  Geometric frustration appears in a broad range of systems, generally emerging
as disordered ground configurations, thereby impeding understanding of the
phenomenon's underlying mechanics. We report on a continuum system featuring
locally bistable units that allows for the controlled and self-sustained
manifestation of macroscopic geometric frustration. The patterning of the units
encodes a finite set of ordered ground configurations (spin-ice states) and a
unique family of co-existing higher-order frustrated states (spin-liquid
states), which are both activated upon unit inversion. We present a strategy
for accessing any globally frustrated state on-demand by controlling the
constitutive units' inversion sequence. This control strategy allows for
observing the unfolding of geometric frustration as the microstructural
features evolve due to the energy minimization of the constitutive units'
interactions. More broadly, our model system offers a blueprint for "taming"
macroscopic geometric frustration, enabling novel applications such as
path-driven computation and solving optimisation problems using structural
systems.
