Biomorphic Biosphere

Glen Small (circa 1977)

Biomorphic: having the form of a living organism

Biosphere: the ecosystem comprising the entire earth and the living organismsthat inhabit it.

Conceived in 1977, the Biomorphic Biosphere is an early ecological challenge to the modern city.  The design is based on the premise that an alternative to humanities brutal impact on ecology must be one that respects ecological processes and form. The structural system is designed as a lightweight tensile structure that has a minimal footprint on the landscape and creates habitat space above the ground plane.

In my opinion, Glen Small is ahead of his time in his thought process, and may just offer a glimpse into our eventual future. Similar to Buckminster Fuller, Glenn Small sees a future where architecture must align with the physical limitations of the Planet in order to sustain humanity far into the future.

My project is inspired very much by this concept of an architecture that supports human life at the same time that it respects the whole of ecology.