Healing Design

“While designers have always understood that the objects and space that surround us can impact how we feel, we took that knowing a step further,” said Ivy Ross, Google's vice president for hardware design. “We interpreted people’s physiological data in a way that could show them the impact of design. That is the breakthrough – helping to make the impact of design visible.”

The implications of validating the impact of design are far-reaching. Not only will the arrival of this data help to expand the commitment of businesses to investing in carefully considered public and private spaces, but it can also be used to address wellbeing and social problems.

One study from the University of Oregon that is detailed in her book found that humans are hard-wired to respond to objects with fractal features - self-repeating patterns that vary in scale. In nature these include ferns, clouds, seashells, snowflakes and salt flats, for example. The scientists found that our eyes respond to fractal patterns because their own internal physical structure is made up of similar patterns. The shapes provoke high alpha waves in the brain’s frontal lobes and high beta waves in the parietal area, promoting a relaxed but focused state of mind - they are ‘easier on the eye’, so to speak.

Other studies cited by Jones link the sounds and scents of nature to improved nerve activity and decreased heart rates, while a disrupted circadian rhythm or lack of access to daylight is strongly linked to mental health problems such as anxiety and depression.

At Haute Living, pieces with soft enveloping shapes such as Pierre Paulin’s Pacha Lounge Chair designed in 1975 and Jonas Wagell’s Julep collection released in 2018 are proving particularly popular among customers. So are tactile surfaces, such as those seen on Soniah, Faina’s latest lighting collection which, like many of the brand’s pieces, is made from a material called Ztista. The natural composite blends flax rubber with wood chips cellulose and clay to create a wonderfully uneven – and most importantly – biodegradable surface.

Elsewhere, technology is enabling designers to create lighting pieces that closely mimic daylight to support the body’s natural circadian rhythms. Marjan van Aubel has recently released Sunne, an autonomous ambient solar light for indoors that mimics daylight coming through your windows after dark.

Furniture brand Haworth has carried out extensive research on the topic of what makes a happy work environment. Its findings show that when it comes to creative work, “micro-breaks” – the short pauses in focus when we gaze off into the distance and daydream – can foster creative ideas. For this reason, it advises that those seeking inspiration should set up a workspace with a view out to nature, or even better next to a garden where they can take a short walk.

In Singapore, Citibank’s new wealth management center merges office space with green space. Located in a plant-filled glass office building that it has coined a “banking conservatory”, offices and meeting rooms are nestled among tropical plants and winding pathways. In addition, lighting is programmed to mirror the movement of the sun changing from blue to reddish undertones over the course of the day.

For existing office spaces where space is limited, furniture brand USM has released a series of accessories that can be integrated into its modular furniture specifically to accommodate plants. Called Haller World of Plants, the pieces include panels for inserting pot plants, an irrigation system and a lighting system that will help to support them.

Roadmap

Rather than a trend, Biophilic design is a movement that maps out a hopeful future for more socially and civically responsible design. Post-pandemic, at a time when we face extraordinary environmental and social challenges, we hope to see a renewed enthusiasm for developing new materials and new ways of making and building that are built in partnership with nature rather than against it.

Article by Ali Morris