This smart villa is mobile, green and luxurious – and is yours for HK$82.5 million
The Carbon Neutral Remountable Retreat uses smart materials and green concepts
How far can luxury living go? Forget about price, size, location and interior design. Joost van Rooijen and Maarten Thewissen, co-founders of Dutch architectural firm Studio Komma, propose a whole new concept. “What if ultimate luxury is combined with unlimited freedom?” they ask. The duo try to raise the bar with a hypothetical idea. By freedom they mean that people can choose to build their dream house wherever they want and move it whenever they feel necessary.
For the design duo, the privilege of owning a piece of nature is priceless, especially under the current trend of urbanisation. Take Hong Kong’s growing population and housing needs as an example. “In vibrant and expanding cities like Hong Kong, we see the quality of life [suffer] under pressure,” Rooijen says.
To them, people are moving away from the city in search of a “good life”. They say it’s time to realise the pressing needs and establish a habitable future.
With that in mind, they have come up with an innovative housing concept – a “high-end self sufficient villa [that] can be built in the most remote places, and later on be transported to a new beautiful location”.
“Whether in the mountains or on a private island, the house will be able to adapt to its surroundings because it is slightly elevated above ground level”, Rooijen explains. Smart structural joints and prefabricated parts are used to build the house in response to the different terrains. The weight and size of the construction materials are kept to a minimum since they have to be transported by helicopter or boat.
