We present this house in New Orleans (Luisana, USA), which dazzled us for its originality, purity and practicality. It is ideal for any place, but more than anything in delta areas or near rivers and streams with potential floods.
It has 168 square meters on two floors, expandable to 250. It was built in 2008 by the Architect Studio Element, for the Foundation Make it Right. It is made of steel and wood
Make It Right was founded by Brad Pitt at 2007. Build homes, buildings and communities for people in need, originally due to natural disasters. All of their projects are LEED Platinum certified and are inspired by the Cradle to Cradle system of Architect Bill McDonough, based on green building.
In 2005, Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans and left thousands of people homeless. The government relocated them to prefabricated homes, but many were built with toxic materials. That's where Make it Right was born, to rebuild the city with low-cost homes, but healthy and sustainable. For that, architects were invited to comply with the Cradle to Cradle guidelines that maintain that green design can help prevent environmental disasters and promote the economy.
This modern house we were fascinated because in addition to fulfilling all that, it is expandable in 82 m2 economically, easily, quickly and with great taste. Its design is versatile and adapts to different needs. It is sustainable and efficient because -among other things- its facade South is protected from bad weather and achieves natural cross ventilation.
They used steel-safe structures and efficient and ecological infrastructures, building half of the maximum allowed covered volume. The rest begins as a huge and comfortable porch, ready for the expansions of the original house or even for a second house. It serves as a space for family gatherings or with neighbors. In a second stage it can help to increase the value of the property through the expansion, or to make money with the sale of a second house that can be built at a medium cost.
We hope you like it and offer ideas and inspiration!
For more information about the visual content of this publication, you can refer to the Photo Credits: Elemental Arq. (Chile) – Make it Right (USA)