Green architecture: features, examples and objects

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:53

In the last decade, people have begun to care more about the environment. This led to the fact that even in the field of construction a fundamentally new technique appeared - green organic architecture. Although now there are relatively few examples of such houses around the world, however, in themselves they resemble some outlandish fantasies that fully follow the principles of environmental friendliness. Living in such houses allows city dwellers, who yearn so much for wildlife, to get at least a little of it close to them. This article will talk about what green architecture is not as one of the new fashion trends, but as a fundamentally new way of thinking of people who have decided to abandon the exploitation of nature.

Green Approach

When building green architecture objects, environmental friendliness is taken into account first of all. The very root of the word ecology - "oikos" in Greek means house. Therefore, this construction technique is based on the relationship of housing, home and nature. Following this trend, they believe that a person should strive for nature and nature. This is what led to the fact that in the endInnovative architecture began to develop in the 20th century.

The history of green architecture began relatively recently, when it became clear that the pace of industrialization in construction, which had only been growing throughout the last century, began to influence the environment too much. People began to try to create a home for themselves, taking into account several additional factors - biosocial, natural and socio-psychological. These premises led to the introduction of an ecological approach to architecture.

Fundamentals of eco-architecture

As the name implies, green architecture itself is built on the love and respect of man for nature, and therefore buildings built according to such projects should have a minimal impact on the environment. However, in fact, ecological architecture, with the help of various visual and material signs of style, tries to convey this love. As a result, this led to the construction of original projects that are almost impossible to correlate with other styles, since you can see the natural nature in the forms and lines themselves.

At first glance, such buildings may seem very strange and illogical, because they have interesting smooth lines. However, architects calmly explain this by the fact that nature is very multifaceted, and therefore everything can be created here. But in one thing, these buildings are very similar - they fit so perfectly into the environment that it seems as if they are creations of nature.

Construction principles

For several years in organic architecture, young professionals have conducted a number of experiments, many of which were very unsuccessful. However, there are already a number of principles of green architecture that should guide the construction of buildings. These include:

The principle of conservation of energy is to minimize the need to spend thermal energy for heating or cooling.
The principle of reducing the volume of new construction involves the use of old buildings or materials from them in new buildings. This principle has been in effect for centuries, especially during the Middle Ages, when buildings were built to last for centuries. However, in the middle of the 20th century, developers began to simply demolish everything and build from scratch, because it was so much easier.
The principle of cooperation with the sun proposes the use of solar panels in a building as a way to store energy for heating. In addition, in buildings built in the style of green architecture, almost all windows face south.
The principle of respect for the inhabitants - the building becomes not just a place to live, but a possession in which each inhabitant of the house must play a huge role in maintaining order.
The principle of respect for the place provides for the view of Eastern philosophy on nature - the unity and merging of man and his natural environment. Nature must stop being just a resource used for the benefit of humanity.
The principle of integrity expresses the ideal of eco-architecture. It provides an approach to the construction problem in such a way thatall of the above principles could have been used.

Stefano Boeri's house in Lausanne

One of the brightest examples of green architecture is a real skyscraper in the Swiss city of Lausanne. Built by Stefano Boeri, he disproved all the skepticism of people in the fact that it is impossible to build a house with vertical gardening. The original building of the Milanese architect is so amazing that it can only cause true admiration. It was completed only in 2014 and now pleases the inhabitants of the city, rising to a height of 117 meters. At the same time, the house has more than 100 trees and a huge number of other green spaces.

Nantes Plant Tower

Another interesting building is the Plant Tower, which was created by the French architect Francois in the style of green architecture. He designed a unique building in the city of Nantes, which is planted with trees. They are designed to decorate the facade of the building, and for their comfortable growth, the trees will be placed in steel tubes. This will ensure that people can enjoy their time in the shade of the stunning native trees. The main tower, intended for human habitation, will have 17 floors, each of which is decorated with balconies of different diameters.

Bamboo eco-house

When building in the style of green architecture, building materials can be very diverse. So in China, houses made of bamboo began to appear. This material is very durable andflexible, in addition, groundwater can be used to cool the house. For construction, simple modular blocks are used, which are quite easy to assemble into one structure using a dry fastening method. It also helps protect the bamboo from warping.

Green school in Spain

In the Spanish city of Roldan, there is a unique and creative school built in the style of ecological architecture. The entire exterior of the school is covered with ecological turf so that it seems as if the building has simply grown out of the ground. The look, conceived by the Spanish architectural studio Estudio Huma, aims to bring the new school closer to nature and integrate it into the landscape. The school is distinguished by spacious classrooms, which are furnished in a youth democratic style, so that students can feel comfortable here, like on the street or at home. The green carpet itself, covering the building, in addition to its decorative function, allows you to create an effective heat exchange between rooms and provide a good microclimate for students.

Forest spiral architect Hundertwasser

In the German city of Darmstadt in 2000, the famous Austrian architect Hundertwasser built a unique residential complex called the Forest Spiral. If you look at it from above, then in its appearance the building resembles a snail. Smooth features of the facade, walls painted in different colors and windows of various shapes give the building a fantasy look. And some windows also have a surprise - trees grow from them. Apartment owners mustconstantly look after them, as it is written in the lease agreement.

In total, the residential complex has 105 apartments on 12 floors and a nice patio with an artificial lake. The undulating roof of the building also has its own plantings of a variety of trees and flowers. All this has led to the fact that the Forest Spiral fits so perfectly into the landscape of the environment, because the house simply does not have any straight lines and sharp corners. At the moment, the complex is considered one of the most original architectural creations in Germany and attracts many tourists. The original beauty of the creation of the famous designer cannot leave anyone indifferent, because in the center of a large urban city one can so rarely feel unity with nature.

Hobbit Dwelling

And if we go deep into the fairy tale, we can tell about one interesting house that was built in Wales by photographer Simon Dale. He created it on his own in just 4 months at minimal cost - in total it took him about 256 thousand rubles. The building is located on a hillside made of natural materials, in appearance it resembles the house of the hobbits described by Tolkien in his books.

Green architecture in Russia

Now there are already thousands of examples of various ecological buildings around the world, but such a trend has not yet come to Russia. And maybe it will never come, especially in its northern part because of the harsh climate. Today there is only one example of green organicarchitecture in Russia, which has been fully certified. However, this building is not a dwelling, but only a bearing factory in Tver. However, now the authorities are trying to certify several more such buildings - Olympic venues in Sochi, buildings in Skolkovo and Barkly Park.

Barkli Park in Moscow

In Moscow there is a residential complex, located on the street of the Soviet Army, which can claim the title of a green house. This elite housing in the Meshchansky district consists of two residential towers designed by the architectural studio "Atrium" and the French architect Philippe Starck. The construction was carried out taking into account all the principles of construction - rational use of resources, minimization of harm to nature and many others. In total, there are 134 apartments, and on each floor there are landscaped areas on balconies, roofs and terraces. Each apartment has a Smart Home system that allows you to control the equipment in the apartment from a distance.

Conclusion

In recent years, people are increasingly trying to interact with nature, and not destroy it senselessly. Against this background, it is quite clear why the system of green architecture began to develop. Unfortunately, in Russia it has not yet gained popularity, since there is only one residential complex throughout the country that meets these standards, but the apartments in it are very expensive - from one and a half million dollars, which is simply inaccessible to ordinary citizens. BUTfurther development of these trends in construction is not particularly expected in our country.