biomimicry architecture

Introduction:
The intricate relationship between architecture and the natural environment has
been a subject of growing importance in the field of design and construction. With
increasing concerns about climate change, sustainability, and ecological balance,
architects are turning to nature itself for inspiration and guidance, In this study,
we explore various architectural examples inspired by nature, their design
principles, and the environmental benefits they offer.
Examples of creature that is compatible with the environment:
-Polar Bear (Ursus maritimus): These bears have adapted to the harsh Arctic
environment, with features like thick fur and layers of blubber
to keep warm. Their large paws and powerful limbs help them
navigate through ice and snow.
-Chameleon: Known for their ability
to change color to match their
surroundings, chameleons are
masters of camouflage, allowing
them to blend seamlessly into their environment.
-Leafcutter Ants: These ants are excellent examples of
efficient herbivores. They cultivate and consume fungus by

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cutting and processing fresh leaves, and they have evolved to perform this
complex task in a highly organized and sustainable manner.
-Octopus: Octopuses exhibit remarkable camouflage abilities
and can mimic the texture and color of their surroundings,
making them nearly invisible to predators or prey.
-The desert rose: The desert rose camouflages
with its environment by having a pale stem
and branches that blend with the desert
landscape. It stores water in its swollen parts,
reduces water loss with small or absent leaves,
and attracts specific pollinators with its
colorful flowers, all of which help it survive in arid conditions while staying
inconspicuous.
-Water Lily (Nymphaea): These aquatic plants have adapted
to life in freshwater environments, with large, floating
leaves that maximize photosynthesis and beautiful flowers
that attract pollinators.
biomimicry architecture:
1-The Burj Al Arab Hotel
The Burj Al Arab Hotel in Dubai, United Arab
Emirates, is renowned for its luxurious design,
which resembles the shape of ocean waves. The
inspiration for this unique design is drawn from its
stunning seaside location. The hotel's distinctive
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architectural structure and design have made it an iconic landmark in Dubai,
known for its opulence and its resemblance to the beauty of the sea.
Architecture Analysis:
Site:
Building Name: Burj-Al-Arab Hotel.
Other/Former Names: Arab Sail.
Chief Architect: Tom Wright of Atkins.
Chief Contractor: WS Atkins Partners
Overseas.
Construction Contractor: Murray & Roberts.
Construction: 1993 - 1999.
Floors: 60.
Floor Area: 111,500 m2 (1,200,000 sq ft)
Field of view:
The orientation of the building minimizes
the heat gain during the summer seasons.
The south elevation has the most exposed
surface area. As a result, it has the
maximum capacity for heat absorption.

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For people, there is access to the hotel through the roof via a helicopter. At the
main entrance there is a grand stairway, an escalator and elevators.
For air, the revolving door located at the main entrance acts as a locking
mechanism to prevent a phenomenon known as the stack effect, which occurs
when the hot air rises and the cool air falls in a tall building.
Climate:
Wind Effects Dubai’s
• Geographic location subjects the hotel to severe
weather conditions including strong winds and
occasional violent thunderstorms.
• Due to the structure’s proximity to its adjacent hotel
resort, wind tunnel testing was considered to
ensure a safe design.
• wind speed of 45 meters per second, under the recommendations of Dubai
Municipality, was adopted
for the design.
Facades: The facade is
covered with two layers of
canvas, separated 60 cm from
each other, in order to isolate
the excessive heat and
sunlight.
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The canvas are another reference to the vessels sailing the emirate.
Material:

Spaces
The hotel is accessed over a footbridge that
goes into the hall, located between the walls of
an artificial tank. In the middle of this space,
over 180 meters high, a source emits geysers of
30 meters in height every half hour. Precious
marble, walls lined with 22 carat gold and
precious silks contribute to environmental
enrichment.
The Burj al-Arab has no single rooms, but
features 202 double suites. The smallest of these suites occupies an area of
169 square meters, while the largest covers an area of 780 square meters.

