Urban Nature
“And God said: Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth, and it was so.” (Genesis 1:11)
Plants, shrubs and trees have been part of the human environment since the beginning of humanity. God placed the first humans in the Garden of Eden. It is no coincidence that gardens, parks and forests remain places of retreat, relaxation and renewal. Unfortunately, urbanization has largely pushed green spaces out of the places where we live.
I visited major European cities to explore the relationship between nature and the urban environment, including the “nature” created by humans. At times, I came across ingenious ways of bringing nature back into the concrete jungle, but unfortunately, such innovative examples are still relatively rare across Europe.
Nevertheless, I hope that more environmentally conscious architectural solutions will emerge in the future.
L'Umbracle, part of Valencia's City of Arts and Sciences, is a landscaped walkway designed by Santiago Calatrava. Beneath its sweeping white arches, Mediterranean vegetation blends with contemporary architecture.
Designed by botanist Patrick Blanc, L'Oasis d'Aboukir transforms a formerly bare wall in central Paris into a 25-metre-high vertical garden, home to approximately 7,600 plants.
A living wall designed by botanist Patrick Blanc covers the facade of the Musée du quai Branly, near the Eiffel Tower. The museum houses collections of art and cultural objects from Africa, Asia, Oceania and the Americas.
An office building in Barcelona incorporates vegetation across its terraced facade, with plants and trees growing from balconies on multiple levels.
Designed by Stefano Boeri, Bosco Verticale (Vertical Forest) consists of two residential towers rising 110 and 76 metres above Milan. Their balconies accommodate approximately 800 trees and 4,500 shrubs, bringing a substantial amount of vegetation into the densely built urban environment.
Plants grow across the walls and balconies of buildings overlooking a canal in Venice, where greenery finds space within the city's densely built historic environment.
A dense hedge and carefully shaped trees form a green boundary between a residential building and the surrounding streets in Paris.
Designed by architect Édouard François and completed in 2004, the Flower Tower features balconies lined with oversized planters containing bamboo, creating a living facade around the residential building.
A solitary palm tree stands between closely packed buildings on a street in Perpignan, southern France.
A rooftop garden rises above the surrounding buildings near the Arc de Triomphe, creating a pocket of greenery among the dense rooftops of Paris.
L'Umbracle is part of the City of Arts and Sciences complex, a garden planted with native Mediterranean plants in Valencia, such as lentisca, rock rose and bougainvillea. Valencia, Spain
Patrick Blanc transformed a bare street corner in downtown Paris into a vertical garden. The botanist planted nearly 7,600 plants on a 25-meter-high concrete wall. Paris, France
Located on the banks of the Seine River near the Eiffel Tower, the Quai Branly Museum is a repository of African and Oceanic art. The green walled museum wall was designed by Patrick Blanc, consisting of plants from China, Japan, America and Central Europe. Paris, France
Corporate office building in the Catalan capital. Barcelona, Spain
Designed by Stefano Boeri, the Bosco Verticale (meaning Vertical Forest) is located in Milan, designed to reduce the smog and ecological footprint. Almost 800 trees and 5,000 bushes were planted on the twin towers of 75 and 111 meters high. Thanks to the spread of leaves on the facades, rich vegetation increases humidity, absorbs carbon dioxide while producing oxygen, filters out dust and protects residents from noise and summer heat. Milan, Italy
Plants can be found in a variety of places, even in a special city like the floating Venice. Venice, Italy
Hedge fence in the French capital. Paris, France
The Flower Tower was built by Edouard François in 2004. Paris, France
Lonely palm tree on Perpignan's main street. Perpignan, France
Rooftop garden near Arc de Triomphe. Paris, France