Atelier Kempe Thill

The Dutch Pavilion at the 2003 World Horticultural Exposition (IGA) in Rostock, Germany, was an “instant pergola” meant to demonstrate the rationality of Dutch agriculture. The architectural starting point for Atelier Kempe Thill was a fascinating new building element: the “smart screen.” The smart screen is an ivy hedge grown in Dutch greenhouses and is normally used in gardens. Essentially an industrial product, the hedges can be deployed to build “green walls.”

The dimensions of the building are 20 by 6.5 by 10 meters. Its compact shape, the inclusion of 4-meter-high doors, and the roof lend it the character of an enclosed “house.” This is counterbalanced by the open nature of the ivy plants. The steel framework creates five rows of channels filled with soil from which the smart screens grow.