Marking the 400th anniversary of the Plaza Mayor in Madrid, a grassy circle measuring over 35,000 square feet was rolled out to create seating space for over 100,000 visitors across a four-day celebration.

The famous European square is framed by historic rectilinear architecture, beautiful in itself, but by adding a fresh layer of greenery, artist SpY provided space for locals and tourists to relax and mingle.

From above, the green dot stands out against its reddish surroundings, while, on the ground, it becomes not just a frame for interaction but also a point of conversation about local history.

Like much of SpY’s work, the project is made to be both interactive but also evocative, spreading naturally on social media and sparking conversations both on-site and abroad, leaving a lasting impression both online and in person.

And that function for which it was designed proved not just theoretical — as images of the actual four-day installation show, people gravitated naturally toward the grass, walking across and sitting down in groups on it.

Meanwhile, given the positive reaction to this piece, there is a rumor that the green circle might be rolled out again in Paris or some other European location.

The project also brings to mind another piece done by SpY years ago — a green circle on a building facade, created by cutting away vines.

Ground Operation is a conceptually simple earthwork: an incision made in a grassy landscape is pealed back then stitched back together, much like an open wound after an injury or surgery.

French artist Estelle Chrétien sliced open the ground then wrapped electrical cables through it like shoelaces, either in the process of being tied or becoming undone (a mystery left for the observer to unravel, as it were). Her use of cabling is also very intentional, meant to raise questions about what we put into the Earth and how we use it — a surfacing of the secret infrastructure that lurks below.

Similar techniques, themes and materials can be found in other works by the same artist, who has wrapped hay bales in crocheted covers and put boots on trees.

“While in Portugal, I learned how to crochet, and I had this piece of blue agricultural baler twine in a box and the idea of [making a hay bale wrap] came to me,” she says. “When I went back to France, I made it and put it in a field just before farmers stored their bales. I liked working in the middle of a barley field, but most of the work was made at home, so I decided to work outside with my hands more often after that.”

Composed of vaulted panels covered with reinforced soil, these modular hobbit-worthy homes can be adapted to just about any site and constructed in a matter of days.

Produced in pieces by Magic Green Homes, then shipped to sites for assembly, each dwelling is made from prefabricated panels clad in green. The results looking much like something straight out of a Tolkien novel, but made out of shaped composite laminate, the same material approach taken to creating curves in some types of boat.

The process is designed for simplicity, eliminating the need for heavy machinery of specialized knowledge. Integral electrical, plumbing and ventilation channels come tucked inside the wall-to-roof modules as well, making systems installations easier as well.

Overlapping flaps allow builders to join the various parts together while the integrated layers of green on top further hide any seams, making each house look like a seamless (w)hole. An interior layer of waterproofing ensures the attached modules do not leak.

The overall modularity of this lends itself to easy incremental additions, expanding housing units over time. Designers or homeowners can also site the structures to blend into the surrounding landscape, much like the approach taken in underground homes and with many earthships. As with geodesic domes and other curved habitats, however, it may take a bit more than three days to decide how to finish and decorate the rounded interiors.