Gloriosa superba.

The glory vine.

Wait and watch as this native plant from the Western Ghats region finds more and more importance in human technology, medicinal and otherwise.

The green and light construction running commentary

Light Structures: Bamboo One

How can someone consult on sustainable building, building light on the land, and the best renewable materials for construction based merely on a theoretical approach?

Although already trained in theories of green building, it was important for us to work on developing these ideas from a practical standpoint. So we did the next thing we could, we built it.

We had to set up a nursery and production space for our vertical garden, native plant production, and mushroom research facility. Attached to this we would need space for our staff to stay with the basic amenities.




We focused on locally available and renewable materials, so wood and bamboo became the building blocks of our first space. At first we started small, working with bamboo and wood frames to see how they would last. This was our staff room.

After we moved our nursery to another, larger location, we were inspired by the local topography and built our wood and bamboo house to honor and mirror the magnificent hills surrounding us.

Bamboo Two

We were smack in the middle of a forty acre property, and with these forest gods looking down on us, we hoped for support from them. Here we built a three room house, based loosely on fibonacci numbers and spirals. Storage, staff room, and ‘the big room’.



























The giant tree was wishful thinking.

The houses would be connected at the floor and roof level, but would be separated by their height above ground(2,3,5 feet respectively) and their internal cubic dimensions.



Due to the openness of the land, we would get breezes through the house, but if we put the walls up, we would only get a breeze below and around the house. So we added a passive venting system into the roof. Based on predominant wind patterns, the vents were made facing north or east, so monsoon winds wouldn’t blow water straight into the vents.

Alternatively, this design also works well for summer, when a slight breeze outside would begin to suck hot air out of the rooms due to the venting structure.

Green clad tree house
 

After having done some interesting work with metal for a project that merged cryptoforestry, art, and landcape architecture, we figured we would be able to work on a metal frame structure due to the longevity of metal structures. We would obviously still work with wood and bamboo, but merge this wood and bamboo onto a metal structure.

We moved again, and this was our opportunity to work on such a structure. One of our old clients had offered us a space on their property for a while, so we brought our entire nursery and green wall production into space. Now we had the design ideas, and the space we were allotted was in the back, away from the house.

This time, we would build a metal structure into the teak trees surrounding us.


The concept, evolving further in 3d space, would at its core, be modelled on a star tetrahedron, but changes would be made to suit the trees we would move into.

 Elevation was on our side so we could build a base piece and then slide it into the trees on a makeshift ramp.

But there was much more to go.








The gopro cameras were set for timelapse footage, but even the stills reveal the work as it continued.

We are yet to set up our accommodation with the internals being made of wood, and the external metal structure cladded with our vertical garden panels, creating green roofs and green walls for the entire structure

This pushes a strange tree/structure merging. Mirrors could help the camouflage, but what would be really cool would be if we could use retroactive projection to completely ‘dissapear’ the building temporarily (or permanently if that be the need!).

Container/ Modular home unit

Toward building green microstructures with a minimal footprint, we worked on concepts using containers

We designed for different modes of work and play, and looked at different configurations that could be useful.

More recently, we have worked on real world integration and use in rapid deployment of such concepts, and found a kitchen/bathroom is the minimal unit.

A 20ft container could work for this. So one was designed for an Oikos sample.

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Additionally space for green walls and green roofs has been allotted, which could be used for gardening, farming, ornamental purposes or wastewater cleansing.

The Smiley

PROBLEM:
Our discussions with the The Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (MCGM) created interest in our work on vertical greening and we were asked to use this approach on a public wall.

A suggestion for the site was a long wall at a busy traffic intersection, a blank wall, one which many motorists going to work in mumbai see on their way to work in south Mumbai.






The regular flow of traffic creates smog and dust, and is not an easy space for growing certain species of plants. Besides this, the selected space directly faces the sea. In the pre-monsoon months, salinity increases, and plants that are not adapted to dealing with sea facing conditions sustain heavy damage.

SOLUTION:
Our plant list for this vertical garden consisted of plants that not only were salt tolerant, but that could handle the movement of traffic around them. Additionally, we used plants that are known air filtration plants, especially suited to removal of benzene, carbon monoxide and formaldehyde, the most common pollutants that are found where there is regular movement of cars.




The design we came up with was a personal touch, and idea to create a point of interest for motorists. As is, many of the people driving past this intersection drive through hours of traffic to get to the traffic signal. The designing of a 'smiley' was to give them a bit of happy before they got to their workplace.






Client: Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (MCGM)
Location: Lovegrove Complex, Worli, Mumbai, India
Date: 2010
Link: www.mcgm.gov.in

Jungle Alley

PROBLEM:
The Sony Music office was moving to a new building on a main arterial road in Mumbai. Visual screening would be necessary for the three office floors looking onto the street, and plants would be needed to reduce sound levels from the road as well.

The entrance to the building, in a shaded space, would have to be a corridor of green, screening sound, but would have to provide some seats and lighting as well.

