Architecture

Izabelin House camouflages into the forest

Izabelin House camouflages into the forest
Polish architectural studio Reform has plans to construct a dramatic mirrored home in the middle of a forest landscape
Polish architectural studio Reform has plans to construct a dramatic mirrored home in the middle of a forest landscape
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The Izabelin House design concept features a modular two story family home which will be built using traditional reinforced concrete construction methods
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The Izabelin House design concept features a modular two story family home which will be built using traditional reinforced concrete construction methods
The home's exterior design features a mirrored facade
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The home's exterior design features a mirrored facade
A mirrored facade gives the illusion that the upper half of the home is floating in mid air above the forest bed
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A mirrored facade gives the illusion that the upper half of the home is floating in mid air above the forest bed
Polish architectural studio Reform has plans to construct a dramatic mirrored home in the middle of a forest landscape
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Polish architectural studio Reform has plans to construct a dramatic mirrored home in the middle of a forest landscape
The 400 sq m (4,305 sq ft) home features three bedrooms, three bathrooms, an office, a two-car garage, an open plan living and dinning areas and a large modern kitchen
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The 400 sq m (4,305 sq ft) home features three bedrooms, three bathrooms, an office, a two-car garage, an open plan living and dinning areas and a large modern kitchen
The design also includes a large undercover terrace which extends from the home's open interior living space, located on the ground floor
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The design also includes a large undercover terrace which extends from the home's open interior living space, located on the ground floor
Izabelin House is anticipated to take one year to complete
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Izabelin House is anticipated to take one year to complete
The architect's biggest challenge will be to preserve the existing trees
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The architect's biggest challenge will be to preserve the existing trees
The central undercover terrace blends seamlessly with the home
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The central undercover terrace blends seamlessly with the home
The Izabelin House by Reform Architects
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The Izabelin House by Reform Architects
The Izabelin House by Reform Architects
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The Izabelin House by Reform Architects
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Polish architectural studio, Reform has plans to construct a dramatic mirrored home in the middle of a forest landscape. Dubbed Izabelin House, the home's exterior design heavily features a mirrored facade which clads most of the lower level, giving the illusion that the upper half of the home is floating in mid air above the forest bed.

"The inspiration for the use of mirrors on the facade came from the surrounding nature," Reform's principle architect, Marcin Tomaszewski tells Gizmag. "I wanted to insert the building into the environment."

The Izabelin House design concept features a modular two story family home which will be built with a traditional reinforced concrete construction. The 400 sq m (4,305 sq ft) home features three bedrooms, three bathrooms, an office, a two-car garage, an open plan living and dinning areas and a large modern kitchen. The design also includes a large undercover terrace which extends outdoors from the home's open interior living space, located on the ground floor.

The central undercover terrace blends seamlessly with the home
The central undercover terrace blends seamlessly with the home

The architect's biggest challenge will be to preserve the existing trees which are currently located on the planned construction site. Furthermore, they will need to figure out a way to prevent birds from flying into the home's highly reflective exterior surface.

"We will need to figure out the extent of the problem, as the mirrors are located on the lower floor, the majority of the birds should fly slightly higher," says Tomaszewski. "An ornithologist will select an appropriate deterrent device which can emit sounds for the birds, if such a problem will occur."

Izabelin House is anticipated to take one year to complete with a final estimated cost of close to US$1 million.

Source: Reform Architecture

View gallery - 11 images
8 comments
8 comments
EyeMars
Just one word: BIRDS.
Leif Knutsen
I can envision wind-rows of dead birds as well as other prey escaping wildlife run head long into the walls.
Bob Flint
Not really practical is it, the first rain will dirty the mirrors, and the splashing from the ground alone will help in keeping the bird deaths low.
Why the need to pretend to hide an unnatural material in a natural setting? Vanity or lack of architectural design sense?
Craig Nowakowski
Beautiful...great concept of integrating with nature. Regarding wildlife, mirrors may be better than glass, optically ?
StWils
In addition to the probable bird and deer collisions this place also is not suited for any area where some pinhead might be hunting with pretty much any kind of gun or bow. These are people who are pathologically incapable of noting "No Hunting" signs.
The Skud
Silliest idea I've seen so far in 2015 - If the idea is to 'lose' the home in the forest, mirror the whole thing! If birds and animals pose a problem, use judiciously spaced mirror tiles, allowing close moving birds to realise there is something there, while the spaces disappear with distance, like getting closer to - or away from - a insect mesh screen.
Bob
I wonder if his wife does windows and mirrors?? If not this place will look like crap. Too much maintenance and in many areas a big temptation for vandals. There's a good reason most people don't live in glass houses.
kman
I've seen many mirrored walls like this outside. They look really cool for about an hour, and then as the dust begins to settle and the surface gets dirtier and dirtier, the effect is lost in very little time. Within a week it would look terrible, unless the occupants intend to spend several hours per day keeping the glass spotless.