Italian architect and urban planner Stefano Boeri, known for his focus on sustainable development, was born in Milan on 25th November, 1956. He is best known for the Bosco Verticale, or Vertical Forest, a pair of residential towers that transformed a corner of the city’s Isola district.
The two towers stand at 111 metres and 76 metres. They include almost 9,000 square metres of terraces supporting 800 trees, 5,000 shrubs and 11,000 perennial plants. The vegetation equals roughly three hectares of woodland but occupies only 3,000 square metres of land.
The design reduces urban pollution by absorbing dust and carbon dioxide while producing oxygen. The trees protect residents from summer heat and block cold winter winds. The buildings also use solar panels and filtered waste water for irrigation, reducing their environmental impact.
Construction started in 2009 and finished in 2014. The project attracted international attention, and similar developments have since begun in Lausanne, Eindhoven, Utrecht and several Chinese cities.
Career of Stefano Boeri
Boeri studied architecture at the Polytechnic University of Milan and completed a PhD at the Istituto Universitario di Architettura di Venezia in 1989. He later became editor-in-chief of the architectural magazine Domus and the design monthly Abitare. He also founded Multiplicity, a research agency that explored links between urban planning and geopolitics.
In 1999, he created Boeri Studio with Gianandrea Barreca and Giovanni La Varra. The practice evolved into Stefano Boeri Architetti in 2009, with offices now in Milan, Shanghai and Doha.
Boeri served as Milan’s Head of Culture, Design and Fashion between 2011 and 2013. He later became Councillor for Culture and Major Events in Florence from 2014 to 2015.
His other notable works include the Villa Méditerranée in Marseille, a cultural centre with a cantilevered exhibition space and an underwater conference room, and the House of the Sea in La Maddalena. The latter combines two stacked structures, one resting on the quay and another suspended over the water.
