Future Evolution House, Wien

:: THE SPACESHIP HAS LANDED ::

Trend and future research as a living architectural project: the future house of Oona Strathern and Matthias Horx

Finally after three years, from conception to completion the futurist family Horx-Strathern have finally moved into their experimental new house in Vienna.

Contrary to expectations, the Future Evolution House is not an electronically controlled house with talking fridges and automatically filling baths. Instead it is determined by the new social architecture of a four person household who live a mobile lifestyle. The house has been developed out of trend and future research and offers a new socio-technological approach to living in the future. At the heart of the project are the trends such as changing social structures, individualization, mega-trend women that are changing the way we will live. The house is also a home for innovative and forward thinking products and technology in terms of energy, media, mobility, design, and materials.

Green (Design) Energy:
The Future Evolution house is trying to combine energy efficiency with smart modern design. The trend is moving away from passive houses to active houses (i.e. producing more energy than they use). The house has elegant black photovoltaic panels integrated on the facade, which will fuel an electric car and an e-Bike. This “energy grid” is part of a new green lifestyle.

Smart NOT complicated technology:
Here the question was how to avoid the problem of complicated remote controls none of which are compatible with each other. The Future Evolution House experiments with innovative elegant new ways to control the technology in the house – from music to lighting, heating, etc. The aim is to reduce to the max – concentrate on the functions you really need – minimal elegance for everyday use.

Flexible spatial design:
A kitchen today is about communication and, bathrooms no longer need to be tiled cells simply for washing. In the media age rooms are gaining a multi-functionality. Kitchens as media hubs, bathrooms as lounges. While work and living is melting together spatially we need new solutions to keep our life-work balance. The Future Evolution House tries to adapt to the changing needs and life-phases of its inhabitants.

For interviews and speeches about the house please contact:
Adele Steiner, Büro Zukunftshaus Horx Wien, Tel. +43 1 479 1455
 

PARTNERS:
We are working with these innovative companies on the project. Please click on the logo for more information:


“The Mobility House” combines home living with electrical mobility from your garage plug-in power feed to energy grid solutions.

One of Austria's highly promising “New Green Tech” start-ups.

www.mobilityhouse.at


We are drawn to Dornbracht by their consequent design and philosophy around the theme of water.

Minimalism meets technical expertise, plus innovation, and excellent personalized professional advice. And they still find time to support the arts, explore world food culture and bathing rituals and innovate.

www.dornbracht.com


Alape is not just about sinks. It is about individuality and shaping space. A great challenge for a bathroom, but one that they rise to with great success.

In a time where bathrooms are becoming ever more central to interior design, they have responded with a clear and clever range of simple but stunning sinks.

www.alape.com


Italian kitchen design at its best.

"Duemilaotto" by our favourite designer Piero Lissoni stands out for its distinct tactile look. A bold but beautiful combination of elegant kitchen block and cupboards contrasted cleverly with a weathered wooden dining table top. Made from pinewood salvaged from a 100 year old Italian mountain hut it brings individuality plus authenticity and history back into modern design.

www.boffi-berlin.de


Quooker is a small, simple but brilliant product that ticks all the boxes for being part of a future house.

It saves energy, makes life easier, and you can throw a bulky appliance (the kettle) away. The Quooker delivers boiling water on tap (literally), and as a British 3 litres-of-tea-a-day drinker, this is one of my favourite future house innovations.

www.quooker.com


This company from Barcelona is making waves in the world of design.

The new furniture and bathroom range from Jamie Hayon is a cheeky mixture of minimalist baroque and fits perfectly to our bathroom salon concept.

www.artquitect.net


The distinctive modern signature look of the flooring from this Danish company belies the fact that it was founded in 1898.

Four generations later they are still a friendly family firm, with carefully managed forests whose philosophy seems to say "we look after the trees, and you look after the wood."

www.dinesen.com


Liebherr are constantly working to improve the efficiency of these traditionally energy-gobbling appliances.

The company do not just think environmentally, but also about the environment inside the fridge itself – with their BioFresh drawers to keep food fresher for longer.

www.liebherr.com



The car dealer Denzel is thinking about the future of mobility. As part of their GREEN-DRIVE project aimed at reducing CO2 they are importing the first electric cars into Austria and working on environmentally friendly car sharing schemes.

www.denzel.at


Miele are producing new "eco- intelligent" appliances for the houses of the future. For example AllWater washing machines that use solar-warmed water and calculate your energy useage, and a dryer with built-in energy saving heat-pump technology.

www.miele.de