Jenny Sabin’s Greenhouse and Cabinet of Future Fossils was Commissioned by the American Philosophical Society Museum, funded by Heritage Philadelphia Program, a program of The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage. This greenhouse for the 21st century is located in the garden of American Philosophical Society. It is conceived by artist, researcher and architectural designer Jenny Sabin and it is an outgrowth of the Museum’s current exhibition.
Sabin’s ecologically savvy structure re-envisions greenhouse architecture using digital design tools while it also represents a striking and playful work of art. It is made of recycled and recyclable materials and it is 52’-long. The structure has no glass and requires no heat. The curving, structural ribs are the structural support of this futuristic greenhouse and they hold 110 translucent, jewel-toned cold frames – mini-greenhouses, filled with edible and ornamental plants. he 2’ x 1’ x 1’ cold frames are removable and portable, intended for winter gardening in small urban spaces.
The “Cabinet of Future Fossils” inside the Greenhouse displays digitally produced ceramic art objects that are inspired by forms in nature. However, they are not quite recognizable. Like scientists perplexed by the fossil bones of animals who lived a long time ago, the author of this greenhouse imagines a future era when people might be equally puzzled by these curious “fossil” remnants of the computer age. Jenny Sabin received a 2010 Pew Fellowship for her work at the forefront of an architectural practice that applies insights and theories from nature and science to the design of material structures.
