Austėja Platūkytė is a material-design researcher bridging design, science, technology, and craft. A PhD candidate and Biomaterial Design lecturer at the Vilnius Academy of Arts, she is the founder of SEAWEED FOAM (a home-compostable algae-based foam), head of the NGO Medžiagotyra, and leads the Biomaterials Library — the first sustainable-materials collection in the Baltic region. Her work has been exhibited at Milan, Dubai, and Dutch Design Weeks, MaterialDistrict Utrecht, UN COP28, and EXPO 2025 Osaka. She has spoken at Cumulus Detroit, IEEE ICTE, and the EUSBSR Forum, and published in Cumulus 2022 and (Building) New Perspectives 2023. A multi-year Lithuanian Council for Culture grantee and Green Concept Award nominee, Platūkytė manages and co-develops over €1M in EU–Nordic R&D projects, and leads Creative Biomaterial Design Workshops (2023–25) promoting regenerative, nature-positive design.

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She explores biomaterials and their potential within the context of design, as well as local bio-waste streams — investigating how these can be transformed into new, innovative materials. She develops environmentally conscious materials and contemporary design objects that bridge sustainability and aesthetics, turning organic waste into meaningful, future-oriented design.

 

Austėja is available for freelance projects, collaborations, workshops, and public lectures in the field of material research and design. Feel free to contact her with any questions you may have.

 

EDUCATION

2018 - present | Vilnius Academy of Arts | Ph.D. of design (the project is being prepared for defense)

2016 - 2018 | Vilnius Academy of Arts | Master of Design

2012 - 2016 | Vilnius Academy of Arts | Bachelor of Design

 

EXPERIENCE

02 2025 - present | Vilnius Academy of Arts | Biomaterials Design Lecturer

04 2023 - present | SEAWEED FOAM | Materials Researcher & Designer

05 2022 - present | Biomaterials Library | Project Lead & Materials Curator

04 2022 - present | Medžiagotyra (NGO) | Founder & Director

05 2017 - present | Freelance | Creative Researcher & Materials Designer

04 2024 - 01 2025 | KTU Design Centre | Junior Researcher

10 2023 - 06 2024 | Vilnius Academy of Arts | Biomaterials Design Lecturer

09 2022 - 01 2023 | Vilnius Academy of Arts | Biomaterials Design Lecturer

06 2021 - 04 2023 | Vilnius Academy of Arts, Projects Department | Entrepreneur

04 2021 - 07 2021 | KTU Design Centre | Junior Researcher

09 2020 - 01 2021 | Vilnius Academy of Arts | Biomaterials Design Lecturer

06 2019 - 10 2020 | EKO Namai | Materials and Design Researcher

04 2019 - 05 2019 | Gengdan Institute of Beijing University of Technology | Visiting Design Lecturer

10 2017 - 01 2018 | Vilnius Academy of Arts | Design Lecturer

08 2017 - 01 2018 | DO architects | Product Designer

07 2015 - 08 2015 | DO architects | Design Intern

 

RESIDENCIES

• 06 2024 - 07 2024 | Klaipėda Culture Communication Center (KKKC), Klaipeda, Lithuania

• 07 2021 - 08 2021 | TUO TUO, Joutsa, Finland

• 09 2020 - 10 2020 | Montemero Art Residency, San Juan de Los Terreros, Almeria, Spain

• 09 2018 - 12 2018 | SoftLab Residency and Scholarship Program at Sliperiet Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden

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PROJECTS

• 2025 - 2026 | CoLAB: Coastal Laboratories (Iceland) | Project Partner & Lead of Local Biomaterials Workshops — Nordic Council of Ministers grant application

• 2025 | Applied Arts 2025-1 | Project Lead — “Biomaterials Library: Showcasing Lithuanian and Baltic creators at international events”

• 2025 | Applied Arts 2025-1 | Project Lead — “Creative Biomaterials Design Workshops: using secondary raw materials to develop new biomaterials”

• 2024 | Applied Arts 2024-1 | Project Lead — “Creative Biomaterials Design Workshops”

