Natures Blueprints

Referring back to Edward Burtynsky and Manufactured Landscapes he briefly mentions biomimicry. In the discussion of sustainability, technology and building methods, this is something I was drawn to in my undergraduate experience and would like to elaborate on, specifically biomimicry, not just biophilic design - they do differ.

Biomimicry is defined as a design or production of structures, materials, and systems that are inspired by biological entities and processes. Due to the ability of various species to adapt to surroundings and evolve, nature can be seen as a force of progression, sustainability, and functionality. Nature can provide an unused source of innovation that could support the longevity of humanity. All aspects of life – cells, organisms and their ecosystems – are continually sensing and responding to each other. This concept can relate to how buildings, along with other designed elements and objects, the environment and people respond to one another. Biologist Janine Benyus states, “We need to access the natural design blueprints, ecosystem strategies, chemical blueprints and even the purpose that nature has blueprints for. What’s new about biomimicry is we are not harvesting or domesticating species; instead we are evaluating them for what they can learn from them.”

To evaluate the natural world, a look at the approaches of biomimicry can be discussed. There are typically two categories: defining human needs or design problems and looking to the ways other organisms or ecosystems solve this and identifying a characteristic, behavior, or function in an organism or ecosystem and translating that into human designs. Within these approaches there are three levels: the organism level, behavior level, and ecosystem level. Diving deeper into the levels, dimensions of biomimicry exist. A design can be listed as biomimicry through how it looks (form), what it is made of (material), how it is made (construction), how it works (process), and its capabilities (function).

I find it fascinating to consider an approach that utilizes nature and the environment that we are trying to sustain, to sustain itself. Nature has already solved many of the problems we as humans face, so why not learn from these naturally effective methods?

Aerodynamics related to birds and movement

Synthetic materials for self healing

Responsive facades similar to plants protection

The above three images demonstrate how designers modeled HVAC systems after insect species in extreme climates; ie. termite mounds