the "cabin"

As my fellow bloggers, and anyone else that has talked to me for more than three minutes, can attest to, I really don't enjoy "the cabin". I'm not interested in kitschy fridge magnets and the thought of 'showering' in the lake makes me feel ill. That being said whilst cruising the internet I stumbled upon the above cabin, placed smack dab in the middle of the Wis. wild. When I saw this image it really brought me back to the presentation that we had during our November 6 class. Even without reading the accompanying New York Times article I felt that whoever designed this space did so with the intention of preserving the integrity of the natural environment. Although after perusing the article it doesn't seem as though much attention was paid to designing the actual structure with ecological principals in mind, it does touch on a neo-renaissance for rough and tumble lake life, in a more functional and less uncomfortable facet.

Since I am not the biggest fan of nature I do find this whole phenomena to be quite interesting, I think that it's a positive sign of a future that will integrate the natural and built environment.

All I Want for Christmas is a KitHAUS!

Imagine retreating to a studio oasis. A place where your drafting board would face windows, windows that would allow your view to extend over a setting of your choice. Where glass doors could be slid open to allow a fresh breeze. An environment where clear glass walls could open you up to the landscape, but also where wooden blinds could be closed to insulate you from the noise of the outside world. Instead of the stale, warm air, and the incessant chatter of your current studio environment, this place would be under your control, it would be of your own design.

The prefab units KitHaus by Design Within Reach create these kind of environments. The 'houses' can be situated on any landscape, as a studio or as a guest house. Their footprint is small and they are built using green design principles. When purchasing a Kithaus you have the opportunity to DIY by choosing from an array of material esthetics. While a price tag of $29 500 to $44 900 limits our opportunity to test the KitHAUS, I like the way Design within Reach has made a structure which can be integrated into several environments. Also I like the way the prefab units incorporate the landscape into their interior environments. KitHAUS makes the inside of the structure more about the outside environment then about its own interior composition. The fluidity between the interior and exterior environments in this little Haus make it an appealing space, and one that is different from traditional built structures. This difference creates a space in the KitHaus which seems separate from the work place. The differentiated environment creates a space I would like to work in, and they are just so cute!

Looking To Nature For Design Solutions

Imagine looking to nature for design inspiration beyond application of form, but for our application of technologies too. Think about using the naturally built world as a model for the human built world so to create a more sustainable, healthy way of living and solving problems. It is apparent that nature has already solved most of the problems that humans still struggle to find solutions to, and manages to do it in the most efficient and strategic way possible. “Biomimicry” is essentially this, the process of emulating nature’s natural strategies and patterns in our own design technologies, therefore enabling them to adapt much more sustainably to our environments. This, I feel is crucial in reversing the way we approach the design process, by shifting our energy towards finding solutions and learning from existing organisms instead of focusing on implementing completely artificial solutions that work against the earth's systems.

Jane Benyus, the biologist who coined the term, shares amazing insight on innovative, sustainable design ideas drawn directly from nature in this inspiring presentation on Biomimicry.