Shelter is a basic requirement of all humans. Therefore, throughout history, people have sought to improve their shelters. From caves to hut, to castles , homes and flats. According to time, climate and lifestyles, our definition of home has changed.
But sometimes, people’s urge to go unconventional in their accommodation ideas or due to physical or financial restrictions, architects end up creating unique designs. Innovation, imagination and creation are pillars of every out of the box structure.
Thus, architects and designers have been successful in introducing residential structures that feature innovation. Residences may in their visual forms or functions.
Here are innovative homes from around the world.
Chemosphere
Designed by John Lautner, Chemosphere is a home in Los Angeles. Built for Malin Lautner, a young aircraft engineer, the design of the residence was in fact an engineering challenge due to its location on a forty-five-degree slope in an earthquake-prone region.The octagonal structure sits atop the slope, perched on a concrete column, leaving the surroundings untouched.
In order to, support the floor of the house, steel struts shoot out from a single column. The concrete column doesn’t continue to the interior of the house, hence, creating a column free space within.
Keret House
For an Israeli writer, the Polish architect, Jakub Szczesny, has designed the world’s slimmest house. Squeezed into a crevice between two buildings in the center of Warsaw, the house was designed to provide a space to live and work for travelling writers.
The body of the house is raised up on stilts and a staircase leads inside from underneath. The accommodation measures only from 92 to 152 centimeters in width. The narrowest point if no more than 72 centimeters wide. Consequently, everything was custom and needs to be pushed.
Maison a Bordeaux, France
Completed in 1998, Maison Bordeaux sits on a small cape-like hill overlooking the city of Bordeaux. The 3 floors of the house appear as diverse entities. The lower level rests like a heavy mass, that is carved into the hill. Thus, the interiors are cavernous and labyrinthian, in a sense, where all of the intimate activities of the family take place.
Next, the transparent middle volume, in an open plan provides space indoors and outdoors for extensive views over Bordeaux. The space is used as living area and multiple activities take place here. The top floor is where all the bed rooms are situated, hence this floor is opaque, with potholes that give the amazing views of the location.
But, despite all this, its the vertically movable office, that makes this an innovative house. Since, the owner of this residence is a paralyzed man, a hydraulically moving office space, among all the three floors, allows the man to change the vibe of his space, if and when required.
The Old Water Tower, Belgium
Originally, a water tower and remained one till the 1990s, the architect Mauro Brighm decided to transform the function of the structure. He created a modern living space with everything that any other house would have withing the tower.The 30 metre tower was repaired to ensure the stability of the structure. The exterior was renovated, damaged concrete columns were fixed and painted, brick joints were completely removed and replaced and the windows in the floor top were enlarged. Also, the interiors of the house was equiped with the latest technology, adjusting lighting and sound .
Malator, Wales
Malator is an earth house overlooking St Brides Bay, and is known locally as the Teletubby house. It is an unusual home, that’s literally deep in the hills. The home sits underground and is covered with earthen roof, as they were barred from building on the National Parkland. Therefore, carving a translucent structure dressed sharply in porthole windows and an interior that’s essentially one long tunnel under a turf roof. Three bedrooms are separated from the fluid living space in prefabricated pods.
These are just a few examples of when architects and designers have gone out of their ways to create within the restrictions of their physical surrounding and came out with a masterpiece. So don’t let the limitations of site or client hold you back ever. These examples inspire us to think out of the box.