• 2023 | Applied Arts 2023-1 | Project Lead — “Biomaterials Library”

• 2023 | Culture & Creative Industries: Cultural Startups 2023-1 | Project Lead — “Public outreach, market entry and promotion in Lithuania and abroad of an algae-based biodegradable packaging material”

• — | MITA (01.2.1-MITA-T-852-04-0007) | Materials & Design Researcher — “Demonstration and Commercialisation of Biodegradable Composite Materials” (year not specified)

• 2021 | VDA Entrepreneurship Programme (01.2.2-CPVA-K-703-04-0002) | Researcher–Entrepreneur — “Promotion of Competence Centres’ Activities: Vilnius Academy of Arts Entrepreneurship Programme”

• 2021 | “ŽIEDIS” – Circular Design Tools for Sustainable Products & Services (01.2.2-LMT-K-718-03-0104) | Junior Researcher

• 2021 | Nordplus Horizontal (NPHZ-2021/10032) | Partner Institution Representative — “ALGAE FOR DESIGN-LED TRANSITION TOWARDS BLUE BIO-ECONOMY”

• 2018 | R&D Instrument “Intellect. Joint Science–Business Projects” (J05-LVPA-K-03-0040) | Materials & Design Researcher

 

TALKS & CONFERENCES

• Safe and Sustainable Baltic Sea Region for Future Generations - EUSBSR Annual Forum 2023

• EU MISSION “RESTORE OUR OCEAN & WATERS BY 2030”: The Baltic North Sea Lighthouse in Action 

• Environmental Event "INTERESTING ECOLOGY"

• MATERIALDISTRICT UTRECHT 2023

• International Symposium: (BUILDING) NEW PERSPECTIVES Through Practice-led Research in Art, Design and Architecture hosted by the Institute of Contemporary Art, Design and Architecture (LMDA) - Design for Symbiocene. Hybrid Materials and Symbiotic Objects - in Between the Grown and Made

• Design for Adaptation: CUMULUS DETROIT 2022 Conference on Paper Session: Design for Symbiocene. Hybrid Materials and Symbiotic Objects - in Between the Grown and Made

• Vilnius Academy of Arts - Phd of Art?! Vitamins for PHD and DA for Artists, Designers and Architects

• E. Geppert Academy of Art and Design - Research Methods in Visual Art Symposium

• Lithuanian Young Scientists Union (LJMS) - Climate Talks: Green Buildings 

• The FACHPACK 2021 Forum PACKBOX - New Directions in Sustainable Packaging Design

• The XVIIIth Discussion Forum Waste Management 2021

• 2021 IEEE ICTE Leading Digital Transformation in Business and Society

• The XIVth Discussion Forum Waste Management 2017

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SCHOLORSHIPS

• 07 2025 - 09 2025 | Lithuanian Council for Culture | Mobility Grant

• 01 2024 - 11 2024 | Lithuanian Council for Culture | Individual Grant

• 02 2023 - 07 2023 | Lithuanian Council for Culture | Mobility Grant

• 05 2021 - 10 2021 | Lithuanian Council for Culture | Individual Grant

• 06 2020 - 08 2020 | Lithuanian Council for Culture | Individual Grant

• 09 2018 - 12 2019 | SoftLab Residency & Scholarship Programme, Uminova eXpression | Individual Scholarship — Umeå, Sweden

• 01 2018 - 06 2018 | Lithuanian Council for Culture | Educational Grant

• 01 2017 - 06 2017 | Lithuanian Council for Culture | Educational Grant

• 09 2016 | Juozapas Budrikis Named Scholarship

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COMPETITIONS & AWARDS

• 2024 | Green Concept Award — Nominee

• 2023 | Global Climate Design Awards — Nominee

• 2023 | Green Concept Award — Nominee 

• 2023 | Łódź Design Festival — “make me!” — Finalist

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MEMBERSHIPS

• 2024–present | Lithuanian Design Forum (LDF) — Member

• 2024–present | Lithuanian Design Association (LDA) — Member

• 2021–present | Lithuanian Young Scientists Union (LJMS) — Member