Prismatic Green Faces

An idea that has aesthetic merit is the integration of faces along a facade, creating a prismatic representation on the surface through edging or fractal geometry on the building cladding. Building on the inherent difficulties of maintenance for steep and vertical applications, these become more interesting the more integrated in the structure they become.

In it's simplest form, a monolithic . Via Clean Air through Green Roofs this 19,000 m2 roof from Malmo, Sweden is 'broken' by these faces - hopefully to add some interest from the massive size and flat nature of the roof.


:: image via Clean Air through Green Roofs

More dramatic examples (in representation at least) offer a much more building-integrated approach. Inhabitat brings us Magic Mountains: "...meant to resemble the natural skyline of Chongqing, except that they are composed of glass and steel. The peaks will hold the high density centers, while the lower areas will look more like traditional Chinese neighborhoods. The valleys will be open green spaces where the “living machine” – a wastewater treatment and renewable energy generation system – will be housed."






:: images via Inhabitat

A final version via Designboom (and further 'out there') is the proposal for the taipei pop music center by Italian firm mario bellini architects: "...a single body wrapped in a plastic 'mantle plant' . the hill like structure is connected through glass passage ways, allowing guests numerous views of the landscape and standing out as an iconic landmark for the city."




:: images via Designboom