Ferdinand Ludwig

Ludwig began as an architecture student and graduated from the University of Stuttgart in 2012 with a dissertation titled “The Botanical Fundamentals of Baubotanik and their Application in Design”.[1] In 2005 he along with Hannes Schwertfeger and Oliver Storz build planting they referred to as “Baubotanik buildings” [2] In 2007, he co-founded the research group “Baubotanik” at the University of Stuttgart’s Institute of Architectural Theory and Design (IGMA) and served as a head research associate until 2017.[3] Along with Daniel Schönle in 2010, Ludwig created “ludwig.schönle: Baubotanik - Architecture - Urbanism”, a collaborative office centering on incorporating the baubotanik approach in urban planning and architectural design.[1] Ludwig has designed and created numerous Baubotanik projects around Germany, such as the Plane-Tree-Cube in Nagold in 2012, a Baubotanik Tower in 2009, and a Baubotanik Footbridge in 2005.[4][5][6]

The central focus of Ludwig’s research concerns integrating the growth processes of living plants into architectural design and construction.[7][1] The plan is to build a structure suitable to guide the trees growth into the desired form. [2] Merging living plants with architectural construction allows for the exploration [2] of the creative and functional uses of plants in the context of building engineering.[8][9] The concept of Baubotanik is not only relevant in the fields of architecture and landscape architecture, but has increasingly been recognized as an adaptation method to climate change.[3][9] Ludwig’s work additionally centers on the technical challenges that arise in Baubotanik, thereby broadening architectural knowledge by confronting aspects of growth and decay, and probability and chance in architectural design.[1]

• Prize for bold science, Ministry of Science, Research and the Arts of the State of Baden-Württemberg (2016)[1][10]
• Prize for exceptional scientific achievements, University of Stuttgart (2013)[10]
• Named a “Maker of Tomorrow” by the Minister of the Environment, Climate Protection and the Energy Sector Baden-Württemberg (2012)[1]
• The Plane-Tree-Cube in Nagold was given the “Special Prize for Innovation” at “Holzbaupreis Baden-Württemberg 2012.” [2]

• Ludwig F: “Baubotanik: Designing with living material.” In: Materiality in Architecture. Editor: Löschke S. New York: Routledge, 2016: 182-190. Abstract
• Ludwig F, Schönle D, Bellers M: „Klimaaktive baubotanische Stadtquartiere, Bautypologien und Infrastrukturen: Modellprojekte und Planungswerkzeuge“. Reihe KLIMOPASS-Berichte: KLIMOPASS – Klimawandel und modellhafte Anpassung in Baden-Württemberg. Teil 2 Angewandte Forschung und Modellprojekte. LUBW. 2015. PDF download
• Ludwig F, Storz O, Schwertfeger H: „Living Systems. Designing Growth in Baubotanik”. Architectural Design Journal. 2012; 82(2): 82-87. Abstract
• Ludwig F: “Baubotanik Tower / Lake Constance Footbridge” In: Biodesign. Nature – Science – Creativity. Museum of Modern Architecture. Editor: Myers W. New York: Thames & Hudson Ltd, 2012: 36-41. Abstract
• Ludwig F, de Bruyn G, Thielen M, Speck T: “Plant stems as building material for living plant constructions”. Proceedings of the 6th Plant Biomechanics Conference. Cayenne, French Guiana, France. November 16–21, 2009: 398-405.

See Publications for all publications.

• Ferdinand Ludwig, TEDxTUM, Designing living buildings with trees
• Faculty of Architecture, Technical University of Munich, GTLA research (Professorship of Green Technologies in Landscape Architecture)
• Ferdinand Ludwig Homepage Ferdinand Ludwig
• Baubotanik shapes living tree branches into building facades Youtube video: Kirsten Dirksen
• Ferdinand Ludwig builds hybrids of living nature and technology, Designboom designboom video