Guest article by Bettina Therese Møller, interior designer based in Denmark.
Biophilia finds its way in most of my projects
It is only recently I asked myself the question “Why is it that everything I do encompasses biophilia in one way or another?
I do “Interiors with a Purpose” - mostly for workspaces - and I always invite nature into the spaces I create. It’s the most obvious way to create an environment that thrives and engenders wellbeing I believe.
It worries me whenever I see an office environment in a bad state. Of course, I like designer furniture, art ,etc. But even more I appreciate when people make an effort - when you feel that the surroundings have been taken good care of and you feel a good atmosphere. The best atmosphere is when nature is present. Humans have an innate tendency to seek connections with nature.
But why nature and biophilic design. I presume the reader of this article already knows of biophilia - and I will leave it to the experts to explain what it is exactly. There are lots of scientific articles about how nature has a cognitive impact on human beings. In this article I will share with you my beliefs and also some examples of how I create spaces in my projects inspired by biophilia.
Spontaneous attention
During a day at work people need to be focused - to keep direct attention to the job they perform. Many of us also stay very focused after work. Still, we all know it’s important to relax - and the best way to do so is to go out into nature. That is where we let our attention become spontaneous - just feel, smell, hear nature. The picture below is from my walk with my childhood friend Saturday afternoon. Suddenly we smelled rapeseed and what a sight - a yellow field of rapeseed - a total enjoyment. And look how beautiful the clouds are.
I have specialised in creating office workspaces. Some office buildings are located near nature with a beautiful view but more often they only have some grass and trees outside. The desk is indoors and you spend many hours there so why not bring nature inside to the office workers - and in doing so I use the biophilic principles.
Where do you find biophilia in my projects?
The most common way is to decorate the office with plants. Still, very often you either find “tired” plants or uninspiring succulents. And in that case there are other better ways to go. And biophilia is more than just plants.
The picture below is from a project where my customer wanted an inspiring area for scrum meetings. In the area they pointed out to me there was this bearing pillar which could not be removed. So why not make a tree out of it? With a treetop where the sun shines down through the branches. So today they meet for quick gatherings under the tree. The acoustics was also a problem and therefore the treetop is made out of acoustic material.
In another case where the customer’s main product is salmon and their slogan “Closer to Nature” we decided to let the interior be inspired by the Norwegian fjords.
Acoustics were again a problem and therefore we decorated the walls with acoustic panels in the colours of a Norwegian fjord and also used a rug formed as a stone and in a sandy colour.
In the conference room a door has been cancelled and this pocket in the wall was mounted with the most beautiful preserved ball moss.
And here we have the giant bear with a salmon in his mouth - which now brings nature and soundproofing to one of the other meeting rooms.
Wabi Sabi and the Five Elements
I have for many years used the principle of Wabi Sabi - the Japanese aesthetic which celebrates appreciating the beauty of ageing and imperfection. Not everything should be new and shiny - instead using furniture that has a story/a soul makes people more relaxed. And for the overall balance in a room I use the five elements from Feng Shui. Especially when it comes to choosing the right colours the five elements are an important tool to me.
The three principles - biophilia, Wabi Sabi and the five elements - really fit well together. It is not that I wander around with check lists to make sure I have got all the principles right! I have been doing this for several years now and it all comes quite natural to me. I think it’s about giving time to the process.
This is from a project where the customer on beforehand had invested in new chairs for this room. I convinced them to use the new chairs somewhere else and found these old instructor stools - full of wabi sabi - in a hallway at the school. The colours have been chosen so that there is a balance in the five elements. Lots of daylight, wall paintings with motifs from nature and spaces in high beds just outside the big windows bring biophilia to the room.
When I start a new project I begin with analysing the company - it’s values, goals, culture, etc and of course the location given. I get a good feeling of the job and then I take a walk in nature and the ideas start coming.
Sometimes I just come across something inspiring - a colour, a pattern or something which I have a feeling that I will use in a project someday. This weekend for instance I visited one of the small islands by the Danish west coast and found this beautiful formation in the sand. I’m quite sure one day it will be found in one of my projects.
To find out more about Bettina Therese Møller’s interior design practice in Denmark, have a look at her website: https://www.bettinatherese.dk
Have a listen to our editor, Vanessa Champion PhD’s interview with Bettina on our podcasts here, or on iTunes.