EXTRACT FROM Mobitecture: Architecture on the Move by Rebecca Roke, 2017 (Phaidon Press Ltd)
From the bedouin tents of North Africa to the airstream trailers made in America, mobile architecture is a phenomenon that reaches across time and geography.
In her book Mobitecture: Architecture on the Move, Rebecca Roke showcases a vast array of mind -blowing mobile architectural forms, including these four examples.
Bufalino
Designed by: Cornelius Comanns, Germany, 2010
Image credit: Cornelius Comanns
A sturdy companion for solo journeys, this little camper is able to meet all of an individual’s basic needs. Based on the three-wheeled Italian Piaggio Ape 50 van, this design is equally fuel-efficient and comparably robust.
Materials: Steel chassis, plaster board, plastic, aluminium and plexiglas.
Weekend
Designed by: Carlos No, Portugal, 2012
Image credit: Susana Dinis
Dismayed at the inequitable nature of shantytown dwellings, Carlos No draws attention with this work to the impoverished, unstable homes that are usually built from scrap materials by the poorest of the poor.
Materials: Moto-tricycle, timber, PVC, glass and nylon.
Antiroom II
Designed by: Elena Chiavi, Ahmad El Mad, Matteo Goldoni, Malta, 2015
Image credit: Ahmad El mad
The result of a 2015 European Architecture Students Assembly workshop led by Elena Chiavi, Ahmad El Mad and Matteo Goldoni, Antiroom II is a man-made island accessible only by boat or by swimming from the shore.
Materials: Wood panels and mesh curtains.
Walden Raft
Designed by: Elise Morin, Florent Albinet, France, 2015
Image credit: Raymonde Dapzol
Referencing Henry David Thoreau’s 19th-century treatise on life in the woods, the Walden Raft in France has a similar environmental intent. Floating on a lake in a secluded region of the Auvergne, the raft follows the proportions of Thoreau’s Walden cabin.
Materials: Pine, acrylic glass, polyethylene floats and rope.
Want to see more? Mobitecture: Architecture on the Move is available on takealot.com and at Exclusive Books.
