--- title: The Future of Living Architecture? — AGRITECTURE description: Simon Hjermind Jensen’s ‘biotope’ installation is an experiment to understand how a microcosm of plants and insects can survive when sited at an exposed and harsh urban location. image: https://www.agritecture.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/copenhagen%20greenhouse%20design-1.jpg --- Search - There are no suggestions because the search field is empty. Nov 8, 2018 # The Future of Living Architecture? ![copenhagen greenhouse design.jpg](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59765fd317bffcafaf5ff75c/1541690805380-OUBPP26EZADTGD8OIR65/copenhagen%20greenhouse%20design.jpg) [CONTENT SOURCED FROM DESIGNBOOM](https://www.designboom.com/architecture/simon-hjermind-jensen-copenhagen-biotope-shjworks-10-21-2018/) **In a distant future, will there be living biological structures with architectural and inhabitable qualities? Ones where our climate and environment can gain from our living conditions?**  Designer **Simon Hjermind Jensen** of [**SHJworks**](https://www.designboom.com/tag/shjworks/) hopes so, and offers a vision of this destiny through his project, ‘biotope’. Located in copenhagen, the project encompasses two words: bios — meaning ‘life’ in greek, and topos meaning ‘place’. The resulting installation is an experiment to understand how a microcosm of plants and insects can survive when sited at an exposed and harsh urban location. ![](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59765fd317bffcafaf5ff75c/1541691214883-2WG9WH8LSP6GVTGSWMOJ/image-asset.jpeg) ** **The 7 meter long, 3 meter tall ‘biotope’ comprises a bowl of concrete, a shell of polycarbonate, soil, plants, insects, bees, and a beehive made of plywood.  [**SHJworks**](http://shjworks.dk/) has set the project on a small triangular green space in the middle of an intersection in copenhagen. A train station is nearby, and a three lane road is adjacent — not necessarily an ideal place for floral and fauna habitation, but that’s the idea. Will future dwellings and cities support the integration of plants and biological microcosms, and would they thrive? ![copenhagen greenhouse design 8.jpg](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59765fd317bffcafaf5ff75c/1541691231378-FMQ421T3JXUURQ67O247/copenhagen%20greenhouse%20design%208.jpg) The sculptural and organic shell of ‘biotope’ mimics the silhouette shape of a primitive organism or bacteria, exploring the idea of human’s relationship to such a form.* * *“Can feelings of sympathy towards objects or structures establish a stronger and more caring relationship to the place in which we live and inhabit?,”* Jensen asks. The shell is made of transparent 4 millimeter thick polycarbonate, which acts as membrane in protecting plants inside from the harsh external conditions. ![copenhagen greenhouse design 4.jpg](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59765fd317bffcafaf5ff75c/1541691199372-3FZYIEAM3YV676YE8LI8/copenhagen%20greenhouse%20design%204.jpg) Surrounding it, the edge of the bowl functions as a bench, and collects rainwater that flows into a basin of soil through small holes in the shell. In turn, the plastic shell and the concrete bowl become a self-watering greenhouse. Sixty different seeds have been sown into the soil, which will continue to attract insects as they mature. A beehive is attached on the inside of the shell, allowing bees to have direct access to both the outside and the inside of the ‘biotope’. ![copenhagen greenhouse design 11.jpg](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59765fd317bffcafaf5ff75c/1541691331472-VF39VSF0LHU5W49F1A31/copenhagen%20greenhouse%20design%2011.jpg) The temporary project — sited for a three year period — will receive no maintenance or interference. How the plants and insects — both inside and out — will evolve or thrive is an experiment left to experience over time. ![copenhagen greenhouse design 14.jpg](https://www.agritecture.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/copenhagen%20greenhouse%20design%2014-1.jpg) ![copenhagen greenhouse design 14.jpg](https://www.agritecture.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/copenhagen%20greenhouse%20design%2014.jpg) ![copenhagen greenhouse design 15.jpg](https://www.agritecture.