A QUIET PLACE THAT BREATHES
- ARTISTIC HUB MAGAZINE
- May 3
- 2 min read
Updated: May 13
Reconnecting With Nature Through Biophilic Design
Some spaces don’t need to speak for us to hear them. You walk in, and something within you softens. Breathing slows. The gaze lingers. You return to yourself. These are not loud, showy rooms. They whisper. In the texture of wood, in the rhythm of sunlight filtering through overhead openings, in the quiet presence of plants that aren’t there for show but for companionship. These are spaces shaped by nature, and for people. This is the essence of biophilic design.
Unlike trends that come and go, biophilia is a need we’re born with. Architects and designers who understand it don’t mimic nature. They invite it in. This isn’t about placing a plant in the corner. It’s about creating a deeper, instinctive connection to what heals, restores, and inspires us.
The pandemic years brought much uncertainty, but also a revelation: space isn’t just a backdrop. It becomes a sanctuary, a reflection of our emotional state, a partner in daily life. Confined within our homes, many of us noticed - perhaps for the first time - how a room can stifle or soothe, how light can jar or embrace, how a wall can feel like a boundary or a gentle frame. Biophilic principles began quietly entering our lives and stayed. We didn’t want to let them go.
Today, they’re everywhere. In Lisbon, the Second Home coworking space feels like it grew out of a greenhouse. Over a thousand plants weave through the building, shaping not just the air but the atmosphere. In Milan, Bosco Verticale, the famed vertical forest, turns two residential towers into living ecosystems, their facades cloaked in greenery. In Singapore, at Jewel Changi Airport, travelers don’t simply wait for flights. They wander through jungle paths and beneath the world’s tallest indoor waterfall. And in Amsterdam, Bar Botanique blurs the line between café and conservatory, turning a casual drink into a lush, sensory escape.
But more than places, biophilic design lives through the people who create it. Vietnamese architect Vo Trong Nghia doesn’t just build. He plants, sculpts, and listens. His structures feel grown, not constructed. Every tree in his projects matters. Every patch of shade speaks. Meanwhile, Italian architect Stefano Boeri continues to expand his vision of vertical forests around the world, proving that greener cities are not a fantasy but a future within reach.
It’s not just poetry. It’s science. According to Harvard Health Publishing, time spent in nature-inspired spaces lowers cortisol levels, boosts focus, and even accelerates healing. Offices designed with natural materials and light report increased productivity and fewer sick days. But the true value can’t be measured in percentages. It’s felt in that quiet, unmistakable sense of I belong here.
Maybe this is the new face of luxury. Not sparkle. Not spectacle. But space with soul. Not trying to impress, just longing to connect. With the body. With the mind. With nature.
That’s why biophilic design isn’t a passing trend. It’s a return to something we’ve always loved. Greenery, light, silence, the touch of wood, the whisper of leaves. It’s the art of living, translated into space. And when that space begins to breathe, so do we. Deeper. Slower. More fully ourselves.
