Patrick Blanc was born in June of '53 in the fittingly-named Clinique des Fleurs in Issy-les-Moulineaux. Blanc had his first tropical aquarium in 1960. In the early 70s he visited Malaysia and Thailand and was no doubt inspired by the rain-forest conditions encountered there. During the 80s and 90s Blanc was an award-winning botanist.
Patrick Blanc created his first famous vertical green wall at Paris' Pershing Hall Hotel. He's responsible for the living, breathing exterior at the Musee du Quai Branly, Paris.
Here's a link to his site. http://www.verticalgardenpatrickblanc.com/ He definitely has a vision. I even found a picture of him with green hair.