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All suites are equipped with the latest technology, computers and Internet
access. Inside the suites, the hotel distinguishes between 142 luxury rooms,
18 panoramic suites, 4 club suites, 28 double suites, six suites of three
beds, two presidential and two royal suites.
2-Falling Water (Frank Lloyd Wright)
Fallingwater, designed by Frank Lloyd
Wright, achieved camouflage with its
environment through a unique architectural
concept. It was built over a waterfall in a
forested area. Wright's design integrated the
building with the natural surroundings,
using local materials and a horizontal design to mimic the rock ledges and
horizontal lines found in nature. The use of large cantilevered balconies and
terraces allowed the house to blend seamlessly with the waterfall, and extensive
glass walls brought the outdoors inside. As a result, Fallingwater became a
remarkable example of organic architecture, where the building harmonized with
its environment, essentially becoming a part of the landscape.
LAND AREA:
Fallingwater is owned and operated by the
Conservancy and open to the public to
tour as a museum. Fallingwater is
surrounded by 5,100 acres of natural land,
a stream flows at 1,298 ft above sea level

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and trails known as the Bear Run Nature Reserve.

➤ The main house uses 9,300 square feet.

➤ The guest house totals 4,990 square feet.

➤ Construction time: 1936-1937

Located in the about 70 miles southeast of
Pittsburgh city.

Site Plan

Elev - Sec

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The circulation through the house
consists of dark, narrow
passageways, intended this way so
that people experience a feeling of
compression when compared to
that of expansion the closer they
get to the outdoors. The ceilings
of the rooms are low, reaching only up to 6'4" in some places, in order to
direct the eye horizontally to look outside. The beauty of these spaces is
found in their extensions towards nature, done with long cantilevered
terraces. Shooting out at a series of right angles, the terraces add an
element of sculpture to the houses aside from their function.
Frank Lloyd Wright's Fallingwater lets in the light with low-iron glass.
Wright wanted the home's windows to be as clear as possible to eliminate
barriers between the interiors and the forest outside.
Fallingwater's many balconies and cantilevers jut into the adjacent
woodland.
The exterior of Fallingwater enforces a
strong horizontal pattern with the bricks
and long terraces. The windows on the
facade have also have a special condition

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where they open up at the corners,
breaking the box of the house and opening
it to the vast outdoors.
Staircase leading to the waterfall adds as an
element of interest and is a fascinating
feature of the house.
Interiors are simple though vibrant, because of use of triadic color scheme
for furnishings and monochromatic scheme of brown for walls, ceiling and
floors.
3-The National Museum of Qatar
The National Museum of Qatar is often
cited as an excellent example of
biomimicry in architecture due to its
design that draws inspiration from the
desert rose, a naturally occurring
crystalline formation found in arid
regions, including Qatar. Here's how the museum's design can be considered a
form of biomimicry:
-Resemblance to Desert Rose: The National Museum of Qatar's structure is
designed to closely resemble the desert rose, a unique crystal formation formed in
arid desert environments. These natural formations are created when mineral-rich
water evaporates, and the minerals crystallize into intricate, petal-like shapes. The

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museum's architecture mimics the
appearance of these desert roses with its
interlocking disks or disks-in-motion design.
-Cultural Significance: The desert rose holds
cultural and geological significance in Qatar
and other desert regions. By emulating the
form of the desert rose, the museum not
only pays homage to the local environment
but also honors the region's history and heritage.
-Climate Adaptation: The desert rose's distinctive shape has evolved over time to
help it withstand extreme arid conditions. Similarly, the museum's architectural
design considers the harsh desert climate, with its intricate disk-like design serving
as a protective outer shell to regulate temperature and reduce solar gain.
-Sustainability: The choice to use the desert rose as an architectural inspiration
reflects a commitment to sustainable and environmentally conscious design. By
designing a structure that respects the natural environment and local culture, the
museum minimizes its ecological footprint.
-Integration with Environment: The National Museum of Qatar's integration with
the surrounding landscape and its use of locally sourced materials further
exemplify its commitment to mimicking the natural environment.
Architecture Analysis:
1. Areas:

