One of the many evolved functions of photosynthetic organisms is to synthesize light harvesting nanostructures from photoactive molecules such as porphyrins. Engineering synthetic analogues with optimized molecular order necessary for the efficient capture and harvest of light energy remains challenging. Here, we address this challenge by reporting the self-assembly of zinc(II) meso-tetrakis(4-carboxyphenyl)porphyrins into films of highly ordered nanostructures. The self-assembly process takes place selectively at…