The Modular Mindset: How We Design for Choice

At its core, modular design involves creating systems composed of interchangeable parts. In practice, that might look like planter walls that can be arranged into different shapes, benches with optional armrest or backrest configurations, integrated ADA-accessible seating as seen in our new Carousel Seating, or an outdoor kitchen built from individual prep and storage units. Each element is part of a system: constructed to stand alone, work together, or evolve as needs change.

Modular thinking isn’t new, but its relevance has changed. What was once seen as a tool for mass production has become a strategy for nuance, a way to respond to the changing realities of space, climate, and community need without compromising design intent.

At Green Theory, we see modular design as more than a system of parts. It’s a design language that balances form with flexibility and offers real solutions in a built environment that rarely stands still.

That thinking carries through into Outerspace, our line of modular outdoor kitchens and furniture, where adaptability is embedded at every level: from cabinet modules, to layout logic, to anchoring systems.

The way we use public and semi-public space is shifting rapidly. Plazas double as markets and stages. Courtyards evolve from circulation paths to seating zones. A single site might serve many different purposes over a week. Static infrastructure doesn’t hold up in that kind of world. Modular systems do.

That’s why we design planter systems like JOIN, which use standardized modules to create flexible layouts: linear, cornered, enclosed, or open, depending on the needs of the space. The same core components can define a walking path one season and frame a pop-up seating zone the next, all without structural changes or major new installs.

Modularity allows for movement, adaptation, and reuse, without compromising durability or design cohesion. It’s not about efficiency for efficiency’s sake. It’s about giving landscape architects, developers, and users the ability to shape space over time.

Modular design often gets mistaken for sameness. At Green Theory and Outerspace, the opposite is true. Our systems are intentionally designed to deliver variety and personality, whether that’s a shift in material texture, a subtle curve in a bench line, or a planter profile tailored to its context. The components may share a common logic, but the result is always unique to its site.

And modularity doesn’t mean limiting choice. We regularly adapt our systems to meet unique design visions, whether that’s a one-off planter profile, a custom bench curve, or a fully tailored outdoor kitchen layout. Modularity gives us a solid starting point, not a ceiling.

At both Green Theory and Outerspace, modularity starts at the design stage. Every system is built for tailored configurations, whether it’s dimensions to suit a site, material finishes to match surrounding architecture, or integrated elements like seating and edging. It’s adaptability without sacrificing design integrity.

Not only do modular systems make spaces more adaptable, they make projects run more smoothly too. When components follow a shared design logic, architects, landscape designers, fabricators, and installers can work from the same framework. This reduces guesswork during detailing, speeds up decision-making, and minimizes changes late in the process. For project teams, that means less time redrawing and more time refining the vision. For clients, it means confidence that what’s on paper will translate seamlessly to what’s built.

Cities densify. Needs change. Public life isn’t static, and the infrastructure that supports it shouldn’t be either. That’s why we design with modularity at the core. It gives designers more freedom. It gives cities more value. And it gives space the capacity to grow, shift, and respond to the people who use it.

That’s the kind of design we believe in. And that’s the kind of public space we’re proud to help build.