Plant-inspired architecture

Nov 30 ’06

Filed in ephemeral, plants

I can't resist, this is too good to be true: there is such a thing as an urban cactus. It's a housing project in Rotterdam, based on a cactus. By placing the balconies as the architects did, every resident gets a double-height outdoor space and more sunlight than they would with a typical balcony. I think it's brilliant.

Conversation in progress…

1. 1

   On February 11th Julie said:

   Dear Brent,

   Congrats on your recent Botany POTD! (And thanks for stopping by.)

   Loved this post about live-in cactus. Here are some other examples of plant architecture. Hideous? Heavenly? You be the judge.

   http://humanflowerproject.com/index.php/weblog/comments/hanging_gardens_of_paris/

   http://humanflowerproject.com/index.php/weblog/comments/trumpomania/

   All good wishes from Austin,
   Julie

2. 2

   On February 11th Brent Miller said:

   Julie: Thanks for links. I've seen the mur végétal at the Musée du Quai Branly, and I have to say that it looks better in real life than it does in the photos. It's very, very green for what is an otherwise stony city.

   The Trump thingum in Dubai is a different matter, though. I'd love to be able to go to Dubai and see it in person — it's a fantastic place to see modern architecture, like the Burj al Arab and others.

3. 3

   On February 11th Julie said:

   Brent,

   Would love to hear what you think of the collection and installation inside the Branly. I thought the exterior was pretty wonderful but had many, many problems with the handling of the works inside. Maybe we would collaborate on a post about this....

   Good wishes,
   J.

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