Biophilia

Yesterday was January 13th and marks 29 years since my dad passed away. I always go for a walk in the hills on this date and yesterday I decided to walk at Swanston. I was keen to see the holiday homes that have been established there, to walk up the hill at the golf course and take in some cold, fresh winter air. My dad was a golfer and a lover of the hills. He played Ladhope golf course at Galashiels (on a hill) and latterly at The Braids (on a hill). Hailing from Peebles and living in and around the Borders most of his life, he used to take me hill walking whenever he could. He just liked the outdoor life - and so do I.

Usually something happens to me on the 13th of January that is significant. Maybe I look for something? but whatever the truth, yesterday I came across this article on a Biophilic House. It made me realise this is what I am striving for in my own home. I am a scientist therefore I like to have a name and an explanation for everything! This article from the Telegraph magazine summed it all up. Here was a couple building a strange looking house in Maryland. I'm not sure I like the external appearance but I wholly empathise with the concept of the build. It really explains what I have been doing this last couple of years without realising it. Click on the picture and increase the size to read the text.




My own home doesn't quite match all of the principals. Getting morning light in January is dam near impossible I think. Hence I have one of these light boxes. I'm not sure it works but if nothing else the light is very useful when I need to thread a needle and do a little sewing.

So what exactly is Biophilia?
Biophilic design injects real or simulated natural components into living and working spaces to promote emotional and physical wellness. Morning sun exposure, water features, natural vistas through window-walls, sky-ceilings, and greenhouse rooms where plants dominate and restore air quality while providing an indoor forest refuge are some common applications of this recent design concept.
Biophilic design is based more in a emotional or Zen-like perspective than save-natural-resources Green building. It has links with the Gaia Hypothesis that argues that Earth’s ecosystems form a single unit of which the human species is one element

Try this exercise; thumb through a magazine or newspaper and look for plants. Leaves, flowers, tree trunks, and roots are incorporated into countless corporate logos, adorn sexy models, and frame products (Midlothian Council uses an Oak leaf).  What we see in ordinary advertisements is an intuitive understanding for the human connection to nature. Corporations have spent many resources to discover that consumers want to wash their hair with herbs, drive in trucks made of rock, and chew gum that taste like ice. In other words, connecting products to nature equals sales.

In 1984, Harvard biologist Dr. Ed Wilson named this natural human desire, biophilia, "the love of nature." It is a feeling that dates back millions of years, to the age when the human brain evolved to attract us to elements and places that will most guarantee survival and reproductive success. Even though people may be happy in an urban high-rise, we are still most at peace when walking in a park, looking at the ocean, or hiking in the woods.

So if you find that January gets you down - go climb some easy hills or take a walk in the park. Come and visit my house if you like - I have an open door when I am in. Love to have visitors at any time.

Susan.