The spectacular 8 House by BIG Architects in the outskirts of Copenhagen is once again in the news, this time being honored by the American Institute of Architects (AIA) with the 2012 AIA Institute Honor Award for Architecture.

Through their awards program, the AIA has a long tradition of recognizing individuals and organizations for their outstanding achievements in support of the profession of architecture and the professional organization.

“The Institute Honor Awards program recognizes achievements for a broad range of architectural activity to elevate the general quality of architecture practice, establish a standard of excellence against which all architects can measure performance, and inform the public of the breadth and value of architecture practice.” ~ AIA

We’re big fans of BIG Architects – sorry, couldn’t help it – which is very easy since every project they produce is not only fresh and out-of-the box but a shining example of ecological, site-specific and community-specific design.

“The 8 House masterfully recreates the horizontal social connectivity and interaction of the streets of a village neighborhood through a series of delightful accessible ramps in a mixed use, multifamily housing project. The skillful shaping of the mass of the facility provides an invigorating sculptural form while creating the ramped “pedestrian” street system and providing full depth dwelling units which are filled with light and views.

People really ‘live” in this newly created neighborhood with shopping, restaurants, an art gallery, office facilities, childcare, educational facilities and the sound of children playing. This is a complex and exemplary project of a new typology.” ~ 2012 Institute Honor Awards for Architecture Jury Comments

See all of the other eight 2012 AIA Awards Recipients here.

You’ll find three different types of residential housing and 110,000 ft² of retail and offices here, in the shape of a multi-level bow tie.  And this mixed-use building comprises Denmark’s largest private development ever undertaken.

Plus, a building designed to allow its residents to bike all the way from the street up to its 10th level penthouses is pretty cool, but add a huge V-shaped sloping greenroof to it, and you’ve really got a spectacular structure!

“Having established ourselves in New York City this past year we are honored that the AIA has given this great distinction to the 8 House which is a further realized example of our approach called architectural alchemy – the idea that by mixing traditional ingredients, retail, row-houses and apartments in untraditional ways – you create added value if not gold. Housing projects are rarely brought out as world architecture. The fact that the 8 House has now achieved this honorable status, can be seen as a symbol of a piece of architectural alchemy that works. Moreover, I am genuinely happy that our long and inspiring cooperation with Per Høpfner and St. Frederikslund is rewarded in the other parts of the world.” ~ Bjarke Ingels, Founder & Partner, BIG in the January 9, 2012 Press Release

I wrote about 8 House or 8 Tallet last September, 2011 when we featured it as our Greenroof of the Week, or GPW – read all about it here where you can see all the stunning photography of the site and interiors, and see the profile in The Greenroof & Greenwall Projects Database.

And it’s no wonder that Haven Kiers and I selected the unique 8 House for our 2011 Top 10 List of Hot Trends in Greenroof & Greenwall Design in the #10 category, “Client Specific ‘Boutique’ Greenroofs.”  (See our video for the Greenroofs & Walls of the World™ Virtual Summit 2011 on our GreenroofsTV YouTube Channel here.)

Inspirational 8 House is “architectural alchemy” indeed!  Congratulations to BIG and everyone else who worked on this beautiful and highly functional project!

~ Linda V.

As I promised at our presentation at CitiesAlive in Philadelphia a couple of weeks ago, today we are airing Haven Kiers‘ and my “2011 Top 10 List of Hot Trends in Greenroof & Greenwall Design“ from our Greenroofs & Walls of the World™ Virtual Summit on greenroofs.tv and our GreenroofsTV channel on YouTube.

“This is our fifth anniversary of the “Top 10 List” and an amazing amount of development has occurred over the past five years in the vegetative roofing industry.  Projects that were once scoffed at and considered impossible to get built are popping up all over the globe, and greenroofs are no longer considered fringe architecture, destined to be the first sacrifice to value engineering.

“To honor the new ubiquity of architectural greening, this year our Top 10 will focus on greenroofs at all different scales, from micro to macro.

“As “vegitecture” increasingly becomes a mainstay of both sustainable and cutting edge design, the list of greenroof and greenwall trends continues to expand.

