Organic architecture: closing the gap between man and nature

As with all of his creations, the basilica is based fundamentally on natural elements. The interior features tree-like columns that make you feel like you're in a forest, and rainbowed windows that were intended to change the light from cool to warm within the space as the sun moved from one side to the next. Today, the Sagrada Família is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of Spain's most visited places.

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Fallingwater -

Located in Bear Run, Pennsylvania, is Frank Lloyd Wright's most famous work: Fallingwater. It was built in the late 1930s as a holiday home for the wealthy Kaufmann family, who actually didn't like the initial plans for their new summer house because they wanted a view of the waterfall, not to be on top of it.

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Fallingwater -

Now, of course, the cantilevered concrete forms, anchored by natural rock, are regarded as a marvel of architecture, giving residents the opportunity to live in harmony with nature.

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Fallingwater -

Of course, it's a small waterfall and the house did suffer from leakage and structural damage, but it widened our imaginations about how we could be living, and since 1963 it's been preserved by the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy.

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Taliesin West -

Taliesin West, in Scottsdale, Arizona, was Wright's home and studio. The dramatic terraces and walkways were meant to mimic the desert and its changing sandbars that would constantly reshape the landscape.

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Taliesin West -

This building remains another strong example of how Wright focused on joining interior spaces with exterior ones, with many indoor features reaching outside.

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Taliesin West -

The glorious time capsule of a site is reportedly still used as a living, working, and educational setting, Owlcation reports.

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Hanna House -

Located in Palo Alto, California, Wright's Honeycomb House, as it is also called for its use of hexagons as building units, is made from wood and brick, and actually allows residents to disassemble and reconfigure the walls as needed.

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London Aquatics Centre -

The late Iraqi architect Zaha Hadid was one of the masters of organic architecture in contemporary times. The London Aquatics Center is a great example, as she made concrete take on the properties of water.

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London Aquatics Centre -

Hadid herself said the impressive design was "inspired by the fluid geometry of water in motion, creating spaces and a surrounding environment in sympathy with the river landscape of the Olympic Park," Designcurial reports.

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Quetzalcoatl Nest -

Mexican architect Javier Senosiain designed the Nido de Quetzalcóatl ("Quetzalcoatl Nest") in Naucalpan, Mexico, as an extension of his passion for organic architecture.

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Quetzalcoatl Nest -

Inspired by an Aztec serpent god, the incredible space contains 10 apartments spread over 165,000 square feet, complete with extensive botanical gardens, lakes, and even mineral caves, truly melding man with nature.

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Hoshino Stone Church -

American architect Kendrick Bangs Kellogg was one of the devoted organic architects of the mid-20th century and designed this church (full name Uchimura Kanzo Memorial Stone Church), which was completed in 1988 and remains a fantastic example of how to integrate the landscape. The stone trail to get inside remains lower than the surrounding trees and becomes a part of the chapel's experience, Design Boom reports.

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Hoshino Stone Church -

Local stone was used to build the foundation, and an emphasis on natural light, vegetation, and a few custom wooden fixtures make the space feel ancient and warm, like a true natural sanctuary.

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Lotus Temple -

Located in New Delhi, India, and completed in 1986, this giant lotus-shaped architectural wonder was designed by Iranian-Canadian architect Fariborz Sahba. It is a Bahá'í House of Worship, meaning people of all denominations are welcomed.

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Lotus Temple -

In accordance with the architectural principles of the religion, the building is a nine-sided shape consisting of 27 free-standing, marble-clad 'petals' arranged in clusters of three, Designcurial reports.

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Learning Hub at Nanyang Technological University -

Thomas Heatherwick's Studio won a competition to design a new learning hub for Singapore's Nanyang Technological University by proposing an idea so radically different than the typical educational building.

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Learning Hub at Nanyang Technological University -

They created this fascinating concept using concrete towers whose shape is distinctly organic—we're talking hardly any straight lines in sight. The final look was something that appeared to have developed naturally, which is an incredible feat on such a huge scale.

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Learning Hub at Nanyang Technological University -

That's especially true because it had to be very functional for its student. It consists of 56 tutorial rooms inside interlinked towers that surround an atrium.

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Kunsthaus Graz -

Located in Graz, Austria, and designed by architects Peter Cook and Colin Fournier, the Kunsthaus Graz, or Graz Art Museum, is a hilariously bold take on organic architecture. The otherworldly form and top material of blue acrylic panels not only contrasts the distinctly European red roofs around it, but also earned the building the nickname "The Friendly Alien."

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Kunsthaus Graz -

But contrast was the intention, as both form and material shake up the somewhat monotonous straight lines and Baroque conformity around it. Still, it was mindful of its surroundings and integrates the facade of a 1847 iron house.

