Veg.itecture: Building Edges

It just keeps on coming, and I have to say I can't get enough. Here's a Vegetated Architecture post that spans all sides of the architectural envelope. It's interesting to see the varieties of facade and rooftop articulation, building on an earlier post regarding definitions of typologies of VegArch.

Starting from the top, we have a bevy of images from a cascading project by Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG) for an apartment complex in Copenhagen, Denmark. The form of buildings and rooftop greening creates an artificial hillside environment above a car park, giving the project it's name, Mountain Dwellings. (via Dezeen):










:: images via Dezeen

Addressing the front entry / street side of the building, this proposed building by Herzog & de Meuron is for Project 2012 in Basel, Switzerland offers a full-facade vegetated covering along the entire length of one building, creating a soft, welcoming approach along an adjacent plaza.


:: image via MCH Messe Schwiez AG

Taking it to the bottom, the ground plane is created in a conceptual approach of 'site insertion', these mixed-use towers in South London are featured in BDonline. The towers sit atop the artificially created field below, over structure of pedestrian scale buildings that provides a softening and transition into the adjacent city.


:: image via BDonline

Taking one side, this competition entry winner by Richard Scott of Surface Architects, along with Sarah Wigglesworth and urbanist Jan Gehl provides a glimpse of green that stands in contrast to the fruit-inscribed facades of the surrounding buildings. A generalized swath of green still has resonance against other materials because of it's texture and it's contrast to the blue sky above (via BDonline):


:: image via BDonline

The flip side, another development with strategically-placed microclimatic green walls in the UK's first net-zero development, Hanham Hall. A previous post about Net-Zero development outlined the strategies of vegetation to control heat gain and allow sun in winter months. And they're sexy too.

:: image via ArchNewsNow

The potential greening scenarios are endless, and as I mentioned at the outset, seem to be permeating design thinking more and more. I will continue to cover all the sides, as well as get into the nuts and bolts of some of the practicality of these as i find more info. Coming soon, profiles of the available manufacturers systems, as well as focus on details of some installations. Anyone out there know of more resources, pass them along.