Today on Mushroom Hour we are excited to interview mushroom cultivation artist Sam Shoemaker. Sam is an interdisciplinary artist and mycologist based in Los Angeles, California. Sam's recent artistic work stems from an ongoing collaboration with rare, native, and medicinal fungi. After receiving his MFA from Yale University in 2020, Sam founded the urban mushroom farm Myco Myco from his underground laboratory in Los Angeles. His obsession with mushrooms led Sam to some unconventional cultivation projects. These projects produced interesting results which led him to ask questions about how mushrooms can be used and when nobody seemed to be able to answer his questions he just kept going - doing more experiments, taking the science as far as he could, and trying things for himself. Approaching mycology through the lens of an artist, Sam explores the tremendous amount of creative opportunity surrounding mycology right now. His aim is simple and beautiful: making mycology accessible to all and encouraging people to embrace the unknowable!
TOPICS COVERED:
EPISODE RESOURCES:
Ep. 78: Oakland Hyphae - First Annual Psilocybin Cup & BIPOC Entheogen Empowerment (feat. Reggie of Oakland Hyphae)
Ep. 77: Teaming with Microbes - The Organic Gardener’s Guide To The Soil Food Web (feat. Jeff Lowenfels)
Ep. 76: Mycorenewal - Ecological Restoration, Microbial Ecology & Bioremediation (feat. Mia Maltz PhD)
Ep. 75: "Growing Back to Nature", Power of Storytelling & How Bananas Changed the World (feat. Anthony Basil Rodriguez)
Ep. 74: Terrestrial Fungi - Cordyceps Genetics, Ganoderma Mysteries & Trusting Synchronicity (feat. Ryan Paul Gates)
Ep. 73: In Search of Mycotopia - Citizen Science, Fungi Fanatics & the Untapped Potential of Mushrooms (feat. Doug Bierend)
Ep. 72: Porcini, Systematics of Family Boletaceae & Fungus Farming Ants (feat. Bryn Dentinger PhD)
Ep. 71: Wild Food Girl - Wild Food Cultures, Indigenous Agro-ecology & Foraging in Colorado (feat. Erica Davis)
Ep. 70: Mycelium Coffins, Living Homes & Building with Bio-Materials (feat. Bob Hendrikx)
Ep. 69: Mushroom Mountain - Change the World with Fungi, Think Like a Mushroom (feat. Tradd Cotter)
Ep. 68: Learn Your Land - Connecting to Natural Spaces, Finding a Sense of Belonging (feat. Adam Haritan)
Ep. 67: Tiger Mushroom Farms - Working to End Hunger, Growing A New Future (feat. Te'Lario Watkins II)
Ep. 66: Madagascar's Marasmius & the Ecology of Monkeyflower Endophytes (feat. Jackie Shay)
Ep. 65: Forage Colorado - Finding Wild Food & Connection in the Rocky Mountains (feat. Orion Aon)
Ep. 64: Magdalena - Anthropology, Ethnobotany & Colombia's River of Dreams (feat. Wade Davis)
Ep. 63: Marin Mushrooms - Macro Photography, Myxomycetes (Slime Molds) & Tiny Fungi (feat. Alison Pollack)
Ep. 62: Myco Lyco - Fungal Frequencies, Biodata Sonification & the Music of Mushrooms (feat. Noah Kalos)
Ep. 61: Fly Agaric - A Compendium of History, Pharmacology, Mythology, & Exploration (feat. Kevin Feeney PhD)
Ep. 60: Exploring the Endless Wonders of Truffle Fungi (feat. Dr. Matthew Smith)
Ep. 59: Mushroom Revelations & the Unseen World of Microbia (feat. Eugenia Bone)
Create your
podcast in
minutes
It is Free
Strange by Nature Podcast
Blurry Creatures
Bigfoot Society
Tooth & Claw: True Stories of Animal Attacks
The Wild with Chris Morgan