Anyone who has studied the world of outdoor landscape design is familiar with the name of Roberto Burle Marx. Born in Brazil in 1909, Burle Marx enjoyed a 62-year career of creating stunning landscapes before his death in 1994. He left a legacy of unique and inspirational gardens, both public and private, as well as a number of other works.

Over the years, PureModern has had the opportunity to work with incredible contractors, designers, landscape architects, and many more individuals in the commercial industry. We are often so impressed by how innovative the individuals that work in the design field are that we launched a new series, Modern Design, to highlight these creative individuals and companies.

A commercial interior designer’s role in developing a project is to help a client, usually a business or agency, from conceptualization to the full realization of a completed space for business and public use. While the training and knowledge base is similar to that of a traditional residential designer, a commercial designer plays a much bigger role in how a space can support a larger population and helps their client or business to thrive.

When it comes to building your very own colorful, inspiring garden oasis, one of the top things to keep in mind is whether you’re using plants that can not only withstand sweltering temperatures and full heat but fully enjoy and thrive in it. Luckily, there are many beautiful container plants that thrive in full sun, and we’ve rounded up the top seven for you to try.

Seemingly born with a natural instinct for design, Harry Bertoia was an expert jeweler, printmaker, furniture designer, sculptor, and philosopher. As Knoll historian Brian Lutz noted, “Bertoia’s paintings were better than his sculptures. And his sculptures were better than his furniture. And his furniture was absolutely brilliant.”

Born in 1888, and with an interior design career spanning three decades, Frances Adler Elkins has been called “the first great California decorator.” Her interior design styles ranged from (and combined) art deco to country French, chinoiserie to modern. Even though she wasn’t especially known for including small or large planters in her designs, she was fond of carnations and often staged clients’ homes with them.

Adding greenery to indoor and outdoor spaces is something that dates back to 500 BC. However, we are only beginning to understand the scientific benefits that adding plants to indoor and outdoor has on our bodies.

Whether for a commercial or private swimming pool, metal planters - filled with shade plants and flowers - provide the perfect opportunity to design a lush, green poolside oasis. When creating your poolside landscaping, select modern planters that complement your patio’s design aesthetic and choose plants that add privacy, shade, and color (or scent).

Today’s libraries are much more than the hushed, enclosed, musty-smelling buildings we all remember from childhood; many public and school libraries now include innovative outdoor spaces, as well, for reading, learning and socializing. One way to bring patrons closer to nature while reading outdoors is to surround them with plants, trees and bushes housed in artistic metal planters.

If you’re looking for ideas to amplify the ambiance of a restaurant patio, consider the ability of contemporary planters to add style and set a relaxing, elegant mood for patrons to enjoy their meal. Handcrafted plant containers allow restaurants to add artistry and greenery to their patios, while creating natural barriers, walkways, and even canopy shade with large plants or trees.

Creating a beautiful, contemporary, retail store environment that draws in customers requires an extensive amount of planning and design work ahead of time. Many things have to be considered: the items being sold, the look and feel you want to create, the traffic flow throughout the space for both customers and employees, and the function of the floor plan.

Plant containers aren’t just for growing plants; they have great versatility for other uses. With some creativity, fiberglass planters can make unique and artistic pieces for showcasing commercial products and merchandise. Similarly, contemporary planters - with the addition of a piece of glass - make stylish end tables or distinctive product display shelves, capable of exhibiting wares, pieces of interior-themed art or mini garden sculptures, or complimentary items for customer's use.

When designing an interior space with plants, fiberglass planters offer not only durability but also almost unlimited flexibility with shapes, sizes, and colors. This enables you to create a cohesive, innovative look in whatever interior design style appeals to your aesthetic vision. Especially in business or retail settings, commercial fiberglass planters allow you to complement or anchor your corporate space with eye-catching, upscale plant installations.

PureModern’s PurePots line of handcrafted fiberglass planters gracefully display indoor plants to help set the style in any room. Dozens of shapes and colors provide a rich palette to define any space. Designers can pursue custom themes featuring PurePots as plant containers and artistic pieces. The natural freshness of live plants combined with the artistry of PurePots containers allows for endless design opportunities.

Creating an incredible first impression is one of the best ways to make your business or venue stand out from the crowd. Using beautiful and inviting greenery has always been a go-to when designing an outdoor space, but that doesn’t mean you have to give up the bold and dramatic look you long for. With PureModern’s fiberglass planters you can create an unforgettable, stunning space featuring unique designs.

Commercial planters are a very popular way to add natural beauty and design to a business location. However, due to their popularity, they often end up looking a bit generic. Your brand is different; that’s why you’ve attracted your customers, and what you’ve built your reputation on. At PureModern, we understand that you need something that will add some flair and stand out from the crowd. We design custom commercial planters to suit your needs.

Born around the turn of the 20th century, and enduring such hardships like the Great Depression and being placed in a Japanese Internment Camp during World War II, George Nakashima eventually became one of the most influential woodworkers and modernist of our time and continues to have an influence on designers today.

Tapered planters were originally designed to take advantage of the way plants grow, and to save water. These days, the elegant design of a gently tapered planter doubles as a classic piece of modern décor.

Philippe Starck is perhaps the most well-known and influential modern designer of the 21st century. Starck has designed everything from his famous “ghost chair” to a $150 million yacht for Steve Jobs. And yet, in addition to his incredible designs, Starck continues to be one captivating character. To highlight this marvelous personality, we have put together a list of five things you may not know about this flamboyant designer. May this list inspire your creativity!

Adding plants to an urban garden is often best achieved with the use of planters. They allow you to control the soil content, keep plants safe from foot traffic, and even add soil where there is none in the midst of a city space.