the transformation of the material.

The nine forms are generated through a shared computational system based on reaction–diffusion algorithms. Rather than reproducing a single geometry, the system produces continuously evolving forms that expand, contract, twist, and fold. The resulting artifacts vary in scale and configuration, with some developing into tall, slender columns while others widen into chambers or narrow toward their centers. Each object functions as a resonant body tuned to a specific frequency within a harmonic spectrum. Together, the nine artifacts create a distributed sound field in which the source of sound is dispersed throughout the installation rather than concentrated in a single point. The relationship between the objects establishes an environment where sound, geometry, light, and material interact across the room. Movement through the installation becomes part of this spatial system. As visitors change position, the relationship between the resonant bodies and their corresponding sounds shifts, producing different combinations of acoustic and visual information from different points within the space.

Ninefold, a field of nine resonant artifacts, varying in geometry, scale, surface, and material | all images ©Arsh Khanna

Ninefold explores architectural potential in recycled plastic

The use of recycled plastic also forms part of the project’s material language. Variations created during additive manufacturing remain visible instead of being treated as defects to be concealed. The installation therefore explores how discarded material can become a source of new geometries, acoustic properties, and spatial configurations through computational design and fabrication. Ninefold is presented alongside Plastic Reimagined: Material Agency & Circular Design, an exhibition examining the architectural applications of discarded plastics through computational design, material experimentation, and large-scale fabrication. Together, the projects investigate approaches that move beyond disposal by treating plastic waste as a material resource for new forms and environments.

Ninefold: A Distributed Resonant Field + Plastic Reimagined: Material Agency & Circular Design is on view at Reeves House Visual Arts Center in Woodstock, Georgia, from July 10th through September 24th, 2026. On August 20th, the exhibition will host Night Viewing: Artist Panel & Performance, featuring a discussion with designers Hyojin Kwon, Jeremy Muller, and Misri Patel followed by a live sixty-minute composition by Muller. The performance activates the nine resonant artifacts as part of an after-hours presentation combining sound, light, and material.

the work installed at Reeves House Visual Arts Center as part of Plastic Reimagined: Material Agency & Circular Design

visitors move through the installation as a spatial field of material, light, and sound

outdoor view highlights the translucency and optical qualities of recycled plastic in daylight

changing light conditions reveal subtle variations in the material’s color and depth

a study of one modular component fabricated through large-format additive manufacturing

material studies explore variations in geometry, transparency, and color across the family of resonant forms

the installation invites tactile exploration of recycled plastic as a material and spatial experience

each resonator is fabricated in modular sections for transport, maintenance, and future reconfiguration

each Ninefold vessel is tuned to a distinct harmonic frequency and 3D printed from recycled plastic

a close-up reveals the layered deposition of recycled plastic as part of the material expression

surface detail shows the layered texture and color variation produced by pellet-based 3D printing with recycled PLA

project info:

name: Ninefold: A Distributed Resonant Field

designers: Pre- and Post- | @pre__n__post – Hyojin Kwon × Jeremy Muller x Misri Patel

location: Reeves House Visual Arts Center, Woodstock, Georgia, USA (https://woodstockarts.org/events/exhibition-plastic-reimagined-material-agency-circular-design/)

dates: July 10th – September 24th, 2026

fabrication assistants: Andrew Hong, Arunnganabathy Sankar

exhibition installation assistance: Julie Jiyoon Lim

supported by: National Science Foundation — ReCreateIt: Transforming Plastic Waste Through Community-Led Manufacturing (NSF Convergence Accelerator Phase II), Georgia Tech Manufacturing Institute, Georgia Tech College of Design (School of Architecture & School of Music), Georgia Tech Invention Studio

photographer: Arsh Khanna | @arshk1506

designboom has received this project from our DIY submissions feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. See more project submissions from our readers here.

edited by: Christina Vergopoulou | designboom