Biophilic design

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    Biophilic design informs “otherworldly” moss-covered installation at luxury bag store

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    Creative studio Spacemen looked to biophilic design principles to construct a tree-like installation covered in moss, which forms the centrepiece of a flagship outlet for luxury leather brand Braun Büffel in Malaysia.

    Described by Shanghai-based Spacemen as a store that straddles an art gallery and a laboratory, the studio wanted to create an interior that would attract a younger audience and serve as “an abstract oasis” in Putrajaya’s IOI Mall.
    Spacemen designed the store interior for bag brand Braun BüffelCentral to this design is an oversized, organic-shaped sculpture clad in preserved flat moss, ball moss and lichen that is suspended from an illuminated disc in the middle of the shop.
    A rounded table clad in the same plants was positioned directly below to complete the installation. It also doubles as a plinth for Braun Büffel leather bags, which are displayed sparsely across the store like museum artefacts.
    It is characterised by a central moss-covered sculptureThe sculpture takes cues from biophilic design – a concept that encourages a closer connection between humans and nature when creating interior spaces.

    “The form was designed to seem as though it is sprouting from the ground towards the ceiling – towards the sun – hence why we integrated the membrane lighting ceiling above it, just like how it would grow out of a beaker in a mad scientist’s lab towards natural light,” explained Spacemen founder Edward Tan.
    “We envisioned an otherworldly concept akin to something out of a Hollywood sci-fi movie,” he told Dezeen.
    A green onyx feature wall was placed at the back of the storeTan said that Spacemen adopted a “maximal minimalism” approach when creating the store interiors, in an attempt to challenge the neutral shapes and colours often associated with luxury.
    Throughout the shop, lime plaster walls and bright white terrazzo floors are interrupted by various ornate display units and shelves magnified by floor-to-ceiling mirrors.

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    This cabinetry is made from decadent slabs of swirly orange onyx and jade marble, some of which are topped with glass vitrines that reveal small leather goods.
    Spacemen placed a green onyx feature wall at the back of the store, which sits behind furniture including a bespoke curved bench created from the same material as well as a custom oak armchair.
    Bespoke seating creates a waiting area for customersExplaining the decision to incorporate biophilic design into the Braun Büffel outlet, Tan said, “I think with the pandemic, people have taken to appreciating nature a lot more than before.”
    “This is especially true for people living in big cities where they live in apartments and are confined to office cubicles all the time, and do not have access to nature and greenery as much as they should.”
    “Therefore it has become a new form of luxury to be able to afford lush greenery and gardens indoors,” he concluded.
    Green and orange hues add colourful accents to the spaceOther retailers featuring similar designs include a store in Seattle for beauty brand Glossier with a mossy mushroom-covered mound and a Celine boutique in Paris that is characterised by large expanses of brass and marble.
    The photography is by David Yeow Photography.
    Project credits:
    Interior design: SpacemenMoss artist: Ohsum Mossum

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      Ten modern homes with interiors informed by biophilic design

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      Biophilic design, which aims to create spaces in which humans are more connected to nature, is becoming increasingly popular. In this lookbook, we’ve gathered 10 interiors with soothing biophilic designs.

      The design principle can be used in architecture and interior design through the use of natural materials, as well as the integration of more natural light and green plants.
      The 10 projects in this lookbook, which range from a Japanese home with decorative scaffolding to an Italian house with an indoor Ficus tree, show how biophilic design has been used in projects all over the globe.
      This is the latest in our lookbooks series, which provides visual inspiration from Dezeen’s archive. For more inspiration see previous lookbooks featuring colorful 1970s interiors, innovative stone furniture and interiors designed using the Color of the Year.
      Photo by Murray FredericksWelcome to the Jungle, Australia, by CplusC Architectural Workshop 

