Greenhouse in a Box
February 25, 2017
You can grow your own piece of urban paradise on little more than a
pocket-sized patio or a sunny windowsill with Daniel Schipper’s portable
and foldable greenhouse. Anna J. Kutor recently spoke to the Dutch
designer about this eco-innovation.
Environmental awareness and design have
long gone hand in hand in the Netherlands - a massively over-crowded yet
nature-friendly country that stands at the forefront of contemporary design.
Dutch industrial designers, architects and product developers of today are
increasingly focused on creating modern and more livable urban landscapes that
limit wasteful excesses, utilize existing spaces and structures in smarter ways
and help city dwellers reconnect with Mother Nature on a new level.
Contributing to this rapidly expanding design trend is Daniel Schipper, a young
environmentally-savvy designer and entrepreneur who devised a flexible and
folding greenhouse that will help big-city folk reclaim the art of gardening
within the confines of tight spacial constraints.
Locally Grown
Schipper got to thinking about collapsible models and the practical dimensions of
sustainable product design while attending the Design Academy in Eindhoven.
“Living in Amsterdam I noticed that in people here really enjoy their
outside spaces like balcony’s and gardens, putting plants and pots on every
square inch. My next thought was why not make a greenhouse for use in the city,
so I started folding paper models for days in a row until the right shape and
folding system appeared,” he says.
His protracted folding and molding turned into a frameless origami-esque shape,
similar to that of a fancy curved fan,which can be folded flat or expanded when
required. And, as to not contradict its nature-preserving purpose, he chose
resilient recyclable plastic - thin see-through fabric for the top and a dark
beefier plastic for the bottom - to produce the final prototype. In it’s fully
assembled form, this light-weight and low-maintenance creation unfurls into a
50 cm high, 40 cm wide and 100 cm long green unit that facilitates the growth
of all kinds of herbs, vegetables and fruits.
Eco Investment
Despite the galloping buzz generated by the press and green blogosphere, Schipper’s
mini greenhouse still awaits commercial production. Finding a producer or
company in the Netherlands has been difficult task, but the design is
attracting serious attention abroad, where people, he says, are really
enthusiastic about the greenhouse design.
“Creating “eco” and “sustainable” designs in today’s changing
financial environment is a real challenge for young designers, but I think my
own generation and the next are very aware of the greater possibilities in
green designs,” says the industrious innovator. The market demand for
viable green technologies and energy-saving solutions is booming, regardless of
the ongoing economic doom and gloom, so it’s just a matter of time before this
portable plant-pod starts popping up on roof terraces and diminutive balconies
around town. Until that time comes, Schipper continues to enjoys the fruits of
his labor.