Minimalist Housing in Case Our Planet Does Not Suffice
Chinese studio OPEN Architecture designed a self-sustaining modular house. It allows humans to survive on Mars without depending on any of the resources we have on Earth.
In a world of overproduction, overconsumption and the imminent depletion of natural resources, the architects from OPEN Architecture posed an important question: ‘What are our essential needs?’. In response to this inquiry, they designed the The MARS Case — a minimal, energy recycling, zero waste modular tiny house.
With the dimensions of 2.4×2.4×2 meters, this structure is compact, lightweight, and highly portable. It has an inflatable “living bubble” which can be folded back to save space when needed. The appliances inside of the house are connected to each other and merged into one product – the Home. This device harnesses and recycles heat and condensation generated by each electronic modular and feeds it back into the integrated system making it completely circular. The MARS Case will fully recycle water, energy, and air which helps it in cutting back on the consumption of resources.
The MARS Case is a vision of an ‘ideal house’ which combines technology, product design, and architecture and helps to “explore the boundless possibilities of the future”. Today, reducing consumption and living in a self-sustained tiny houses are popular ideas, as people realize the resources on Earth are shrinking. The inevitable human conquest of other planets, Mars being the first one, will call for innovations such as the MARS Case which will allow for a completely minimal life in new surroundings. Designs such as the MARS Case, this cooking set, or these student tiny homes, will allow us to explore the nature of simple living and establish what our essential needs actually are.
