Modern Prefab Metal Home (Re)Mixes Brick, Wood & Steel. This metal-clad house has layers perfect for those chilly and overcast winter months in the rural British landscape – each material with unique and compelling properties, piled one upon the next. Light plywood walls lining the interior give way to a rusted steel exterior, in turn surrounded by an aged and crumbling brick wall. Designed by Haworth Tompkins, prefabricated off-site, the wood-and-metal structural shell was transported to its location. The ‘construction’ process consisted simply of lifting it up and slotting it into place like the piece of some giant new puzzle piece or key designed to perfectly fit an ancient lock – windows and doors were of course only added afterward.
The original building was (literally) for the birds – an old dovecote (space for housing doves or pigeons) that has been converted into a kind of ‘cozy’ (double-meaning intended) wrapped around the new house. ‘Hook Wall’ System: Multi-Use, Wall-Mounted Metal Storage. Inspired by a combination of rhythmic regularity of computer punch cards and decorative whimsy of musical note scores, this modular system of wall hooks is designed to be more than just a minimalist storage surface – it is also an idea for animated a home or office wall in a new and interesting way.
Known for taking anything from large-scale contemporary architecture to small-space modern interior/furniture design and then adding his own unique twists, Jean Nouvel made this custom corrugated metal ‘wallpaper’ to perform a number of basic functional tasks: supporting works of art, filing cabinets, decorative shelves and so forth in a home or office setting. Boring or Brilliant? Simple Shipping Container House Plans. Bland is not necessarily bad when the goal is to cheaply and easily reuse something industrial as a residential space. While a lot of cargo container homes delight the senses, these few dozen rather austere, bare-bones modular designs somewhat boldly focus on the nuts and bolts, so to speak, of living in a metal box. “InterModal Design believes in the power of simplicity, the importance of affordability and the necessity of green spaces to enjoy the comfort and beauty of nature. IMD began after the construction of partner Paul Stankey’s own shipping container cabin in the relaxing woods of northern Minnesota.”
Reduce, reuse, recycle – a classic but applicable motto – works well with these variously-configured shipping containers designed to be used as cabins, cabanas, guest houses or off-the-grid residences. Unlike many more-conceptual approaches, there is an appropriate minimalism to the process laid out by this pragmatic Midwestern company. Help in a Hurry: Disaster-Relief Container Homes for Japan. Abstract designs and architectural theory are well and good, but when the stuff hits the fan (or tsunami hits the land, as it were) these notions are put to the test in a very rapid and real way.
The result shows who is ready to roll out workable housing solutions to address catastrophes as they unfold. The Ex-Container project is a joint effort to address the displaced populations following widespread earthquake and tsunami devastation still unfolding in Japan. Cheap, easy and fast, container homes provided an obvious answer. Containers are of a size that offer a flexible framework in terms of location, transportation and domestic application – they are versatile-but-stable enough to make for makeshift residences, semi-temporary homes or long-term dwellings (or hotel complexes) depending on demand.
Interestingly, in this case it was determined that using manufactured, container-framed units would be quicker, simpler and more cost-effective than reusing existing containers. ‘Woodpile’ Cabin: Log-Lined Fire Pit = Four-Season Shelter. This is one of those shelter design ideas that sounded good in theory and problematic in practice. Few such projects become a reality, making this timber-framed retreat a rare (but hopefully safe) exception … so far, so good, as it does not appear to have burned down (yet). The concept itself is very cool – or rather, hot … then warm … then cold? A metal frame wraps all four sides of the structure, with slots to fit felled lumber to be used as fuel for a central fireplace. An open void in the top lets out excess smoke, as do the natural openings between pieces of wood tucked into the walls.
One would think that the whole place could catch fire, but apparently there is enough distance within the dwelling (and between it and other structures) to make it work. As the winter wanes, so does the supply of burnable logs – the walls slowly open up and let in more light, reducing the protection needed in otherwise cold Canadian climates.