ARCHITECTURAL COLLABORATIVE

Summer blog series by Rachel Huff, entering freshman in the UGA College of Environment & Design and participant in Arcollab’s Foundations in Design after school program

 

Over the past few weeks I have explained the fundamentals of biophilic design and presented a few examples of how biophilic design is being used in practice. My hope is that you now have a better understanding of what biophilic design is and can start to take notice when biophilic design is being used in spaces. 

 

I know the Arcollab designers strive to incorporate these principles into their practice, and recent projects like the new Braselton Public Library Addition (top image) and the Downs Creek Guest House (bottom image) show how they have incorporated passive solar lighting, inside-outside connections, elements of nature inside, finish colors and natural materials into their work. Check out both of these projects and pick out the aspects of biophilic design in the images you see – they’re really cool!

As I have described in previous posts there are three main attributes of biophilic design:  direct experience of nature, indirect experience of nature, and experience of space and place. The direct experience of nature includes natural lighting, foliage and water features. The indirect experience of nature includes the use of natural materials and artwork that invokes nature. Finally the experience of space and place includes transitional spaces and the use of organized complexity.

When done well, these attributes will bring spaces closer to nature and can have many benefits to the people who are using the space. Research has been done that shows biophilic design can cause an increase in productivity and mental health. People are generally happier in spaces that have more contact with nature which is why biophilic design is such an important concept to consider when building a space. Biophilic design also usually leads to many sustainable design elements which is always a good thing. 

Once you know what to look for, you can find attributes of biophilic design almost everywhere. You can also imagine what some places could look like if only they incorporated these principles!

It is easy to assume that biophilic design is a concept only applied to new development, but because of human’s tendency to be drawn towards nature you can see influences of biophilic design even in historical structures. 

As the world becomes more and more urbanized it is even more important to learn about biophilic design so that even in urbanized spaces nature can still have a foothold.

I appreciate everyone who has read my blog and hopefully you are now more knowledgeable on the concept of biophilic design. I had a lot of fun writing each blog post and I hope you enjoyed reading them. Thank you.