I've finally been nudged out of my overwhelm by this lovely piece of architecture in Taos, NM called Solaria. While I love the house - and especially that mosaic column - the landscape around is a little bleak for me. I'd want trees. And lots of them.
The idea of being totally off the grid appeals to me in so many ways...right until the part about internet connectivity and speed. That's the deal killer. I suppose that if I didn't make my living needing high speed internet it might not matter, but for now it does. Sigh.
The video is a slide show of many of the pictures of the interior/exterior of the house, sadly it isn't a walk through talking about construction and livability. But we can't have everything I guess ;)
In honor of The Hobbit opening this weekend, how about some groovy hobbit-ish houses? This estate in Switzerland features 9 houses fronting a lake and an underground (of course!) parking structure.
Looks to me like an adorable place to live, although I might worry about the water level after a major rainstorm. Details, details, hrmmph.
The video shows some of the construction and philosophy behind the build - I particularly love the quote "not putting a box on top of nature." That one might be right up there with my favorite James Hubbell quote "a house is just a piece of sculpture you can live in."
Earth House Estate Lättenstrasse - Vetsch Architektur
Earth House Estate Lättenstrasse - Vetsch Architektur
Earth House Estate Lättenstrasse - Vetsch Architektur
Earth House Estate Lättenstrasse - Vetsch Architektur
Earth House Estate Lättenstrasse - Vetsch Architektur
I knew a bit about passive houses from my work on Energy Upgrade California and a bit about houses built using recycled materials, but I hadn't ever heard the term "Earthship" until recently. Nor had I seen any of these houses that were actually attractive enough to want to live in.
Earthship Biotecture actually builds really groovy, organic, passive structures that I'd live in. I particularly love the walls where they use glass bottles to create mosaics that also add natural light.
I'm totally stealing a bunch of these ideas for my own personal house-to-be...
These fantastic fireplaces caught my eye the other day on Beautiful Life and I'm now trying to figure out where I can put the outdoor models in my back yard. Not only are the overall designs wonderful, but they are eco-friendly and use bioethanol fuel so no need to run gas lines.
Also in the plus column - no fumes (or ashes.) Check out the full line from Acquaefuoco at their website.
I think we've well established by now that I love a vertical garden! I also love the flat land kind, so you can imagine how enthralled I am about the Gardens by the Bay in Singapore. The installation is set to become the "botanical capital of the world" which means that I'm going to have to put my tukas on a plane and go see it.
I'll blog the gardens at a later point, right now I want to oooh and ahhh over the Supertrees. These structures range from 9 to 16 stories tall and some of them have been outfitted with solar panels to power night lighting. The Supertrees also harvest rainwater to re-use on the plantings.
Bonus points for beautiful night lighting and projection. These remind me of the Boston Treepods I blogged a few weeks ago.
I think what I find so intriguing about vertical gardens is that they appeal to my desire for 360 degree immersion. Creating spaces is, for me, about ambiance. What I want out of a space (especially a creative one) is the attention to detail that a designer thought about more than just what was at eye level. I want the sounds, lighting, textiles and entire design sensibility to take me someplace, to define a moment/experience for me.
The vertical garden designed for Yoyogi Village defines a lush and peaceful space and also provides a scenic backdrop from the Code Kurrku restaurant and conference spaces. Not only does the vertical garden provide fresher, moister air to the facility, it also creates a noise buffer to make the space more relaxing.
Because I (a) am a sucker for beautifully lit sculptural art and (b) love "green" technologies -- these decarbonizing trees designed for SHIFTboston really appeal to me. The design challenge called for a tree-like product that would perform the same functions (carbon dioxide removal, oxygen release) as natural trees but be usable in locations unfriendly to real trees (lacking soil and water.) Designers Mario Caceres and Cristian Canonico grew Treepods in the collective imaginations to fill the need.
Not only do the Treepods decarbonize, they also generate solar energy and harvest kinetic energy from integrated see-saws.
For today's visual feast we showcase the Metropol Parasol in Seville, Spain. Beautifully designed by architects Jürgen Mayer H, this new urban center is the largest wood structure in the world. The undulating parasols house a unique and artistic urban center of an archaeological museum, restaurants, public space for conversation and contemplation, and a farmer's market. A viewing terrace on top of the parasols allows for scenic vistas of the city and the structure.
Metropol Parasol, Seville - Jürgen Mayer H Architect
Metropol Parasol, Seville - Jürgen Mayer H Architect
Metropol Parasol, Seville - Jürgen Mayer H Architect
Metropol Parasol, Seville - Jürgen Mayer H Architect
Today's bit of coolness comes in the form of another vertical garden concept called Naturwall. Yay! Gardens.
This vertical garden concept uses throw-away plastic coffee cups to create a wall of greenery - a great way to recycle AND grow fresh herbs for use in cooking!
