i’ve always been fascinated by the container ships that slowly lumber in and out of the golden gate in the SF bay. ever curious about the contents tucked inside the colorful boxes (up close those boxes are huge!), i’ve enjoyed more than a few coffees watching them slowly roll past the horizon with their countless and mysterious treasures aboard. oh, if those containers could only speak! traveling around the world and back across rugged seas, mighty storms, wicked pirates, and worst- through customs!!
when i first began to notice them popping up in repurposed projects, our neighbor had just launched a business leasing them as temporary living spaces to the military and government. that was at least 10 years ago and not very glamorous at the time. but with the growing popularity of portable shelters as well as pre-fab’s and pop-up’s, recycled shipping containers have also begun to take on a whole new life as…design muse.
here are a few shipping container inspirations, both literal and “imagined” -
(french country home by patrick partouche)
(urban container dwelling, thx designboom)
(campbell's soup warhol- new and newer)
(shipping container furniture from habitat)
(steel tiles from john whitmarsh for clé)
(cozy guest house via poteet architects)
(color book by tauba auerbach)
(mini-pods by paris renfroe design)
(take a great designer)
PLUS!
(a great cup of coffee, and you get illy cafe's push button house)
