Architect Gary Chang from Hong Kong did an amazing job retrofitting his tiny 334 square foot apartment. Check out this Pecha Kucha presentation he did explaining the evolution of this apartment over time.

… and a special presentation on his space here

Diogo Aguiar is an architecture graduate from the Oporto School of Architecture in Portugal who created an ingenious temporary bar using TROFAST storage boxes from IKEA as the main building material.

Every year, the students of the school of architecture are invited to create a temporary bar to represent their institution and Diogo Aguiar came up with a great concept. Needless to say, he won the first prize!

VERSION 1

The first version was simply the concept. I love the way he presented his concept like an IKEA instruction booklet and his sense of humor. Notice the passed out IKEA character?

VERSION 2

The second version, which was built in only one week, was a bit taller and included LED light to give it a completely different look at night. I think he did a really great job!

source : Diogo Aguiar | ikea

The architects from Mareines + Patalano in Brazil, created a beautiful eco-friendly beach house in Angra dos Reis, called Casa Folha (Leaf House), one hour south of Rio de Janeiro. Shaped like a giant lotus flower, this house’s concept is inspired by Brazil’s indian architecture, said to be perfectly suited for hot and humid climates. For this project, the architects were looking to integrate the living spaces with the surrounding environment, connecting the occupants with nature. As such, most of the living spaces are open to the outside and most of the materials used for the construction of the house are natural.

There’s a lot of neat green elements in their design. The roof protects the occupants from the sun and collects rain water in the center. The roof is also supported by a central steel column that also redirects the collected water to be used to water the plants in the garden and to flush the toilets.

There are no air conditioning systems in the house. The house is cooled through natural ventilation, taking advantage of the breeze from the sea. Most of the material used for the construction of the house is natural or recuperated. For example a portion of the wood floors comes from old electrical posts. This is definitely a green vacation home that’s respectful of its surroundings and the environment. Hopefully this is the beginning of a new era of environmentally friendly vacation homes.

source: Mareines + Patalano | inhabitat

Finally a doll house based on modern architecture! Clearview, a modern doll house, was created by designer Elaine Shaw who also believes that traditional doll houses are out of fashion and it’s time for them to reflect the lifestyle of today. I love the level of detail in her work. It’s the first of several to come in the near future.

photo : metro uk

dmvA, an architectural firm from Belgium, recently created this really neat mobile pod for the office of Xfactor Agencies. The goal was to build an office in the backyard of a residence, but their plans kept being rejected by the local authorities due to restrictive building regulations. Blob VB3, an egg-shaped mobile pod, was their answer to the rejection of their concept. By making it a mobile art piece that could be used as an office, the architects were able to get around the local codes and didn’t even require a building permit.

This pod includes a bathroom in the back, a kitchen, a bed and a lot of storage spaces. I love that it looks like a giant egg. At 20 square meters (approx. 200 sq. ft.) it can be used as a office, a guest room, a modern take on a tree house, a camping shelter or a space within a space (like a conference room inside a loft office). Also, the fact that it’s mobile makes it useful as an emergency shelter. There are so many possibilities!

source : apartment therapy | designboom | dmvA | Brecht
photography: vercruysse frederik, mick couwenbergh/rini van beek

bloomframe is a really neat window that transforms into a balcony with the touch of a button. I remember reading about it a couple years ago when it was a prototype. Now it’s ready for the market and is currently available in The Netherlands. Created by Hofman Dujardin Architects this innovative product will enable city dwellers to increase their living space. Michiel Hofman, co-founder of the company, says that “The Bloomframe® balcony is playing an essential role in the positive evolution of our cities, encouraging us to re-think and improve interior space options. Bloomframe® helps us live better.”

I can imagine designers and architects will have fun working with this. Its dimensions, colour and materials are all fully adaptable and can be custom-designed to complement the façade of new and existing buildings.

The climate is milder there compared to Canada, so I don’t know if it’s applicable here yet but I could definitely use one! These balconies could also be great for little restaurants and coffee shops. I imagine it’s only a matter of time before they become available in various countries. Bloomframe balconies completely change buildings and make them dynamic. Imagine an apartment or condo towers with several of these balconies all around it. They will never look the same. The buildings will constantly change shape. There’s something very artistic about this. For some reason it also reminds me of the shape shifting building from Dynamic Architecture. Could this be the future of architecture?

photos : notcot, Hofman Dujardin Architects

During one of my many walks in Ibiza town, I noticed this great looking public building. I was surprised when I realized that it was actually a hospital: Centre Salut Vila. It looks nothing like the typical depressing institutionalized hospitals I’m used to seeing. This one looks good: simple, modern, minimalist. I actually peeked inside (sorry no pictures from inside, I didn’t feel it was respectful to the patients inside), the indoor space was really nice as well. It had a very open and airy feel and there was a lot of natural light coming inside the building, partially due to a little indoor courtyard. I imagine it’s much better to work in a hospital like this one than the typical old, stuffy and dark hospitals. I think good design and integration of natural light and plants help patients feel better faster in a hospital.

The two large openings in the following picture are for the ambulances to come in. The garage seems to have been designed in such a way that the passerby can’t see too much of the “action” as ambulances arrive to the hospital, which is a great idea.

I love the way the windows and garage entrance were designed. They look like they were carved out of the building.