Stairwell Living Wall, Finance Company HQ, London

Biotecture’s stairwell living wall at the headquarters of Capco, a finance company in London, is composed of a unique planting design, which was inspired by the Bold Rocket division of Capco. Bold Rocket is a seed company that finances small ventures and the rocket symbolises lift off for the company and the ventures they support.  The planting design complements the three metre long laser printed orange rocket that hangs suspended in front of it. In partnership with New York based architects, D+DS Architecture Office, we developed the design to simulate the time of Blast Off! The wall is approximately 40m² and extends across two separate floors. A specialist lighting design was developed to meet the light requirements of the plants situated where the natural light does not reach.

The cloud burst is formed of concentric rings of plant species. Chlorophytum variefata and Ficus pumila contrasts with ivy and Anthurium crystallanium to give alternating rings moving from light green in the centre to dark green at the outer edges. The purple foliage of Fittonia ‘Pink Diamond’ forms the centre, along with Bergonia boweri ‘Tiger’ flowering in white. Moving out from the centre, the red flowers of Anthurium andraeanum form their own concentric band, before the foliage gradually darkens towards the edges. Begonia ‘Black Magic’ defines the cloud-like shape of each ring with dark purple leaves. Plants of varying sizes and textures have been chosen to give the cloud burst a ‘3D’ banding effect. Many of the plants were also chosen for their lance-shaped leaves, to accentuate the shape of the rocket.

The plants within the design are situated to suit their light requirements and tolerance. The wall is located next to a north-east facing window, meaning it receives a good amount of natural light. However, the lower level and the upper corner opposite the window receives less light. As a result, shade tolerant plants have been selected for these areas, which form the darker sections of the cloud burst design. Here, the artistic side of the living wall has worked in correspondence with the nature of the plants to achieve a prominent and effective result.

It see other examples of internal living walls you can visit our portfolio.