This year we’re showcasing greening at both the micro and the macro scale, from small scale DIY greenroof projects to towering skyscrapers stacked with fruit and vegetable crops, parks, and energy facilities atop sky gardens, walls and bridges.” ~ Haven Kiers and Linda Velazquez

I have to say that Haven and I had a blast putting this together, and especially filming it together!  She flew to Atlanta last September just for the occasion, and I think you’ll really get a feel for our enthusiasm.

And, since we didn’t have any time restrictions like we normally do at all the conferences – where we have to speed through our project selections – here we took our time a bit more and, as a result, feature quite a few more projects that you would normally see.

Enjoy!  Visit greenroofs.tv to see the “2011 Top 10 List of Hot Trends in Greenroof & Greenwall Design” or click below.

We’ll be working over the next few weeks to add most of the projects here to the Greenroof & Greenwall Projects Database so you can learn more about each.  We appreciate your feedback, and welcome your thoughts on the new and newsworthy projects for our 2012 Top 10 Hot List!  Feel free to contact Haven me directly at DesignEditor@greenroofs.com and me at Linda@greenroofs.com.

Didn’t get to see the Opening Keynote Address video by Charlie Miller yet which we featured last week?  No problem – watch it after the Top 10 on the exclusive Virtual Summit greenroofs.tv play list.  Check back next week on GreenroofsTV for our third installment from the Greenroofs & Walls of the World™ Virtual Summit 2011!

~ Linda V.

We received a lot of positive feedback from attendees participating in our inaugural Greenroofs & Walls of the World™ Virtual Summit 2011 this past September through October about the very high quality of the speakers we offered for such an affordable price…

…And conversely, a lot of speakers have asked us if their videos would be available afterwards for viewing by the general public – those who did not pay the $49 or $25 to attend.

We certainly do not want all of the Virtual Summit’s speakers’ efforts and great information to go to waste…and we feel that our readership would love to see the content!

So, Greenroofs.com’s plan is to show each of our 4 keynote speakers, 7 panel sessions, and 19 video presentations (plus my opening and closing remarks) in its entirety as we played it at the 2011 Virtual Summit – from everyone who grants us permission.

You can see my Opening Welcome and Overview now, along with the Virtual Summit Highlights Video and the Trailer on greenroofs.tv.  We’ll be showing our Opening Keynote Speaker Charlie Miller as the first featured video tomorrow, on Wednesday, December 7 followed by one or two videos a week thereafter which we’ll highlight on our Homepage.

Once played, each video will remain available to everyone on demand on the greenroofs.tv page and our GreenroofsTV channel on YouTube.  We hope to show everyone what they missed at our inaugural Virtual Summit and create buzz for the 2012 Virtual Summit!

If you didn’t join us for 2011 we hope you will in 2012 – then you won’t have to wait months to see all of the great new keynote, panel, and presentation videos!

We hope you enjoy each of the 32 videos and use them in the future for your reference – we’re very proud of the wonderful collaborations from around the world.  Please share with your greenroof and greenwall colleagues.

Happy greening ~

Linda V.

Published bi-annually by Singapore’s Centre for Urban Greenery & Ecology, or CUGE, the beautifully designed and illustrated CITYGREEN aims to discuss and highlight issues relating to urban greening and ecology.

In CITYGREEN’s latest issue, Parks – Enhancing Liveability in Cities, articles range from feature projects, best practices on planning, lighting, design and safety to commentaries on the role and evolution of urban parks.

Contributors for the current issue include organizations like Projects for Public Spaces and renowned individuals including Peter Harnik and Martha Schwartz.  The full listing of exciting articles for Issue 3 – ISBN: 978-981-08-9764-2 is shown below with selected photos:

“Planning Green Open Spaces for South East Asian Capital Cities”- left
Strategies to green up urban open spaces in our region
Author: David E. Aldous

“Learning From The Success of The World’s Great Parks”
Key lessons from Central Park New York, Luxembourg Gardens Paris and Hong Kong Park, among others
Authors: Fred Kent, Kathy Madden and Dana Kitzes

“Encouraging Green Open Spaces: Parks in Shanghai”- left
A look at sustainability-driven parks and initiatives in Shanghai
Author: Geoff Ng

