Marilia Pellegrini Arquitetura has presented the CASA CONTÊINER ( The Container House) at the 2019 Casacor exhibition in São Paulo, Brazil, showing how it is possible to transform shipping containers into a modern and functional house. The concept was based on the sustainability and reuse of materials. The time-frame for the elaboration and execution of this model of construction is infinitely smaller, cleaner, faster, dryer than other methods and 100% reusable. Despite the many advantages, there is still a certain general mistrust, motivated especially by the popularization of industrial and simple finishes for this type of building, creating cold and impersonal environments due to the final physical aspects of construction. Marilia Pellegrini wanted to prove the opposite.
The 60 square meter house was made from two 40 feet containers attached alongside each other and has a living, kitchen and laundry integrated, in addition to an ensuite with a comfortable bathroom. The spaces are covered in shades of white, that has a protagonist role in the function of expanding the space and composing the minimalist climate with an impeccable finish so that the container itself and all its industrial and corrugated structure would be imperceptible to the eye. The Japanese atmosphere of space rationalization and intelligent design is present in the concept evoked by Kenya Hara (creative director of MUJI) in his design of emptiness that was a great inspiration to the architect. Within this logic, pieces by the acclaimed designer Oki Sato of Studio Nendo are present.
To coat the external facade, for floors and brises-soleil the architect chose Cosentino’s ultra-compact Dekton surface. This material, which reproduces the noble appearance of marble, has properties of high resistance to sun rays, scratches, stains, abrasion and was the architect’s choice for this project because it can coat the container internally and externally giving it a unified sophisticated finish and hiding the house’s container structure.
The choice of the container was guided by the needs of the contemporary world: “I thought the concept of the house could work very well, for example, as a pavilion for guests on a plot of an existing house. A minimalist design that competes with no style, not even with nature.” The container house also has an external area of 90 sqm with a green zone, fruit trees and a bench sculpted in Brazilian granite designed by the architect, mounted in loco with 204 identical stone plates forming a spiral.
Design and info © Marilia Pellegrini Arquitetura
Images © Ruy Teixeira
