The Aralia cordata also known as the Sun King is a herbaceous perennial plant native to Japan, Korea and east to southern China. It was introduced to Europe around 1900. The thirty metre long wall painting, shows the Aralia’s leaves, stem morphology and depicts the plant’s tiny spiked flowers as numbers. These numbers were selected by the employees of the agency in a participative questionnaire that was designed to incorporate each individuals’ favourite number or combination of numbers. Networked number intelligence, including algorithms, information and data represent an ever-increasing rise in computational processes making a picture of the world, particularly the world of finance, increasingly complex and opaque.
Complementing the wall inside the building are a series of Aralias that are planted in the courtyard outside. Birds love the berries of the Aralia and a historic bird bath is positioned adjacent to the planting.

Client: State Office for Salaries and Pensions NRW
Location: Düsseldorf, Germany
Architects: Heinle, Wischer and Partners
Completion Date: 2008

Proposal developed by invitation