House for Sleeping

The brief required a structure that would provide economical, water- and windproof sleeping accommodation. It was to be independent of its location and contain two bedrooms, a bathroom and an entrance area. In its form, the house was modelled on the “horreo”, a traditional Asturian grain store. The architects designed an elliptical volume in a timber construction system. Raised 2.26 m above the ground on cranked raking legs, the pod-like container, with a floor area of 43 m2, is reached via a folding “samba” staircase and an entrance hatch. The structure consists of 6 cm laminated softwood ribs with metal angle connections. The outer and inner membranes are in a two-way stretch fabric. The outer skin is treated with several coats of stiffening varnish and finished with a coat of aluminium paint. Cellulose-fibre up to 25 cm thick is sprayed on the inner face of this skin as thermal insulation. The internal walls are finished with plaster on metal lathing. In the summer of 1997, the sleeping house was erected as an art event in Bregenz. Four internal monitors provided visitors with an opportunity to escape into the virtuality of dreams. The structure will be completed for its original purpose in 1999, when it will accommodate a group of Spanish artists. Unlike the prototype, the present house will have rooflights in the two bedrooms and a pivoting window in the bathroom.