Floating

Dubbed Naturecruiser and Waterloft, these innovative motorized floating homes by Dutch firm +31Architects are designed as fully equipped houseboats, but with the added benefit of being able to cruise the surrounding lakes or rivers.​

The “Suspended Forest” cabin hangs from a large overhead concrete structure, allowing the dwelling to hover above the snow-covered landscape. The structure is part of the Jan Michalski Foundation, a center for literature and writing.​

Arkup's incredible concept for a floating house on stilts has been built and it's for sale for a cool US$5.5 million. Packing solar power, stabilizing hydraulic stilts, and its own engines, the first model was recently unveiled during the Miami Yacht Show.

​Although traditional seismographs are essential for warning of earthquakes, they can be difficult to access when placed on the sea floor. Well, that's where the MERMAID underwater seismic floats are designed to come in, and they've recently been successfully tested in the Galápagos.

Istanbul-based architecture firm SO? says that its city would be lacking in land suitable for emergency housing in the event of a major earthquake. In response, the firm has conceived a prototype floating shelter that has an interesting folding design.

Gracing London's very first floating park, located in Paddington Basin on the Grand Union Canal, The Boathouse London offers unique floating accommodation for up to four guests. It features Scandinavian decor and ​makes liberal use of reclaimed wood​ for a rustic feel.

​As the Ocean Cleanup Project readies its floating barriers for collecting waste plastic from the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, a similarly green project much closer to its home has opened a floating park in Rotterdam's harbor. The Recycled Park features connected blocks made from waste plastic.​

British artist Alex Chinneck has been distorting and twisting the physical world into surreal and mind-bending permutations for nearly a decade now. His latest work returns to the more humble world of indoor sculpture after five years of extraordinary large-scale work.

Italian designer Pierpaolo Lazzarini has conceived a futuristic community named Wayaland made up of floating pyramid structures. It's still very much in the concept stage, though Lazzarini is hoping to raise the funds to build it with a crowdfunding campaign.

Bulgarian-born artist Christo, who made his name creating oversized artworks with his late wife Jeanne-Claude, is planning his first major UK project this year. Named the Mastaba, the temporary sculpture will feature thousands of stacked barrels floating on Serpentine Lake, Hyde Park, London.

Max Zhivov recently unveiled his latest project, the Modul Go. It's envisioned as an inexpensive and flexible motorized houseboat that could serve as a residence, coffee shop, or more. As of writing it's still in the design stage, but Zhivov hopes to eventually bring it to market.

​A new Kickstarer project aims to remove trash from the Chicago River by creating a remote-controlled floating garbage collector. Named Trash Robot, the machine can be controlled a web browser, so potentially anyone can take a turn doing their bit to clean up the river from anywhere in the world.