      The Welcome to the Jungle house in Sydney was designed by architecture studio CplusC Architectural Workshop for its director, Clinton Cole.
      Made partly from recycled materials, the building was designed as an experiment in sustainable urban living and has a rooftop vegetable garden as well as an aquaponics system containing edible fish, allowing its inhabitants to live in close connection to nature even in the city.
      Find out more about Welcome to the Jungle ›
      Photo courtesy of Suzuko YamadaDaita2019, Japan, by Suzuko Yamada
      This Japanese home may look industrial with its unusual permanent scaffolding. But designer Suzuko Yamada effectively brought its inhabitants closer to the environment by creating the steel structure, which allows them to step straight out to the garden on the first floor.
      On the second floor, two steel platforms form balconies filled with green plants, while the house’s 34 windows in different sizes let in plenty of natural light.
      Find out more about Daita2019 ›
      Photo by Hiroyuki OkiWall House, Vietnam, by CTA
      Vietnam’s Wall House was made from hole-punctured bricks and has a central atrium that gives the home a courtyard-like feel. Ho Chi Minh City-based CTA added leafy green plants and trees around the periphery of the room to make it feel almost like a garden.
      By using the hole-punctured bricks and adding plenty of light and green plants, the studio hoped to create a house that would be able to “‘breathe’ 24/7 by itself”, it said, thereby improving the home’s air quality.
      Find out more about Wall House ›
      Photo by Leonardo FinottiRibeirão Preto residence, Brazil, by Perkins+Will
      Perkins+Will’s drew on biophilic design principles when creating this house in Ribeirão Preto, a city in southeastern Brazil.
      It features retractable glass walls that open the interior up to the outside, as well as tactile wooden screens and a verdant green roof.
      Find out more about Ribeirão Preto residence ›
      Photo by ​Hiroyuki OkiBat Trang House, Vietnam, by Vo Trong Nghia Architects
      A series of elevated gardens function as a natural cooling system in Bat Trang House, which has an exterior made from ceramic bricks that was designed to function as a perforated skin.
      Gaps in the ceramic shell function as air vents. These circulate air thorough the home, which also has trees, bushes and other plants peeking out through the gaps and creating a second layer “buffer zone” that cools the interior.
      Find out more about Bat Trang House ›
      Photo courtesy of Tsukasa OnoSumu Yakushima, Japan, by Tsukasa Ono
      This co-operative housing project was designed by architect Tsukasa Ono to have a positive impact on its natural setting. Ono used a principle that he calls “regenerative architecture” to reframe the relationship between human habitation and nature.
      Sumu Yakushima was built using wooden piles with charred surfaces that promote the growth of mycelium (fungal threads), encouraging tree root growth and helping to strengthen the soil.
      Find out more about Sumu Yakushima ›
      Photo by Delfino Sisto Legnani and Alessandro Saletta from DSL StudioThe Greenary, Italy, by Carlo Ratti Associati and Italo Rota
      The Greenary’s living space centres around a 10-metre-tall Ficus tree, which designers Carlo Ratti and Italo Rota added to help “blur the boundaries between the natural and artificial”.
      The home, located in the countryside outside Parma, was designed as a “forever home” in a farmhouse and granary. A fully-glazed southern wall lets plenty of light into the interior and showcases the tree from the outside.
      Find out more about The Greenary ›
      Photo by Barton TaylorPepper Tree Passive House, Australia, by Alexander Symes
      This home in Unanderra, Australia, was given an angular addition by architect Alexander Symes. Featuring wood-lined living spaces, it opens onto a terrace that is perched in the canopy of a large tree.
      Green plants and a brown and tan colour palette enhance the feeling of being close to nature in the living area.
      “Sustainability is at the core of the project – embodied between the natural material palette, high performance design and strong biophilic connection,” said Symes.
      Find out more about Pepper Tree Passive House ›
      Photo by Hirouyki OkiThe Drawers House, Vietnam, by MIA Design Studio
      The Drawers House was designed to maximise the connection to the outdoors while maintaining privacy for its inhabitants and features multiple plant-lined courtyards.
      Its white rendered walls have also been covered in plants to enhance the feel of being immersed in nature, while a hallway was decorated with a wall of creeper plants that extend the length of the site.
      Find out more about The Drawers House ›
      Photo by Lenny CoddThe Cork Studio, UK, by Studio Bark
      Studio Bark constructed The Cork Studio almost entirely from cork, a natural material that can be completely recycled, reused or composted.
      Made using discarded granules from a wine cork manufacturer, the building was erected around an existing sycamore tree that was growing on the site, giving its interior a cosy treehouse-feel.
      Find out more about The Cork Studio ›
      This is the latest in our lookbooks series, which provides visual inspiration from Dezeen’s archive. For more inspiration see previous lookbooks featuring colorful 1970s interiors, innovative stone furniture and interiors designed using the Color of the Year.