“An Excerpt: Urban Parks in the 21st Century United States”
A Peek at Harnik’s Urban Green: Innovative Parks for Resurgent Cities
Author: Peter Harnik

“The Importance of Planning: A City in a Garden”- left
Planning, designing and programming attractive parks in land-scarce Singapore
Author: Lim You Ling

“A Place for Leisure, Culture and Entertainment: Cairns Esplanade”
The redevelopment of Cairns Esplanade into an icon of the place
Author: Stephen White

“Past, Present, Future: The Singapore Botanic Gardens”- left
The evolution and lasting relevance of our Singapore Botanic Gardens
Author: Peter How

“A Walk Through the Years in Singapore’s Parks: Interview With Kong Yit San”
Insights into the transformation of Singapore’s parks since the 1980’s
Author: Ho Rui An

“The Need to Improve Our Oversight of These Spaces: Playground Area Standards Update”- left
Why it is important and how to make public spaces safer for our children and elderly
Author: Kenneth S. Kutsa

“Encouraging Public Appreciation: Interpretation and Education in Parks”
Methods to help parks reach out to the public and students
Author: Janice C. K. Yau

“Adding Value to Parks Through Understanding User Needs”- left
Methods of evaluating and improving parks for their users
Author: Victor Tan

“Benchmarking Sustainable landscapes: Green Mark For Parks”
Using a triple-bottom line approach to assess and benchmark parks on sustainability
Authors: Neil Power and Kannagi Sekar

“Small Details, Big Results: Landscape Lighting” – left
See several considerations behind light and good lighting design
Author: Fernando Rojo

“A Focus on Planning and Design: Facilitating Safety”
Thinking about safety and risk issues in good design
Author: Michael Behm

“Community Engagement and Health Promotion in Parks and Gardens: Population Health and Nature in the Urban Environment”- left
Taking a leaf from initiatives by the South Australian government
Authors: Adam Dwyer, Graeme Hopkins and Christine Goodwin

“Ecological efforts in Karori Wildlife Santuary, Kaikatiki Project and Waiwhakareke Natural Heritage Park”
Author: James Wang

“Revisit and Discover: Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve”- left
A place to learn about Singapore’s mangrove history and Wetlands biodiversity
Authors: Sharon Chan and Edwin Lee

“A Landscape Architect’s Vision for Singapore’s City Centre: Orchard Central Park”
Imagining green possibilities for the dynamic Orchard Road shopping belt
Author: Joerg Rekittke

“The Role of the Public Realm Landscape: The Softer Side of Sustainability and the Hard Working Urban Landscape”- left
The challenge to integrate hard and soft systems to design and create meaningful public spaces
Author: Martha Schwartz

Online subscription is now available at www.citygreen.sg.

Last autumn, I was honored to have been asked to write an article about Greenroofs.com entitled “The International Greenroof Industry’s Online Information Portal: Greenroofs.com” for their second issue.  The full-color 104-page magazine was included in all the registrants’ bags for the  inaugural International Skyrise Greenery Conference 2010.

View contents of Issue 2 here and Issue 1 here.

I have to say that CITYGREEN is a first rate, very high quality publication and worth the cost!  I can’t wait to receive my copy.

I hope you, too, enjoy this very informative, glossy publication from CUGE on parks worldwide worthy of your greenroof and greenwall library and coffee table!

~ Linda V.

Last November Aramis and I met Colombian architect Andres Ibañez of Biotectonica S.A.S. and PhD candidate at the University of Hong Kong – among other things - at the WGIN Mexico City World Green Roof Congress (El Congreso Mundial de Azoteas Verdes México 2010) – where he also presented.  What an interesting guy!  He has a large body of research and completed works in both Hong Kong, his present city of residence, and Bogotá, his hometown.

Next month we will be highlighting both in our Guest Feature Article entitled “Pioneering Vegetated Architecture in  Colombia: From Research to Regulations,” which is very impressive, indeed.

