“Modernist prefab is still more of a meme than a marketplace,” writes fabprefab.com. But as the Walker exhibition Some Assembly Required: Contemporary Prefab Houses suggests, the meme is a strong one that’s quickly becoming reality. Opening December 8, the show features a dozen or so projects, from Lazor Office’s FlatPak to the sculptural metallic Turbulence House by Steven Holl. But my favorite is the BreezeHouse by Michelle Kaufmann Designs (above), mainly because its aims are ecological as well as aesthetic. Built in a factory to minimize the environmental impact on the home site, it maximizes natural light, uses bioradiant heating and recyclable building materials (such as bamboo flooring and countertops made from recycled paper). Its main design feature is a butterfly-shaped roof over a glass-walled main room that can open to let breezes in. Look for the exhibition website to launch in a week or two…
Some Assembly Required opens December 8 with a reception and a discussion with Michael Sylvester, founder of fabprefab.com. Details here.
And: Prefab for refugees and a list of green prefab projects from Treehugger.