Green Wall Trend: Designer Clodagh Brings Nature to Manhattan Residences

Touting the mantra of her aesthetic as “life-enhancing minimalism,” New York City-based interior designer Clodagh incorporates an inspiring new green wall inside this Upper East Side residential building.

Located at 360 East 89th Street, Citizen 360 will soon feature an entire wall of greenery inside its luxury entry way, one that emulates the experience of a traditional front lawn. The “relaxing oasis” design by Town & Gardens features a verdant display, complete with a water pool and limestone slabs to create the essence of a miniature rock garden.

“Plants offer a wide variety of health benefits when included in a home’s design. Besides purifying the air—a necessity in large cities such as New York—they also bring a bit of nature indoors, which creates a calming environment,” Clodagh says. “When designing Citizen 360’s interiors, I wanted to ensure they serve as an escape from the surrounding urban jungle for residents.”

While green spaces are hard to come by in the Big Apple, Clodagh highlights the positive effect of plants and nature on human beings, especially within interior spaces, and their ability to lift up the human spirit. “The rich green color of the plants is a kind color and elevates the heart space. I wanted the lobby to feel as if it were giving residents a hug as they returned home in the evening.”

As an adaptor of feng shui in her design practice, Clodagh embraces both ancient and modern methods to create a physically and mentally comforting effect. The incorporation of biophilia—or the “positive effect that being close to nature and living things has on the human spirit”—into interior design is not only a major home trend right now, but it’s also the basis for this year’s hottest color.

Earlier this year the Pantone Color Institute selected “Greenery” as their Color of the Year for 2017, and in a previous article with Culture Trip, Pantone representative Leatrice Eiseman remarked on the symbology of green in our current social contexts. “We needed to have something to look forward to—we live in a complex social and political landscape so people need to rejuvenate and revitalize,” she said. “Greenery symbolizes the reconnection we seek with nature, and with each other, not to mention a larger purpose in life.”

Whether it’s green walls on the exterior of an urban facade, miniature home terrariums, or “prehistoric” atriums inside lobbies, the “green” design movement has definitely arrived. And we love it.