Reconnect with Nature and Improve Your Health with Biophilic Design
If I asked you to close your eyes and imagine yourself in a relaxing environment, odds are that the environment you just picked incorporates several natural features like the presence of plants, the sea and its gentle breeze, a fireplace with its crackling sound, … You’ve most likely heard before that humans are instinctively drawn to nature. Biophilia describes this innate human-nature connection. Biophilia is being introduced into buildings through biophilic design, a practice that uses nature-inspired design methods to awaken our inherent affinity to nature to make us feel emotionally calm and connected to indoor and urban spaces.
Some evolutionary theories support that we are naturally drawn to spaces with specific characteristics. For example, we have a preference for environments with spatial attributes (Savanna Hypothesis). We also feel an inborn desire for spaces from which we can observe without being seen by others (Prospect-Refuge Theory) and we tend to prefer colors that are reminiscent of nature (Ecological Valence Theory).
Press play on the Flower Landscape video and leave it running while you continue to read. The presence of natural elements has been proved to help us clear our minds. It gives us the feeling of getting away from the typical stress, activating our parasympathetic nervous system and enabling mental recovery. We’ve always been told that working environments should be static and devoid of any distractions but could that be wrong? Take a look at the video above. Natural scenarios are dynamic and changing through time but they’re not distracting. In fact, these kind small fascinations are probably helping you to clear your mind and concentrate better while reading this right now.
How might we emulate our experience of natural environments in the built environment? Most of the different biophilic design elements and strategies can be grouped into 6 different categories:
1. Environmental Features
This is perhaps the most evident of all categories, as it prompts the literal and direct introduction of nature into constructed spaces. Stephen Kellert identified 12 different environmental features to integrate in our biophilic design, some of which are: sunlight, air, fire, water, natural materials, views and landscape planning. Color empowerment’s also an identified feature classified in this category. When developing a project, it is recommendable that you previously create a color palete to maintain the work’s coherence. There are online tools that can help you create color paletes directly from images where nature is thriving like a bright sunrise or misty woods.
2. Natural Shapes and Forms
In this category we’re talking about designing spaces, furniture, columns, archs, … playing with their shape in such a way that it makes us reminisce of nature. For example, we can choose to shape columns as tree branches, swirl indoor objects into spirals that remind us of seashells or use botanical motifs such as floral wallpapers. When designing this way, it can be very easy to get carried away by aesthetic, which is not a bad thing as long as the functionality of the space and elements is kept at the same level of priority.
3. Natural Patterns and Processes
Here we want to put a spotlight on nature’s processes. As mentioned before, natural scenarios are usually dynamic and create for us a whole experience. Time is a critical and inevitable element in natural experience and that is why biophilic designers should bear in mind how their scenarios are going to be enjoyed over time. We are seeking for information richness and sensory variability. Transitional spaces, such as a corridor, should be created with the intention of giving users a mental break when moving from one place to the other and forcing them to be conscious about the transition they’re experiencing going from one room to the other. There is a particular piece of art to illustrate this category that I personally love. Situated in the Biomed Realty offices (Cambrige, MA), this creation introduces the experience of change by using an animal motif.
4. Light and Space
Nowadays, daylighting strategies have become a usual practice in high performance buildings but static and abussive illumination make indoor spaces monotonous and impact negatively on our Circadian rhythm. The Circadian Rhythm is an internal process, regulated by daylight, that controls our sleep-wake cycles. If you are asking yourself how important it is for our wellbeing, think about how unpleasant it feels to be jetlagged. We seem to always focus on extra-bright lights to augment our sense of awakness and productivity but there are so many other beautiful (and healthier) ways of playing with lighting. Japanese architecture likes to play with the absence of light to create mystery while occidentals like to combine brightness and spatial form to create a sense of spaciousness. Shadows can also be a part of the biophilic design if we decide to place objects in strategic places.
To better exemplify this section, I’m also going to pick another of my personal favorites. Exposed in the Victoria and Albert Museum, this is made with a triangular responsive glass that opens and closes with the exterior air flow. It’s making visible (with sunlight) something which is typically invisible (the wind).
5. Place-Based Relationships
This point wants emphasizes the user’s personal relationship with the built environment to avoid feeling placelessness. The biophilic designer will try to use geological and social features to create an emotional attachment to the place, as this kind of attachment always promts a better environmental and communitary behaviour. With a site reference study, we will incorporate many of the bioclimatic strategies to the project such as correct solar orientation, incorporation of natural ventilation techniques (this is also a good sensorial feature) or visible water recollection to promote consciousness on the site’s pluviometry. Elaborating a cultural reference study, the designers should identify opportunities to celebrate social and cultural connections to eachother and the landscape. The place might have strong historical influences or there might be existing communities that can serve as inspiration for the design. Overall, we are seeking for a successful integration in the built environment of ecology and culture.
6. Evolved Human-Nature Relationships
These relationships are directly related to the typology of the 9 biophilic values, which are as follow:
To set an example, I am going to choose the value which might seem weirdest to you. The negativistic value is often incorporated into the landscape planning of gardens in the form of fear.
In the image above, rocks are placed separate enough to create the slight risk of your feet getting wet. Although it is a very minor risk, it forces you to pay attention and live in the moment while crossing the pond. You naturally become more mindful and conscious of the present moment.
Nature can be present in our usual environments in innumerable formats (not only with the presence of interior plants). Natural scenarios are vital for our wellbeing and, most important, they force us to enjoy the present moment by reminding us what a sensorial waste it is to take our surroundings for granted as much as we do!