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The 430,000 square foot (40,000
m²) museum is spread on a 1.5
million ft² site at the south end of
Doha’s Corniche, paired with a
1.2 million ft² landscaped park
that celebrates Qatar’s indigenous
fauna, mounds representing
dunes and an artificial lagoon.
With a capacity of holding 400 cars, it houses a 220-seat auditorium, a research
center, laboratories, and dedicated food forums viz. two restaurants, a café, and
two museum shops, (one for children) spread across the campus thus making it a
complete cultural panorama. The total cost of construction of this marvel is
estimated to be $434m (£333m).
A surreal walk from parking to the museum entrance, keeps the eyes fixed on the
amazing structure, with an inviting pattern wrapping the entangled discs. The
pattern breaks the mass and creates an eye-pleasing edifice. The entrance leads to
a large open to sky plaza, that organically leads to the desert rose restaurant and
the reception for the museum. The plaza is a
great transitional element for the visitor to
absorb and admire the unconventional design.
As the visitor crosses the regular security checks
and ticketing system, the entangled walls of the
museum pave the way towards the surprisingly

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unique exhibitions and galleries. They are loosely
arranged in chronological order with projections of
films, lights and videos on the face of the disks, and
audio in the background. It is indeed a unique,
sensory experience. The inside completely detaches
the visitor from the bright outside world and
immerses them into the ambiance.
The various floor levels that merge into each other,
as the disks from walls and ceiling weave the space,
offer a unique circulation, and transition making it
quite organic and effortless, yet organized into
different galleries. The transitions are adorned with
appropriate halts, seating, and activity zones, to
keep the visitor attentive and fresh during the 2-
hour journey inside.
The design is not just iconic but also fully functional with designated spaces for
everything that goes into a museum and cultural hub. Carefully planned VIP drop
off and reception area and school Drop off and orientation area next to the main
public lobby, and dedicated facilities for entertaining school groups and VIPs have
been incorporated in the site plan. All this with thoughtful and appropriate
support facilities like toilets for visitors and staff, baby-change facilities, prayer
rooms, support-staff offices, storage areas, loading areas, and service rooms.
Staff facilities include conservation laboratories, staff offices, collections
management, storage areas, Two restoration/conservation laboratories in the

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basement and on the second floor, Administrative offices and conference rooms
(approximately 150 staff )
2. Materials
The structure is built with 539 disks, with a spherical section, where a few vertical
ones support the structure. All the disks are of different diameters and curvatures.
The largest disk diameter is 87 m, and the smallest is 14 m.
The skin of the building is made of high-performance glass-fiber-reinforced
concrete carrying the same sandy beige color throughout the building. The
finishes are neutral and monochromatic.
The floors are sand-colored polished
concrete with tiny mineral aggregates.
The vertical walls are coated in stuc-
Pierre, or stone stucco, traditional
gypsum, and lime-blended plaster that
gives a stone look. Ceilings are covered
in a microporous acoustic plaster sprayed on mineral wool.
3. Sustainability
The building is extremely energy efficient. The disks that make up its structure are
heavy and form a cushioned barrier that acts as a sunscreen. They cast long
protective shadows on the built-up and on the few fenestrations it has in the
setbacks, thus protecting it from the harsh sun, and enabling the visitors to
explore the interior as well as the exterior in comfort. As a result, the interior
spaces are efficiently air-conditioned. This unique design feature is among the
many that have enabled to become the first museum to also receive LEED Gold

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certification and a four-star sustainability rating from the Global Sustainability
Assessment System.

Presented by : Shatha Wael

Presented To : Prof. Dr. Neveen Azmy

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