The form of the floating house in the Czerniakowski Port in Warsaw

Abstract

The article discusses the architectural expression of houses built on water, based on the design process of the floating house in the Czerniakowski Port in Warsaw, designed by Mai Bui Ngoc and Rafał Mazur. The question of the form of the floating house was the starting point of the work on this project. Usually buildings are designed in a specific location, which gives architects an inspiration for the design of the new form. In the case of the floating houses the goal was to make a universal artefact as a car or a phone. This artefact should be more connected to the owner than to the landscape. This artefact should be also neutral to the landscape and it should not be destructive for the surroundings. The answer lays be-tween two archetypes; a typical house and a boat. Analysis of the existing floating houses gave the conclusion that authors of these houses were usually very close to one of these two archetypes. It is a need to put a lot of effort to design an object which does not remind a real house and a yacht design.