Abstract:

“The practice of vegetated architecture in Colombia is in the process of being consolidated as a feasible technological choice. This paper explains the local process of green roofs dissemination initiated with a research project at National University of Colombia and accounts for the state-of the-art both in public and private sectors. Six topics are addressed:

1) The stage of transferring scientific knowledge from a research-based approach to the practice;
2) determination of key urban problems and technical parameters for experimentation regarding substrate, draining systems, vegetation and whole systems is explained;
3) mechanisms of university-market government engagement to overcome cultural and disciplinary barriers;
4) criteria for future Bogotá green roof guidelines under development;
5) appropriate technological strategies for green roofs in response to local conditions.

Issues of creativity, integration and quality are addressed in order to encourage a democratic practice of green applicable to low-cost projects. Some local strategies are described in which an integrative approach was followed to provide solutions to multiple design problems.  Finally, at this point in time, Colombia is facing new challenges for the promotion of a high-quality and responsible long-term application of green roofs in the future. These challenges are described.” ~ ”Pioneering Vegetated Architecture in  Colombia: From Research to Regulations,” 2011

Andres has also just finished writing the official Green Roof Guidelines of the City of Bogotá which will be soon incorporated into their sustainable building standards.  For this he reviewed the most advanced guidelines and standards worldwide, including FLL and ASTM, and came up with a unique approach for Bogotá.  Once he has the green light from the Secretary of Environment, we’ll be able to share more with you.

Yet, now we are asking for your votes from all around the world before November 7th in support of Andres and greenroofs as being a finalist in the “Innovadores de America“ – Innovators of America – contest under the Sustainability and Ecology category which:

“Includes innovative projects that contribute and provide solutions to problems related to the preservation of the environment.  Projects that contribute and in some way complement and increase sustainable development and adequate exploitation of resources, facilitating responsible and beneficial use of natural resources.” ~ Innovators 2011

Andres Ibañez is a finalist under Innovation: Biotectonica – Constructing life: local systems of vegetalization of infrastructure as a synergistic solution to urban environmental problems. Although the general site is in Spanish, the write up is in English as follows:

“Research, development, implementation, validation and dissemination of: local light and self-regulated systems of vegetalization of infrastructure (bio walls and bio roofs) using local waste materials and special vegetable species to improve the technical performance of buildings and create positive impact in urban areas environmentally deteriorated.

Biotectonica is the practice of building spaces with live vegetable materials instead of using conventional inert materials. The pioneer study in Colombia avoided inert materials and conventional practices in building construction and focused on the technological challenge of managing sustainable interfaces among infrastructure works and use special vegetable covers adapted to Bogota´s climate, using local resources, recyclable, and reutilization of materials and innovative design of specialized components. We had three main objectives:

1) Achieve viability of implementation at low cost, 2) special technical applications for the buildings, and 3) produce positive impacts in deteriorated urban sites due to environmental problems.

The vegetalization systems of infrastructure developed and manufactured by Biotectonica are economical and light weight, make use of underutilized roofs and facades of buildings and offer a synergistic and economical solution to the most critical urban environmental problems: air pollution, excess water runoff, deficit of green areas, effect of heat islands, and destruction of biodiversity habitat. As of June 2011, Biotectonica had installed 5,374 square meters of its vegetalization systems in 13 buildings and had designed the adaptation of 28,387 square meters in 20 buildings. The systems are manufactured in Bogota with recycled plastic, waste bricks, compost of organic waste, industrial waste and other waste materials that comply with specific requirements of lightness, drainage capabilities, thermal insulation, acoustic insulation, and water retention. Over 20 vegetable native and adapted species have been studied and used which can be self sustainable in the developed areas, with the rain and environmental conditions of Bogota.

Several innovations to vegetalization systems and their components were applied:

1.     Light system of drainage optimization in PEAD covered for industrial productions and mass commercialization. Already in use.
2.     Adaptation of conventional construction components for implementation of low cost vegetalized infrastructure systems for low income sectors.
3.     Green wall cell system (Bio roof)
4.     Six measurements of light substratum of local granular components for various infrastructure vegetalization systems.
5.     Matrix and design and adaptation methodology for specific buildings.

