BIOPHILIC DESIGN

.

“(1) Positively affected by sensory contact with natural features, through

reduced stress and increased productivity.”

(2) Biophilic design seeks to exploit our inbuilt Biophilic affinities by integrating or mimicking forms and patterns that produce positive reactions. In the built environment, these may be created from both the living and non-living elements of the environment, such as:

• Sights or sounds of running water.
  

• Daylight-enhancing features such as large windows on the south side of buildings.
  

• Nature-like colours and patterning.
  

• Presence of plant and animal life.
  

• Spatial layouts that are open and navigable but also present opportunities for refuge or exploration.
  

"classroom lighting can promote discomfort

and affect task performance".

Biophilic design is a fascinating insight into why we feel different in certain environments, in personal experiences I have always hated the lighting in various shops such as McDonalds, the major fast food chain designated to giving people food as quickly as possible (to some sort of level of food quality) and get them out of the store, so more customers come in. Obviously this business model is successful due to the high speed customer service and even quicker food production, but it is also helped by the lighting and other specific details such as lack of seating and you could even comment on the music levels or toilets. This is a perfect example the design and aesthetic of the room, yes doing its job, but making us feel unrelaxed and in the mind set of getting out of there as quickly as possible. This fact is the exact same where we enter a beautifully designed, well lit room with comfortable chairs, subtle music and even some plants or a water feature, we feel far more inclined to stay and take our time to enjoy the environment or 'experience' you could say.

"(3) We wanted to bring a very playful and vibrant colour to the site, so

it catches eyes and people pause, think about what it is, and interact

with the parklet."

Bringing the idea of an experience into a normal pavement may seem unnecessary or inefficient but Kang and Carey created a 'parklet' on a busy downtown street to do exactly the opposite, to create excitement and to break up the masses of concrete that we are all surrounded by 24 hours of the day. The distinct use of yellow is powerful and will be noticed at the quickest of glances, our forever depleting attention spans mean we need constant valuation and reward throughout any walks of life, from scrolling on our phones to literally walking down the road, there is something of everything but not a lot of something, well there is we just don't know it, so using a playful yellow to house the forever important plants hits two birds with one stone, adding excitement and a little out of the ordinary to the streets as well as plants and trees that shouldn't even need to be highlighted to get noticed or appreciated.

imagine references

https://www.chapmantaylor.com/news/q-a-what-are-the-benefits-of-biophilic-design

https://www.bdcnetwork.com/student-residence-hall-lisbon-takes-biophilic-design-next-level

https://resonics.co.uk/biophilic-design-office-noise-acoustics/

http://armanilandscape.womensbodysuit.ru/6035146-new-modern-landscape-design-architecture-lighting-15-ideas-inn21.html

http://sevilpeach.co.uk/project/mexx

https://www.architectmagazine.com/design/gensler-designs-bright-yellow-parklet-for-dc_o

fact references

1.

Chapman Taylor. 2020. Chapman Taylor | The Importance Of Biophilic Design. [online] Available at: <https://www.chapmantaylor.com/insights/the-importance-of-biophilic-design> [Accessed 3 April 2020].

2.

Metropolis. 2020. What Is And Is Not Biophilic Design?. [online] Available at: <https://www.metropolismag.com/architecture/what-is-and-is-not-biophilic-design/> [Accessed 3 April 2020].

3.

Architectmagazine.com. 2020. [online] Available at: <https://www.architectmagazine.com/design/gensler-designs-bright-yellow-parklet-for-dc_o> [Accessed 3 April 2020].