Biophilia

Photo by Kate Russell

 Anyone that has ever noticed a gentle breeze on their skin
or stared into a fire until their thoughts disappeared or
had a long pause in the changing colors of the sky, already
understands biophilia. In our deepest levels of DNA we all
understand, because our ancestors were formed within it.
Biophilia is our innate love and connection to the natural
world. In other words, consciously or subconsciously we are
all craving nature in our lives. Science has proven that
applying biophilia to the spaces we live and work in
improves health and happiness but also teaches the next
generation to treat nature with reverence.

 Try this on for me, what is the first thing you touch when
you wake up in the morning? What is the second?
Unfortunately, studies have shown that it’s our phones (Im
not here to scold you). If that is true and not changing
anytime soon then what image is on your screensaver? Maybe
next it’s the sheets on which you sleep, are they made of
something that once had roots or are they bleached white
and derived from plastic bottles?  They are covering you
for hours every night. What color are they? Most
likely ,It’s the first color you see every single day. Is
this interesting to you? This is applying biophilia to your
personal choices , keep reading.

 Now think about the space in which you live and the one
you work within. Do they have movement or are they
completely still? Do you see natural shapes around you or
do you see corners and the common right angles of modern
construction? Would you discover shadows on the wall and do
they move with the light throughout the day or do you have
the ever-even brightness of task lighting? Do you have
plants, pets or things to watch change and grow? Do you
have access to a window, does it open? These are all
questions of biophilic design when applied to spaces.

It was my passion for botany and landscape design that
brought me to studying biophilic design. I had a chance to
study others homes and offices and I realized that our
indoor and our outdoor spaces are often disconnected. I
have spent copious hours thinking about outdoor irrigation
and how to mitigate the heat of the generous New Mexican
sun so I could design gardens for people to linger in. It
occurred to me that indoors is temperature controlled,
sheltered from excessive light and quite honestly where we
spend most of our time. I began thinking about how to make
these indoor/outdoor spaces connect and in my questions I
discovered a book called “Biophilia” by biologist and
naturalist, Edward O Wilson. I have been on a new journey
of design ever since.

 Studies have shown that connections with nature and
natural patterns lower stress and improve overall health
and wellbeing. We are living in a time ripe with anxiety,
attention deficit disorders, lack of sleep and good health.
I believe that our design choices along with cultivating
plants and growing our general understanding of the wild
spaces in which we have evolved from can improve the
quality of our lives. I want to dive into these ideas with
you.

 Pith Plant Studio was created to host conversations and
projects around biophilia. I do custom installations in
homes and businesses that focus on our innate need for
beauty and nature.  On Saturdays, Pith is a plant retail
store so that we can meet new faces and support you in your
plant knowledge and grow good design choices.

 Please feel free to reach out to us with your questions
and ideas, Pith would like to be a part of your thoughtful
decisions for a healthier way of living. On Saturdays
please wander in, we are open 10-5. Sign up for our mailing
list for lectures and classes on biophilic design or follow
us on Instagram pith_plantstudio.