ESSAY

DROR BENSHETRIT

A COMPREHENSIVE REIMAGINING OF THE BUILT ENVIRONMENT

AS A DESIGNER, FUTURIST, ACTIVIST, AND ARTIST

with offices in Miami and New York, I often find myself involved in many projects, from product creation and art installation to education about the future of design. Currently, I am most excited about my newest venture, SuperNature Labs, an innovative think tank and creative studio that seeks to change the design industry’s approach to designing the built environment. Working with models and processes based on those found in nature, we envision communities designed for the benefit of all life on Earth.

As a child in Tel Aviv, Israel, I was always creating. I was interested in art and spent most of my free time drawing or building. I recall imagining things and finding ways to articulate my ideas through different mediums. From puppetry to sculpting to sketching, I always took a cross-disciplinary approach. I enjoyed, and still enjoy, using many tools to facilitate my ideas and thoughts.

Early on, I was an introvert. I spent a lot of time alone and would dive into the world of my imagination. It was only in adolescence that I developed a creative social circle in which I began having interesting and creative exchanges with like-minded people my age. After high school, I served in the Israeli army. Something unexpected and necessary happened during my time as a soldier that changed the trajectory of my life. I started applying the same creative thinking that I used in my art to my military duties, but the expression was no longer drawings and sculptures. Instead, it was tools and models. I quickly realized that I was designing and began seeking to understand what that meant for me professionally.

My first realization was that design is essentially art with function. From then on, I started to explore that idea in terms of my career. I was fascinated by the influence one can have on people’s well-being and quality of life by using creativity to design products, buildings, and landscapes that they use or encounter daily. After the army, I decided to attend the Design Academy Eindhoven in the Netherlands. It was one of the most important choices I have ever made, for it was the place where I found ways to design the things I wanted to see in the world.

My 20-year journey as a designer started with a broken vase (the first commercial collection my studio released was the Vase of Phases for Rosenthal; the vases’ porcelain forms appear to have been crushed) and has led me to many other projects including architecture and urban planning, both of which come with massive planning challenges. Almost five years ago, I stopped to reflect, contemplate my accomplishments, and explore my plan for the future. I found myself asking a very different question than I had in the past. My mindset had shifted from what I wanted to see in the world to what the world needed most from me. The answer came flying out. I sat down and for four days straight, I wrote what I now call the SuperNature Manifesto. In essence, it was a realization that the approach to creating our built environment needs massive change. The future of our homes and communities is dependent on designers changing how we think about, plan, and construct the places where we live, work, and play. »

“I quickly realized that the ubiquitous Cartesian grid system of city planning seems simple and easy to navigate, but it creates a harsh environment of traffic and pedestrian congestion that perpetuates aggressive human behavior. I thought, “There must be a different approach; there must be a different typology that we can live in—not just what we are familiar with

right now.” —Dror Benshetrit, SuperNature Labs

I quickly realized that the ubiquitous Cartesian grid system of city planning seems simple and easy to navigate, but it creates a harsh environment of traffic and pedestrian congestion that perpetuates aggressive human behavior. I thought, “There must be a different approach; there must be a different typology that we can live in—not just what we are familiar with right now, and so SuperNature was born. Initially, it started as a laboratory to foster thinking about new ways of planning and creating different environments and experiences. My most significant discovery was that pedestrian streets and buildings do not need to be adjacent or parallel to major roads. Instead, we can use nature’s most common geometry, the arrangement of cells, to stop urban sprawl. The idea is to build high-quality, affordable modular housing that is efficient, biophilic, and scalable. Instead of putting these developments in limiting angular grids, we would arrange them in a cellular format—what we are calling a SuperCell community—that would limit the square footage used for roads and significantly increase the amount of green space for parks, community gardens, and the integration of flora.

Imagine if 25 percent of the concrete or asphalt hardscape was replaced with natural soil. Soil is a massive carbon sink and would alleviate flooding by absorbing excess water. In addition, there are many studies that show the health benefits of being physically grounded and putting your bare feet on natural soil. Not only would our communities provide safe, equitable places for people to live, but they would also help combat global warming.

We are at a unique moment in time when innovation, technology, and manufacturing capabilities make this kind of reality possible. Improving the quality of human life is equally as important as improving the quality of all life, including the natural environment and its inhabitants. Our goal is ecological harmony, so we can all thrive and flourish together. h