The following positive impacts were achieved:

1.     Creation of a means rain water retention which guarantees reduction of at least 37% of the volume and rate of runoff water to help solve the problems of floods in the city. 
2.     Installation of a means to hold rain water which reduces the amount of rainwater in Bogota´s sewage system by 2,953 million per year and helps with the hot weather.
3.     Creation of 5,374 square meters of green areas.
4.     Reuse of 130m of brick solid waste and industrial waste.
5.     Creation of 86.5m of compost from organic waste.
6.     Recycling of 9.3 tons of plastic.
7.     Creation of a natural means that captures approximately 1,082 tons of PM10 a year from polluted air in Bogota and other cities in Colombia
8.     Natural production of oxygen required by approximately 5,000 persons per year
9.     Implementation of an efficient means for acoustic and thermal insulation to improve conditions of more than 50,000 m of interior spaces.” ~ Andres Ibañez, Innovadores de America 2011

Awesome work!  Here are just a few representative projects which you’ll learn more about in November:

Andres describes his company as follows:

“Biotectonics is the practice of building spaces with living material instead of using conventional inert materials.  BIOTECTONIC is a technology-based company founded in 2009 after a pioneer research of the Master of Building at the National University of Colombia.  This research was the first in the country and one of the former in Latin America to study and validate living roof technologies.  BIOTECTONICA develops and implements greening infrastructure technologies addressing the local economic, cultural and environmental challenges and taking into account the particular conditions of every single project and client.” ~ Andres Ibañez Gutierrez

Andres created a short animation last week that he translated into English, now on YouTube:

The bottom line is that we should support each other within our industry, don’t you agree?  So, please join me in voting (I already did) for Andres – only one vote each.

Let’s advance green infrastructure in Colombia and beyond…support this project with your vote now!

~ Linda V.

In case you haven’t already heard, GreenRoofs Australasia (GRA) invites you to attend their 5th National Conference in Sydney on November 9 – 12, 2011.

GreenRoofs Australasia

GRA is the peak body for the promotion and dissemination of information on greenroof and greenwall best practice, design, research and technology.  GRA is presenting an impressive list of international and national speakers to educate professionals, academics, councillors, planners, trades and homeowners at this 5th National Conference.

Supported by the City of Sydney, Australian Institute of Architects, Australian Institute of Landscape Architects, Landscape Contractors Australia, Engineers Australia, Nursery & Gardens Industry of Australia, GBCA, “Greening Cities” was chosen as the theme for the conference in order to incorporate many disciplines which are all linked to vegetated systems for urban development.

The primary focus is on greenroof and greenwall systems for the built environment, with the inclusion of the “101 Greenroof Training Workshop”(receiving 4 Formal CPD points from AIA, AILA GBCA), project case studies, research studies, policy outlines, advances in technology and future perspectives on greening cities.

GRA received backing support from the City of Sydney and the National Conference will be held at the Australian National Maritime Museum in Darling Harbour.  The new City of Sydney Head of Planning, Graham Jahn, will present the 2030 Vision for Sydney and set the theme for Greening Cities.

“Planting on roofs and walls is one of the most innovative, sustainable and rapidly developing disciplines in architecture, landscape design, urban environmental planning, ecology and horticulture.

As the peak body for the green roof & green wall industry in Australasia we are proud to present a distinguished list of leading international & national authorities in their disciplines to present recent projects, design technology, research data and a positive vision for a future of green cities in harmony with nature as a partner.” ~ Greening Cities Conference website

Organizers say it has been their endeavor to provide delegates with a broad international perspective covering Policy / Greenwalls / Greenroofs / Design / Installation / Plant Specifications / and Iconic Projects.

The 4 day Greening Cities conference will offer:

November 9:  101 Greenroof Training Workshop (Formal CPD Points)
November 10:   Plenary Conference (AIA, AILA informal points)
November 11:  Plenary Conference
November 12:  Greenroof / Wall Tour of Sydney

International Keynotes

International keynote speakers include Patrick Blanc from Paris, France: Botanist, Author, Environmental Designer of ‘The Vertical Garden’; Dusty Gedge of London, UK: President European Federation of Green Roof Associations, Author, Green Roof Designer; Bruce Hemstock of Vancouver, B.C. Canada: Principal Landscape Architect, Project Manager, PWL Partners P/L Vancouver; and Charles Sinkler of Boston, USA: Principal, Apex Greenroofs.