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/copenhagen%20greenhouse%20design%2015.jpg) ![copenhagen greenhouse design 15.jpg](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59765fd317bffcafaf5ff75c/1541691423164-2GHQXJLAIGCYTQBY3SSE/copenhagen%20greenhouse%20design%2015.jpg) ![copenhagen greenhouse design 16.jpg](https://www.agritecture.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/copenhagen%20greenhouse%20design%2016.jpg) ![copenhagen greenhouse design 16.jpg](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59765fd317bffcafaf5ff75c/1541691424027-VWFI71ZAXV6X3782HT0G/copenhagen%20greenhouse%20design%2016.jpg) ![copenhagen greenhouse design 17.jpg](https://www.agritecture.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/copenhagen%20greenhouse%20design%2017.jpg) ![copenhagen greenhouse design 17.jpg](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59765fd317bffcafaf5ff75c/1541691424193-KGSCZ1NV8414EZOXOM4R/copenhagen%20greenhouse%20design%2017.jpg) ![copenhagen greenhouse design 14.jpg](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59765fd317bffcafaf5ff75c/1541691423249-5FD3W0OF643021JXYCGD/copenhagen%20greenhouse%20design%2014.jpg) ![copenhagen greenhouse design 15.jpg](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59765fd317bffcafaf5ff75c/1541691423164-2GHQXJLAIGCYTQBY3SSE/copenhagen%20greenhouse%20design%2015.jpg) ![copenhagen greenhouse design 16.jpg](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59765fd317bffcafaf5ff75c/1541691424027-VWFI71ZAXV6X3782HT0G/copenhagen%20greenhouse%20design%2016.jpg) ![copenhagen greenhouse design 17.jpg](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/59765fd317bffcafaf5ff75c/1541691424193-KGSCZ1NV8414EZOXOM4R/copenhagen%20greenhouse%20design%2017.jpg) [PREVIOUS The Many Faces of Climate Change ](https://www.agritecture.com/blog/2018/11/6/the-many-faces-of-climate-change) [NEXT Woman Led Hydroponic Farm in Detroit Looks to Create Food Security ](https://www.agritecture.com/blog/2018/11/12/how-a-hydroponic-farm-in-detroit-looks-to-solve-food-insecurities) ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@type" : "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement" : [ { "@type" : "ListItem", "item" : "https://www.agritecture.com/blog", "name" : "Urban Agriculture Blog Feed", "position" : 1 }, { "@type" : "ListItem", "item" : "https://www.agritecture.com/blog/2018/11/8/the-future-of-living-architecture", "name" : "The Future of Living Architecture? — AGRITECTURE", "position" : 2 } ] } ``` ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Admin", "url" : "https://www.agritecture.com/blog/author/admin" }, "dateModified" : "2023-09-11T15:19:06.702Z", "datePublished" : "2018-11-08T05:00:00.000Z", "headline" : "The Future of Living Architecture? — AGRITECTURE", "image" : [ "https://www.agritecture.com/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/copenhagen%20greenhouse%20design-1.jpg" ], "mainEntityOfPage" : { "@id" : "https://www.agritecture.com/blog/2018/11/8/the-future-of-living-architecture", "@type" : "WebPage" }, "publisher" : { "@type" : "Organization", "logo" : { "@type" : "ImageObject", "url" : "https://www.agritecture.com/hubfs/Agritecture%20logo%20r5%20stacked-2.jpg" }, "name" : "Agritecture LLC" } } ``` ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@id" : "https://www.agritecture.com/#organization", "@type" : "Organization", "address" : { "@type" : "PostalAddress", "addressCountry" : "US", "addressLocality" : "New York", "addressRegion" : "NY", "postalCode" : "10001", "streetAddress" : "225 West 35th Street, 5th Floor" }, "areaServed" : { "@type" : "Place", "name" : "Worldwide" }, "award" : [ "Advised $1Bn+ in agrifood projects", "350+ projects delivered across 45+ countries" ], "contactPoint" : [ { "@type" : "ContactPoint", "availableLanguage" : [ "English", "Spanish" ], "contactType" : "consulting inquiries", "email" : "info@agritecture.com", "telephone" : "+1-914-430-0718", "url" : "https://www.agritecture.com/consulting-request" } ], "description" : "Agritecture is a global advisory and technology firm accelerating climate-smart agriculture. 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