Biophilia
The art of inviting nature into our spaces…
If we look at the Greek roots of the word: “bio” = life and “philia” = loving, we could define biophilia as the human being’s fundamental love of nature, a love so strong that it becomes a need.
The concept of biophilia was introduced in the 1960s by Erich Fromm and later developed more widely by the American biologist Edward O. Wilson in the 1980s.
It is also to this scientist that we owe the introduction of the term biodiversity.
Numerous studies show our body’s and mind’s essential need to be in contact with nature, and increasingly so. Every day we are overrun by technology and our relationship with nature is weakening. Rural areas are emptying to populate the cities (although since Covid and the authorisation of remote working, some counter-currents have been observed – long may it last!). Yet it is essential to our mental health: given the constant stress, the crises, the depressions, our being needs disconnection and grounding.
“Biophilic design” is therefore more relevant than ever, since by bringing nature back to the centre of a project’s design we observe greater well-being in people, increased productivity and performance, a propensity for positive emotions and attitudes, stimulated creativity and reduced stress, not to mention the improvement in air quality itself and other benefits linked to introducing plants into spaces.
This is hardly surprising when you consider that it is nature that has enabled us to survive and evolve since the dawn of time. We are beings of nature, born in landscapes bathed in light, close to water, reassuring and favourable to life, and our brain has kept all of this in its memory.
Visual contact with nature is in fact enough to give us positive effects, but that’s not all: a walk in the forest or in a park, a visit to gardens, growing plants on your balcony are already so many opportunities to reconnect with the living world. But at the office or at home, it isn’t always easy…
As a designer, designing a space inspired by biophilia means reintroducing nature and living things into our interior spaces: incorporating as much greenery as possible, having abundant natural light, using colours with positive influences that imitate nature, favouring open views, thinking about water features, having an airy space, and also favouring natural materials.
Some will say there is nothing new or profoundly revolutionary in this, and yet many designers still conceive spaces from a purely aesthetic standpoint, without taking into account the fundamental needs of human beings: light, air, minerals.
Take the example of a plant with no light, no water and no room to grow: we wouldn’t give it long before it wilts…
Look around you: do you find natural elements in your surroundings?
It’s time to take stock, and perhaps make a change or two at home or at the office