National Keynotes

Graham Jahn, Architect, Director City Planning for the City of Sydney and Chris Johnson, the former NSW Government Architect and former Executive Director of the NSW Department of Planning.

Distinguished Speakers

Hon Tom Roper, Warwick Savvas, Rachel Neeson and Sue Barnsley, Mark Paul, Toby Adams and Jason Duda, Graeme Hopkins, Graham Cleary, John Potter, Dr. Khaled Dewidar, Todd Layt, Penelope Smith, Renee Davies, Robyn Simcock, Robert Griffith, and Sidonie Carpenter.

Read about all of the speakers here.

Here’s another wonderful conference we won’t be able to make this year – perhaps the next time!  We know it’s going to be awesome with the lovely Sidonie Carpenter, GreenRoofs Australasia President, and the entertaining Matthew Dillon, GreenRoofs Australasia Vice President and Conference Chairman leading the charge.

If you attended our inaugural Greenroofs & Walls of the World™ Virtual Summit 2011, I know you enjoyed Matt’s lively presentation “GreenRoofs in Australasia.”

Again, if you’re going, we invite you to write about it and share your visit with the Greenroofs.com readership.

For complete conference information, and to register visit www.greenroofsaustralasia.com.au.

Happy travels Down Under!

Linda V.

We first reported on it last March, and now the International Green Technology Symposium (Green Roof, Green City, Rain Harvesting) is around the corner.

Held next week in Indore, India on October 31 through November 2, 2011, the Symposium is organized by Professor Suresh Billore, PhD, DSc of GREEN TAKNIKI – Restoring Nature – the International Symposium on Green Technology and held under the auspices of the World Green Infrastructure Network (WGIN) and is co-hosted by the Mayor of Indore.

This prestigious greenroof symposium is the first of its kind in India!

“Green Technology is the foremost tool to repair urbanization damage in bringing back shift in cliumate change, cool building, biodiversity, energy conservation, flood management, noise-dust-toxic gas reduction, food and water production and creation of new markets for green goods and services.” ~ International Green Technology Symposium

Twenty international and national speakers will be presenting on a variety of subjects.  WGIN President Professor Manfred Köhler of Germany will be in attendance, along with Hitesh Doshi of Canada, and Paul Kephart, Dhiru Thadani, and Dr. Karen Weber of Earth Our Only Home, Foundation for a Green Future, and Boston GreenFest of the U.S, among other notables – see the Speakers page here.

Details on the Symposium and participation can be found at their website: www.greenindia2011.org, and in the attached updated International Green Technology Symposium 2011 flyer.

Aramis and I would have loved to have participated, but there’s just too much going on here now.  The day tour on November 2 and 4-day post-conference tour option are going to be awesome, and we will sorely miss it!  If you are going, please take lots of photos and keep us posted!

Happy Greening in India and beyond,

Linda V.

Have you seen our Greenroofs & Walls of the World™ Virtual Summit 2011 Highlights Video yet?  It’s fast paced and fun, see:

We put together snippets of 10-15 seconds of all of our speakers – well almost all.  We didn’t include the ones we had previously included in our Trailer Video -namely Xianmin Wang, Lluis Recasens Pahí, and João Manuel Linck Feijó - for time reasons.  But you can still see them in the Greenroofs & Walls of the World™ Virtual Summit 2011Trailer Video below:

So, watch the video and get a glimpse of what you would see in our virtual environment.  You still have about a week to register, all the way up until October 28th.  You’ll have access to the expo pavilions and can visit all the exhibitor and associate booths plus see our amazing speakers!

You’ll find the speaker presentations in two places:  The Rare Earth Auditorium, sponsored by Tremco, and the On Demand Auditorium.

The Rare Earth Auditorium is where you’ll find all the presentations that were scheduled live, including our four illustrious Keynote Speakers – Andrew Grant, Charlie Miller, Ed Snodgrass, and Ralph Velasquez – most with the live Q & A Sessions that followed the original playing.  You can still read all the commentary, too.  Here you’ll find:

The On Demand Auditorium hold the presentations for the speakers who were not scheduled live – although in effect, once a presentation played once, they were all on demand.

