Indoor gardens are my latest recommendation for design teams who are committed to supporting occupant well-being, while differentiating their project with a memorable sense of place. The integration of real natural elements into our settings has long been linked to health-promoting benefits including decreased levels of depression and anxiety, increased attentional capacity, better recovery from job stress and increased psychological well-being.•
I feel lucky to have grown up in Los Angeles during the 1970s, where a close connection to nature in and around the home was part of the lifestyle. However, people today are increasingly living in environments where they have insufficient exposure to nature.
Knowing this, I worked with a multifamily client to envision a residential model that brings us in direct contact with living nature while making good use of the space below a staircase. Complete with river rocks, potted plants, decorative lights and grow lights, an indoor micro garden can take on many forms and offers lots of room for personalizing.
This portion of the unit features vintage Barcelona chairs, multiple draceana and philodendron plants, Mexican river rocks, LED spot lighting, full spectrum grow lights, and an original landscape painting by Shannon Godby, all of which were handpicked by the resident.
At the heart of it all, designing for wellness involves biophilia, or an interpersonal relationship with living plants. Biophilic design is the art of how those relationships can be fostered through the built environment.