SOLUTION:

For the office levels we selected sturdy plants that could handle the wind shear on the front of the building, while making sure that atleast one floor had plants that would be edible (for humans) and other plants to attract songbirds what with our clients being in the music business.



The entrance was designed and planted with plants that could take full advantage of the limited space and work with the trellis to make a 'green tunnel'.

This effectively buffers noise from the street, as well as creates a space that would be pleasing to people using the outdoor seating.

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Client: Sony Music Entertainment Pvt. Ltd
Location: Khar, Mumbai, India
Date: 2010
Link: www.facebook.com/SonyMusicIndia

Century Bhavan

PROBLEM:
For construction of this tower in a business district of Mumbai, our clients were one of the largest corporate houses in the country. Value addition to green building (IGBC) ratings as well as landscape works that reflected their commitment to sustainability were a must.

The site itself, a high rise tower close to the sea, presented several obstacles. High wind velocity and salinity during the monsoon months, exposed surfaces, and limited allowance for weight loading were a few of these. The fact that all landscapes would have to be low maintenance and water savings would have to be considered presented their own problems.

SOLUTION:
For our designs, we shortlisted several plant species that were native, salt and drought tolerant, and yet could really create a lot of visual interest.

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Tough screening trees and shrubs were used to protect more wind-sensitive plants.

We also consulted on the design for vertical gardens for the entire compound.

By designing all the spaces on a square foot by square foot basis, we were able to create a plan that included a tree canopy and looked like a forest, but that minimized the weight load on the building.



Additionally our planting plan included edible plants and those that would attract birds and butterflies, creating what is called a 'stepping stone' or habitat island' in landscape ecology.

Few other buildings in the area present such an approach, and this flagship building will one of those that can truly contribute to bringing nature back to the city. Just counting days till we see this construction complete!

Client: Century International/BK Birla Group
Location: Prabhadevi, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Date: 2012
Link: www.centurytextind.com

Lemon Grass

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PROBLEM:
For this popular restaurant's outdoor area, our clients wished for a design that screened out the streets below and added visual interest to their space. We had to consider other conditions as well, such as having planters that could be moveable and plants that could handle the exposed terrace conditions, but would not get much light after the awnings and umbrellas came up.

SOLUTION:
After discussion with the chefs and our own interest in urban agriculture/farm-to-table restaurants, we created a plant list that comprised of several medicinal and edible plants which could also handle the environmental conditions of the site. Imagine having fresh produce plucked from around you and on your plate in a minute!

Hospitality dictated the layout, and we created screens with plants for evening fragrance and with visual interest for the day. Besides this, we installed drip irrigation systems and even a misting system that is clipped to the trees. The staff love the cool mist as much as the restaurant's patrons!

Client: Lemon Grass Restaurant
Location: Vashi, Navi Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Date: 2012
Link: www.website.com

Bunk Beds & Harps

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PROBLEM:
I was in Berlin to attend a workshop on sustainable city development and a friend of mine told me she wanted to transform her small balcony into a more tranquil serene garden. Was there a way we could do this without breaking the bank?

SOLUTION:
Being resourceful and saving money are a key part of what we do at Oikos so we looked for materials close to hand and found an old bunk bed we could use for timber. After measuring the site, we sketched some designs and worked out which pieces could be used for what purposes, we then bought a few basic materials like plastic, and screws and started the construction. After two days of sawing and screwing we had put together all the planters for the balcony. Specific plants were added to suite the weather and environment at this location and solar lamps were added to the planters to give ambient lighting in the evenings. We added our own very special touch of course; A harp was created with the remaining pieces of the bed and metal strings were added for climbers to grow up. It could also be used for plucking to, combining music and nature!

Client: Ms. Fritzi Titzman
Location: Berlin, Germany
Date: 2010

Metal Madness

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PROBLEM:
For this bollywood star's home, our client wanted a landscape that was visually interesting and also wanted a kitchen garden. The windows of the entire three storey home face the compound walls, and there were several exposed pipes, tanks and pumps that were part of the utilities that could not be moved and took up a lot of space. The wall could not be used for a vertical garden as it was not load bearing. Additionally, there was limited light, due to the walls, buildings and trees around.

SOLUTION:
We proposed a design that would be a sort of limted edition art piece, based on cryptofrestry and post industrialism. Due to the limited space available, we planned to take up the wall to do this piece, and the 'broken factory' would house plants in front of the wall. Using scrap from a ship-breaking yard, we created a complex structure of pipes and pieces that could hold plants. The entire structure was created in such a way that it could support its own weight, and the weight of several people, without putting any load on the wall.

Benches and swivelling trays were created to allow for people to use, and the entire setup was integrated with drip irrigation and misting systems. It was also designed so lighting could be integrated into it, as ease of use was a big concern.





The entire system was planted with a mix of plants, native, edible and ornamental. A robot head was the final touch, industry sees itself in disrepair!

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Client: Rajeev Khandelwal
Location: Goregaon, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Date: 2012