These include:

We’re very proud of our inaugural Virtual Summit and know you’ll be very pleased, too.  See the Speakers page and Agenda to learn all about each presenter and their presentation or panel session descriptions.

You still can’t beat the price for over 30 individual and panel sessions - only $49 or $25 for students & faculty and government professionals!

Happy Greening,

Linda V.

Our vision of producing and sharing the virtual experience to our industry with our inaugural Greenroofs & Walls of the World™ Virtual Summit 2011 was successful, and we couldn’t have done it without the great support of many people, in particular our main patron, Rare Earth Sponsor TREMCO, along with Emerald Sponsor American Hydrotech.

Thanks again also to our Exhibitors Grant Associates, Green Living Technologies, Green Roof Blocks, GreenGrid Roofs, Green Roof Plants, ILD, J-DRain, and Roofmeadow – although the lifeblood of any conference is its speakers, the sponsors and exhibitors make it happen – none of this would have been possible without their financial support!

We are so proud to have put together the most amazing community of talented international speakers that you could have asked for – all leaders in their fields.  See the Speakers page and read all about them and their presentations.

Speaking of our Sponsors, Exhibitors, and Speakers, I’d like to stress that although the 2 live days have passed, the end of the Virtual Summit is on October 28 – if you missed out on September 27 & 28, you can still register until October 28!

You can’t beat the price of only $49 – or $25 for students/faculty/government professionals - to access all 32 of our great panel sessions, interviews, presentations, and live Q & A commentary plus see the latest from manufacturer/supplier and organization/government exhibitors.

Visit all of our truly unique and innovative areas within the virtual environment: the Rare Earth and On Demand Auditoriums, the Tremco Meeting Room, the Sky Terrace Networking Lounge, the Media Lounge, and the International, North American & Associates Pavilions at the Expo – did you know you can still chat with your fellow online attendees either in a public or private via video, audio, or text while logged in?

We’re putting together an awesome Highlights Video of our wonderful participants to give you a taste of what you are missing – look for it soon!  We hope to see you still in Greenroofs & Walls of the World™ Virtual Summit 2011!  Register here.

Love the Earth, Plant a Roof!

~ Linda V.

Greenroofs.com Project of the Week: 9/19/11
Musée du quai Branly Green Wall 
Paris, France
8,600 sf. Greenwall

Year: 2005
Owner: Musée du quai Branly
Location: Paris, France
Building Type: Museum
Type: Living Wall
System: Single Source Provider
Size: 8,600 sq.ft.
Slope: 100%
Access: Accessible, Open to Public

Project Description & Details

Situated close to the Eiffel Tower, the Musée du quai Branly features indigenous art, cultures and civilizations from Africa, Asia, Oceania, and the Americas. The museum complex contains several buildings, as well as a mediatheque and a garden. The building was designed by architect Jean Nouvel, and the façade measures approximately 13,000 sf (1,200 m). Yet its most noticeable feature is the stunning and now iconic 200 m long by 12 m tall living wall covering the entire northwest façade, punctured by large windows.

Designed by Patrick Blanc using his hydroponic Mur Végtal system, the Musée du quai Branly greenwall is one of Blanc’s most famous vertical gardens, and one of the most highly photographed in the world. Facing the River Seine with a park and small streets in between, the micro-climate creates a good environment for a large variety of plants. A range of species were selected from the world’s main temperate zones, including North America, Europe, the Himalayas, China, Japan, Chile, and South Africa. Patrick insisted that the biodiversity represented in this vertical garden echo the cultural diversity of artists the world over, whose works were on exhibit in that very museum.

Designers/Manufacturers of Record

Architect: Jean Nouvel
Green Wall Designer: Patrick Blanc
Green Wall System: Mur Végétal
Planning Phase Project Director: Françoise Raynaud
Construction Project Director: Isabelle Guillauic

Google Maps Link

Additional Info

Nicknamed MQB, the Musée du quai Branly opened in June, 2006.  In addition to the permanent collection, the museum hosts a variety of shows, concerts, cinema and cultural activities all year round.  Behind a sound-proofed glass wall is a secluded garden where visitors can sit and relax after their tour.

