Vincent Callebaut Coral

bamboochik March 9, 2013 at 2:09 pm

And the money to do this is coming from??? And this will be built when???…and this is going to be a safe place to be in a hurricane because??? Who dreamed this fantasy up has obviously never been through a hurricane!

anon234711 February 26, 2011 at 11:29 pm

Like people who’ve been traumatized by an earthquake are really going to set foot in a building like that. Please. It makes me queasy to look at it, and I’ve only been in mild earthquakes.

Michael Reynolds came up with reasonable one-story buildings after the tsunami, and *wait*, went there, built some, and showed the locals how to build them.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mike_Reynolds_(architect)

Here’s his building in Haiti:
http://www.mnn.com/your-home/remodeling-design/blogs/an-earthship-touches-down-in-haiti

Film about him/his work: Garbage Warrior:
http://www.garbagewarrior.com/

Greg Sully February 21, 2011 at 11:04 pm

On the surface, this design is one that addresses a lot of factors. But one seemingly overlooked design flaw I see is not understood in the design. Haiti is in a very geologically unstable region of the world and by designing the buildings this way. I wonder if the designer was considering how and where the segments will topple too. The first clues are in the lack of high rise structures in the coastal region. Unless great expense is spared in the construction and preparation of the building, this would be more a offering for the people of Haiti who don’t need help but rather have a suitable disposable income.

I do like elements of the design, but it’s not for Haiti, but more suited to Treasure Island in Nassau.

desiree February 21, 2011 at 3:22 am

Can I just mention that you could stack those things until the cows come home and not have enough? Also, you will not talk Haitian’s to get into a structure like that. They just won’t. Can you blame them?

audiojack February 20, 2011 at 10:01 pm

How to you get to the houses? Coral inhabitants would scale it I suppose, but not Haitians.

Paul Downton February 17, 2011 at 6:49 pm

This is not ‘disaster housing’. This is not a serious attempt to address the desperate need for rebuilding in Haiti, this is architectural sophistry. Seductive images that beg questions like: how does the circulation work? It’s not possible to take seriously a project that claims to be ‘sustainable’ when it’s for new construction at sea level – on a planet condemned to rapidly rising sea levels. And then there are the hurricanes – they’re fairly regular events in Haiti and I can’t see that this design is particularly well adapted! The list goes on…

architecturehate February 16, 2011 at 4:36 pm

Hmm, conspicuous lack of contextual drawings…like a site plan. At least they are into recycling – as in recycling one of their rejected projects for Dubai. Although I’m sure Haitians who need affordable eco housing all have “super yachts” (see images 6-9).

frenchyfrog February 16, 2011 at 3:32 pm

As for each of his marvellous/ fantastic… concept, nothing is ever mentioned about the price. Have you heard of the floating cities,yes , that’s true,helping those who will be left homeless once their house is destroyed is philanthropic, but WHO’S GOING TO PAY for it? the homeless…?? a real utopia, as mentioned in the article!

anothervoice February 16, 2011 at 9:34 am

I’m always amazed at the lack of perception in these “new project for Haiti” stories. They all are more about the designers ego than they are about solving problems for Haiti. They demonstrate an ignorance about all the challenges the project would face.