Venetian Tree Fractal

A tree fell down in Venice, Italy, and everyone misses the shade. So we're planting a new one. But a young tree is not nearly as cool as a mature tree.

The idea: a 3D-printed hexagonal frame that wraps the trunk and stacks into a canopy. Real plants drape down from it — shade, movement, sound. As the tree grows, you add segments at the base to raise the entire structure, keeping the canopy above the growing tree. The structure adapts to the biology.

And the best part, it's designed to disappear. When the tree matures, you pull the frame off.