One of our most popular articles last month was a preview of modular container homes by Toronto-based MEKA. The company planted a show house in the West Village area of New York City and the media took notice. Reporting for Reuters, Kilmeny Duchardt offered this video and short interview with Michael de Jong, one of the entrepreneurs behind the company.
Toronto-based housing company MEKA -- that is, modular, environmental, kinetic, assembly -- made national headlines with the launch of small container homes this week. Seeking the ultimate trifecta of style, sustainability, and affordability, this start-up aims to produce "the most luxurious living spaces with a clean modern sensibility, at super affordable prices."
Recent Daniel Sokol sent me an email to share what he’s doing with steel shipping containers for a New Hampshire-based company called LEED Cabins. He can convert a 20-foot unit into a small, comfortable home in as little as 25 days from $15,000. Or he can build a bigger home with adjoining containers from about $40,000.
This container structure was on display earlier this month at Abitare il Tempo in Verona, Italy. The architects, Studio Astori De Ponti Associati, used discarded containers to build a home that is meant to "propose an alternative starting point for reflection," as opposed to "a definitive and absolute solution to the question of sustainability."
This lakeside retreat was put together with used shipping containers and timber from weapon boxes in the Maduru Oya area of Sri Lanka, according to Dezeen. Located on an army training camp, this simple container solution was designed by Damith Premathilake and built by soldiers with materials found in the area. It's now become "the ideal destination for the traveler seeking a relaxing and rustic vacation." What do you think about it?
Dwell has the story on this 8'x40' container space in San Antonio designed by Jim Poteet. The tiny retreat – living space, bathroom, and sink and counter – is sandwiched by a foundation of recycled telephone poles and roof of lush greenery. The container also has bamboo flooring and wallcovering, an electric composting toilet from Sun-Mar, a mini-split heating and cooling system, and large floor-to-ceiling windows and doors to allow natural light. This illustrates, with impressive flare, what can be done with containers, don’t you agree?
Alan Stulberg, a vintage motorcycle builder and mechanic, has been thinking about this project for nearly six years. Deciding to take the plunge, he drew a rough sketch one day and five months later, here’s the Studio Pod. Stulberg built the container studio in his backyard in Austin, Texas, and it's now being used as a creative artist space.
Recently I noticed this container structure, The Moderne Showroom, which is a sales center for a mixed-use tower planned for Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It's not the first container sales center we've seen -- recall the MirabeauB sales center -- but it's interesting, temporary, and functional. The structure was designed by Rinka Chung Architecture and provides another example of shipping container reuse in an architectural context.
Last week, a newly completed IQ Haus by DNA European Design Studio was on display at Dwell on Design in Los Angeles, California. The container home, clad in a contemporary application of Douglas Fir, was enjoyed by conference attendees and could have been the "coolest thing" there.
After the debut of PUMA City in Boston last year, PUMA redesigned the massive retail container space to create a new space in New York to coincide with FIFA World Cup 2010. The smaller space, PUMA City NY, features two separate shipping containers configured as a retail space by architects LOT-EK and buiders SG Blocks, maker of the Harbinger House.
