A calyx is a protective membrane surrounding a flower’s growing bulb. Similarly, The Calyx is a pragmatically designed building acting as a barrier between the invasive species within and the natural, native, landscape surrounding it. It functions as a wholesale florist that hosts a daily auction and responsibly deals with the unsold flowers by incinerating them. Previously a block of drab factories in Richmond, now demolished for this wholesale florist business, shipping flowers from almost all continents and nested in a native species park maintained and supported through the floral industry.
The architecture takes the deliberate form of a flower. The structure takes inspiration from the toolpath of a scissor and utilizes the sliceform methodology. The form plays into the fetishization of flowers, taking a natural object taken from its origin and purpose and shaping it into a symbol of beauty and youth. The building only takes in non-native and invasive species for sale and part of its profits go towards maintaining and stewarding the native landscape that was designed to replace the industrial block in order to “rebalance” the planet.