Green walls: blurring the line between horticulture and art
Blurring the line between horticulture and art, landscape and architecture, the Square Bar at the new Hotel Novotel Auckland Airport has quite literally, taken on a life of its own.
Sitting at the centre of this bar is a stunning array of native New Zealand flora in the form of a two story ‘green’ wall, created by Natural Habitats.
With a track record of successful green wall projects (including the Stephen Marr Wall inside Takapuna’s Department Store and Britomart East wall) Natural Habitats director Graham Cleary believes that this wall, which was installed earlier this month, ‘could be our best yet.’ Not only visually interesting and environmentally beneficial, the wall was designed to add a sense of balance and harmony that is difficult to achieve by other means.
The emphasis on indigenous foliage, a composition of ferns and pan pacific creepers, complements the new hotels distinctive New Zealand style. Designed by Warren & Mahoney, the hotel incorporates sustainable Southland Beech woodwork, black sand inspired marble and its 263 rooms combine New Zealand’s distinctive cultural heritage with modern architecture.
The benefits of real, living plants in places where you don’t expect to see them don’t end at the aesthetics. The 60m2 of vertical vegetation will improve the bar’s indoor air quality by increasing humidity levels and removing air pollutants, not to mention inspire conversation.
As if we needed another reason to go to the bar anyway…
Reproduced with permission. With thanks to Natural Habitats and Design Folio magazine.