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The Gherkin -

This beloved London landmark, built by Foster and Partners in 2003, is sometimes known as 30 Saint Mark Axe but more often known as the Gherkin (which others might call a pickle). It's an obviously organic form that contrasts from the buildings around, but, more importantly, it's also designed to conserve energy.

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The Gherkin -

The design of the Gherkin has many features intended to enhance energy efficiency, like open shafts between each floor acting as ventilation and added light without using any energy. The building reportedly uses half the energy that a tower of similar size might.

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Qatar National Convention Centre -

The Qatar National Convention Centre in Doha is a great example of organic architecture for obvious reasons. Designed by the renowned Japanese architect Arata Isozaki, the building has an impressive facade of intertwined trees reaching up to support the overhanging exterior canopy.

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Qatar National Convention Centre -

The tree motif continues on the inside and is reportedly also a reference to the Sidrat al-Muntaha, a mythical tree that is holy in Islam.

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Fondation Jérôme Seydoux-Pathé -

Renzo Piano designed this unorthodox building in Paris that was made to resemble an "organic creature," which many compare to a slug. It is only just visible behind a traditional 19th-century neoclassical facade as it slopes down into the space behind the building.

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Fondation Jérôme Seydoux-Pathé -

The design had to integrate the site's space limits but also took care to respect the surrounding buildings, creating this organic shape so that the neighbors would not lose any access to natural light and air, as they likely would have with a building that shot straight up.

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Al Wakrah Stadium -

Zaha Hadid's design for the Al Wakrah Stadium in Qatar is stunning, but some also likened the organic shape to a vagina. Hadid, though a leader of organic architecture, herself said that was ridiculous, but maybe it's all in the eye of the beholder!

Sources: (Designcurial) (Owlcation) (Design Boom)

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Frank Lloyd Wright -

Wright is quoted as saying that “in an organic architecture, that is to say an architecture based upon organic ideals, bad design would be unthinkable.”

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La Sagrada Família -

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La Sagrada Família -

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Fallingwater -

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Fallingwater -

Now, of course, the cantilevered concrete forms, anchored by natural rock, are regarded as a marvel of architecture, giving residents the opportunity to live in harmony with nature.

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Fallingwater -

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Taliesin West -

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Taliesin West -

This building remains another strong example of how Wright focused on joining interior spaces with exterior ones, with many indoor features reaching outside.

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Taliesin West -

The glorious time capsule of a site is reportedly still used as a living, working, and educational setting, Owlcation reports.

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Hanna House -

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London Aquatics Centre -

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London Aquatics Centre -

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Quetzalcoatl Nest -

Mexican architect Javier Senosiain designed the Nido de Quetzalcóatl ("Quetzalcoatl Nest") in Naucalpan, Mexico, as an extension of his passion for organic architecture.

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Quetzalcoatl Nest -

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Hoshino Stone Church -

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Hoshino Stone Church -

Local stone was used to build the foundation, and an emphasis on natural light, vegetation, and a few custom wooden fixtures make the space feel ancient and warm, like a true natural sanctuary.

Shutterstock

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Lotus Temple -

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Lotus Temple -

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Learning Hub at Nanyang Technological University -

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Learning Hub at Nanyang Technological University -

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Learning Hub at Nanyang Technological University -

That's especially true because it had to be very functional for its student. It consists of 56 tutorial rooms inside interlinked towers that surround an atrium.

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Kunsthaus Graz -

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Kunsthaus Graz -

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The Gherkin -

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The Gherkin -

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Qatar National Convention Centre -

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Qatar National Convention Centre -

The tree motif continues on the inside and is reportedly also a reference to the Sidrat al-Muntaha, a mythical tree that is holy in Islam.

Shutterstock

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Fondation Jérôme Seydoux-Pathé -

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Fondation Jérôme Seydoux-Pathé -

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Al Wakrah Stadium -

Sources: (Designcurial) (Owlcation) (Design Boom)

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Organic architecture: closing the gap between man and nature

These exquisite buildings are changing our way of life on the planet

15/02/25 | StarsInsider

LIFESTYLE Buildings

We've come a long way from the cave as creatures who love the comfort of shelter. But as our technological advances propel us to a world where nature is continuously left behind, we are starting to neglect so much of the naturally-occurring beauty around us, which can negatively impact the way we treat the environment and the way we relate to it.

That's why the concept of organic architecture is taking precedence among some of the world's leading designers of today. The term was coined by Frank Lloyd Wright, and is often used to describe buildings whose shape or function mimics nature. But it's more than that—organic architecture respects the properties of the surrounding natural materials while finding a harmonious way of incorporating function into the building site. It seeks to establish a way of living, as opposed to just making a pretty building.

Wright started incorporating the organic philosophy into his own architecture in the early 1900s and did with it what he could at the time, which you'll soon see in this gallery. But you'll also see how far more modern architects have been able to take it.

Intrigued? Then click through to take a took.