Martin Azua's Basic House is a brilliant self-inflating shelter that you can fold up and take with you - wherever the wind blows! With economic downturns, population growth, and dwindling space creating a widespread reversal of basic values, the lightweight tent-like structure provides a cozy low-impact shelter that can be set up in a snap and could be perfect for post-disaster applications.
Made of metallic polyester, the basic house is like a tiny, self-inflating prefab home. As soon as it interacts with either body temperature or heat from the sun, the inflatable shelter transforms from a flat sheet of material to an insulated home that provides shelter against the elements. And if it’s warm outside, it is possible to turn the house inside out so that it deflects solar gain.
Related: NASA to Launch New Ultra-Light Inflatable Habitats for the International Space Station
The designer argues that this product, which has been featured at MoMA since 2007 and the Vitra Design Museum, creates a more immediate and less complicated interaction with nature than our runaway consumption habits have created.