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      Ministry of Design creates lush “banking conservatory” for Citibank Singapore

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      Offices and meeting rooms are nestled among tropical plants in this wealth management centre in Singapore by local studio Ministry of Design.Conceived as a “banking conservatory”, the verdant scheme won an international competition launched by Citibank Singapore last year that invited entrants to reimagine the conventional interiors often associated with financial institutions.

      Ministry of Design has created a conservatory within the Citi Wealth Hub
      The brief set out by Citibank was to create a wealth management centre dedicated to its high net-worth clients, over an area of 2,787 square metres across floors six to nine of an office building on Singapore’s Orchard Road.
      Across its four levels, the Citi Wealth Hub has more than 30 client advisory rooms alongside flexible office and event spaces, making it the bank’s largest wealth advisory hub in the world.

      Levels seven and eight are filled with sinuous brass planters

      The site is distinguished by its soaring atrium with tinted glass walls and skylights that create ideal conditions for growing tropical plants.
      In recognition of this, the studio proposed an office scheme based around a lush conservatory that would anchor the entire office.

      Seating alcoves are nestled into the greenery
      On floors seven and eight, a series of social spaces are nestled within the greenery, including a bar, observation deck, garden pods, banquette seating and a central garden lounge with a honed Grigio Carnico marble bar.
      “The choreographed verdant and lush greenery evokes an atmosphere where everything seems to flourish in a natural and sustainable manner – a nod to the ideals of wealth management,” said Ministry of Design’s (MOD) director of development Joy Chan Seah.

      Garden pods replace traditional meeting rooms
      “Although drawing from the virtues of biophilic design, the scheme aims to create a cultured conservatory and not a wild forest,” she added. “Introducing a measure of control and order amidst nature’s abundance, we created a series of carefully detailed planter box arrangements.”
      These sinuous, hairline brass containers are lit from below to signpost pathways and meeting spaces among the foliage.

      They are outfitted with TV screens and acoustic panels
      On the seventh floor, garden pods were installed as an alternative to traditional meeting rooms. These are lined with acoustic panels and equipped with curved TV screens, concealed power points and cables for connecting laptops.
      In collaboration with landscape architecture studio ICN Design, MOD carefully selected plants that would adapt easily to an air-conditioned environment, thrive even in the shade and create four distinct vertical layers to offer varied views at every level.

      The planters are lit from below to help signpost pathways
      For the tallest level, the designers selected betel nut feature palms, while elegant, feathery parlour palms sit below their crowns at the second level with bushy saplings and big-leafed arums in the foreground.
      Feathery Boston ferns, rosette-leafed bird’s nest ferns and money plants occupy the lowest level, fringed by jungle-floor plants that are spotlit at night.

      Marble planters decorate the eighth floor
      The eighth floor is dedicated to Citigold Private Clients, leading the design team to opt for more luxurious materials such as walnut and marble, while an observation deck offers aerial views of the conservatory on the level below.

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      Since this floor is less open to natural daylight, the planting here is smaller in both the horizontal and vertical scale, with planters set between desk alcoves and pathways.

      Walnut wood lines the walls to create a high-end finish
      Floors six and nine were conceived as “backstage areas” offering office space for the bank’s 210 relationship managers.
      They hold a variety of hot desks, collaboration tables and a town hall for meetings.

      Collaborative tables are fringed in planters
      Large planters help create a calming work environment on these levels and are filled with shade-loving plants that, in the wild, would grow low on the rainforest floor.
      Throughout the office, the temperature of the lighting is programmed to mirror human’s natural circadian rhythm and the movement of the sun, changing from blue to reddish undertones over the course of the day.

      A marble reception centres the eighth floor
      To keep the plants healthy the project uses a hydroponic system, in which plants are held in place by absorbent granules instead of soil.
      Grow lights with special LED bulbs that mimic natural sunlight are integrated within the recessed architectural lighting.

      Integrated lighting follows humans’ circadian rhythm
      “We’ve had really good responses from Citibank and from their clients so far,” the studio said. “They’ve said this is unlike any other wealth management hub they have seen.”

      10 plant-covered buildings that point to a greener future

      Studies have shown that access to green spaces, or even pictures of nature, can benefit workers’ mental health and improve performance in the office.
      As a result, a plethora of plant-filled workplace interiors have sprung up over the past few years, including this co-working space in Lisbon with over 1,000 potted plants and trees, while tropical flora provides privacy for workers inside an office in Utrecht.
      Photography is by KHOOGJ.

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