At first, residents were unsure of the new living wall cloaking the four-story building, and now they are highly protective of it.

I was in Paris last year in May and of course I made sure to visit the Musée du quai Branly, not the inside, just the outside.  To say I was fascinated is an understatement!  As I examined plant species at eye level I started following flowing drifts of plant communities diagonally, upwards, downwards…

The building was enveloped in different shades and sizes of green, red, yellow, lilac, pink and white.  I started to feel like the reflective windows were just getting in the way of the beautiful picture, yet after a while of observing the colors of the sky change and white billowy clouds pass by, the juxtaposition of modern architecture and the look of a primeval forest was somewhat surreal.

Writing in the 2006 New York Times article “Quai Branly: A perverse, magical space” Nicolai Ouroussoff says, “By contrast, the exterior of the administration building is swallowed up by a vertical carpet of exotic plants punctured by big windows. On some stories, the plants invade the building, crawling down the interior walls. (“When you put in little flowers, people are happy,” Nouvel said of his design.)”

I can see that.  The building is almost magical in its irreverent disregard for the status quo of boring flat façades of “normal” buildings - the undulating plant masses, the lushness of the sensuous sweeping bands of vegetation, and the desire to touch them all draws the visitor into the façade itself, as if it were a sub-tropical forest floor on its side.  Photo above and below by contributing editor Christine Thuring in 2009.

One of the very best qualities about Patrick Blanc’s works is that the plants really look like they are the structure – not just planted on top of it.   Integrated design at its finest!   Patrick is a great proponent of plant biodiversity - the wall contains over 15,000 plants and 150 different species from around the world.

It was fun watching some people’s reactions as they passed by – the thoroughfare that runs along the left bank of the Seine is very close to the Eiffel Tower, and the street is heavily populated with tourists.  I guess Parisians have had a few years to become accustomed to the rather large structure and have since become nonplussed – but I noticed that most passersby had to stop, look at the wall and then touch it, as if to make sure the plants were real!

A lot of people gingerly felt the many varieties of species, and in fact Patrick Blanc told me that he and architect Jean Nouvel not only expected people to touch them, they hoped they would!  Some wanted to put up a screen or see-through barrier so people couldn’t access the plants, but Patrick stood his ground and said most certainly not, that it was part of the experience to use all the senses to really appreciate this living work of art.

As a result, some portions of the living wall need to be replaced occasionally, and Patrick said he was fine with that - sometimes folks pick the “pretty flowers and leaves” and don’t realize it’s a living being.

I saw several areas where the felt had obviously been replaced and stapled in new – to be honest, I’ve seen this in numerous applications of this type of living wall system, although this is the first (but certainly not last) and only Patrick Blanc greenwall I’ve seen.

The patented Mur Végétal system has been around for about 15 years now, and there are many knock-offs.  Patrick says he’s flattered and welcomes the opportunity for others to learn from his many years of research an experience with the hydroponic system.

Paris is a refined global city always seeking new ideas and ideals, and the Musée du quai Branly is a modern museum living in this classic setting, yet it also has been designed to contradict and inspire.  Just like Patrick Blanc’s magical vertical garden wall.

“This is a museum built around a specific collection, where everything is designed to evoke an emotional response to the primary object, to protect it from light, but also to capture that rare ray of light indispensable to make it vibrate and awaken its spirituality. In a place inhabited by symbols of forests and rivers, by obsessions of death and oblivion, it is an asylum for censored and cast off works from Australia and the Americas. It is a loaded place haunted with dialogues between the ancestral spirits of men, who, in discovering their human condition, invented gods and beliefs. It is a place that is unique and strange, poetic and unsettling.” ~ Ateliers Jean Nouvel

Read about my visit with Patrick Blanc a couple of weeks ago here, and don’t miss my exclusive interview with Patrick Blanc and his “The Vertical Garden – from Nature to Cities” presentation at the Greenroofs & Walls of the World™ Virtual Summit 2011 on September 27 & 28.

Did we miss something?  We’d love to hear from you!  Click here to see more information about this project in The International Greenroof & Greenwall Projects Database.  See how you can submit yours here.

Love the Earth, Plant a Roof!

~ Linda V.