The use of sizes is conventionally associated to clothing… However, the universal art of fitting is a little bit different in some parts of the modern world. Some countries use characters for measure; other countries use numbers. In this particular case, I will use both systems to describe one fine example of how to fit a house into a tiny plot. Continue reading →

There are so many projects that are ecologically orientated, so many projects that claim to use as much as possible in terms of natural resources and local environment, that sometimes it’s a bit difficult to get impressed by these “green” features. Yet, the 3,465 sq. ft. Estate in Extramadura, Spain, is very impressive.

The natural aspects are combined so vigorously here, that you can’t decide what was the crucial factor of such a cool and harmonious project realization – whether it was the will and world perception of the owners (who have always loved the countryside), or the talent of the architects who created such a fashionable, yet Eco-friendly house… Continue reading →

This joyfully striped structure is a 2,691 sq. ft. house, situated on the steep lake bankin Green Lake town, Wisconsin. I find that the house looks especially attractive – with these warmly colorful stripes – in the monochromatic context of winter or as autumn leaves fall to the ground. Continue reading →

Architecture always dealt with the notion of memory and time. Commonly, destruction brings tragedy and at the same time opportunities to remake our relationship with the surrounding context. In Iwate, Japan, Koji Kakiuchi developed a small open-air shelter over the remaining concrete foundations of homes that were swept away during the March 2011 tsunami.

This symbolic construction with only 7, 29 sq.m. provides a space for victims to meet and also allows them to homage all those who have perished in that tragic day. In fact, the cabin form reminds the shape of hands joining together in meditation, like a small temple where people can pray…or simply share the loss of a brother or a father… Continue reading →

Some fight with the sea for the land (I heard they do so in Holland, and they actually do so in Venice as well), some build up a new piece of land amidst the sea (like the new airport in Japan).. The people to whom today’s project belongs to were apparently also struggling for a larger living space. Or they just wanted to impress… Which they successfully did. Continue reading →

You might think this elegantly modern 1,517 sq. ft. house, in Nederland, Colorado, has nothing to do with prefabricated structures. Yet, not only are two prefab volumes used here, they also determine the planning scheme and the space organization of the house. The primary architects’ idea was to take two long shipping containers and put them onto the plot with a certain distance and angle between them. This was the crucial decision which resulted in an outstanding lay-out. Continue reading →

The Vato guest house, which can be found in the garden of an old family house near Stockholm, was meant to be an additional living space for guests. Therefore, its area was limited to be as small as possible, actually 452 sq. ft., while containing everything that is needed for a comfortable stay.

This small prefab consists of a bedroom and a bathroom (forming a quiet zone), and an open plan space of cooking/dining/living room. A cute, built-in bunk bed is also available in this area for lounging with a good book or simply as an additional sleeping space. Continue reading →

Sea and sand set the scenario for this unique example of how to transform traditional into modern! I’m talking about Casa na Areia, a private house on the Atlantic Ocean’s shore, in Grandola, Portugal.

This project is willing to bring the forgotten past into a brighter present! The recovery of four existing wood-masonry buildings (ancient fishing facilities), became the main key for turning these independent units into a single complex with 180 sq.m. Continue reading →

Imagine a house which consists of several houses and several yards… A house imagined by a child or a child’s perception of an environment… A house as an accumulation of different spaces for living… My answer is YES!
A house which enables you to choose in which space you would like to be. A house that feels you, accompanies you as a supportive friend, plays to your tune.. Continue reading →

We have already been amazed by the unbelievably small Japanese houses on tiny urban plots not once or twice. Yet still, modern Japanese architecture is so unique in style, so positive in form, so life-affirming in its ideas, that we can’t help adore it over and over again.

For me personally, it can be described as a manifest of young, unconventional, self-assertive life! So let us get acquainted with the following example of the Osaka House. Continue reading →