Biophilic design and architecture - 10 of the best biophilic buildings
The Eden Project
Location: Cornwall, UK
Architect: Grimshaw
Completed: 2000
Conceived by conceived by Tim Smit and designed by Grimshaw Architects, the Eden Project in Cornwall is a complex of artificial biodomes containing plants collected from all around the world. The project is located in an old clay pit.
The complex is dominated by two huge enclosures consisting of adjoining domes that house thousands of plant species, and each enclosure emulates a natural biome. The domes consist of hundreds of hexagonal and pentagonal, inflated, plastic cells supported by steel frames. The first dome emulates a tropical environment, and the second a Mediterranean environment.
Speaking at a special event in 2015 to mark 15 years since the project was completed, Andrew Whalley, an architect at Grimshaw, describes the idea behind the Eden project as to, 'explore and describe man's relationship with the planet and plants. It was through the idea of creating very large enclosures, creating completely new life environments in Cornwall'.
