Living Wall Walking Tour

As city populations are becoming increasingly dense, living walls serve a critical function for incorporating sustainable greenery and biophilic design in Urban Architecture. Habitat Horticulture presents a “Living Wall Walking Tour” led by Founding Principal and Leading Designer, David Brenner.

Participants will tour three of Habitat Horticulture’s landmark public space applications in downtown San Francisco, beginning at SFMOMA, which hosts the largest living wall in the country, Foundry Square III (1st and Howard), and will conclude on the top floor of the Salesforce Tower to examine the 24 living columns and breathtaking view.

David will discuss the implications for integrating living wall structures in architectural design, including site evaluation, processes, challenges, installation technicalities, and maintaining living systems. David will also discuss what considerations should be taken into account when designing and specifying a living wall.

At SFMOMA, we will guide a discussion on the design intent of Snøhetta who led the museum’s redesign, and the unique features of this living wall as an extension of that intent. We’ll also dive into technicalities of maintenance including the unique recirculating system (Engineered by Hyphae Design Lab) which uses condensate and stormwater to irrigate.

From the SFMOMA, we will head to the lobby within Foundry Square III (1st and Howard), which is public open space. This building was developed by Tishman Speyer and designed by STUDIOS Architects. We will discuss how this interior installation differs from the SFMOMA exterior installation.

Lastly, the group will walk another two blocks to the Salesforce Tower and head up to the top floor to view the 24 living columns and the breathtaking view. We will discuss the process in designing the living columns around the structural columns, recessing the drain into the raised floor and creating a soffit to give the impression as if the columns continued up through the ceiling and down through floor below.

David Brenner

Working at the intersection of botany, architecture, interior design and urbanism, David has applied his passion for plants to a growing list of innovative projects, building a broad variety of modern, human-centric spaces with abundant plant life at their heart. David is a pioneer in the field of vertical gardens. He holds a degree in Environmental Horticulture Sciences from California Polytechnic University at San Luis Obispo. He credits his time spent studying at the Royal Botanic Gardens in Kew, London, with setting him on the path to living wall design. It was at Kew that he came to appreciate the beauty of epiphytic plants—those which have naturally evolved to grow vertically on trees. ‍ David sees his work as an integral part of a public shift in consciousness towards a renewed desire for closeness with nature and an appreciation of the restorative effect of plants, especially in urban environments. For David, designing living walls affords the chance not only to promote awareness of native and endangered plant species but also to have a direct impact on quality of life.

Host or Publisher Center for Architecture + Design