Earlier this year I went on a cruise with my family around New Zealand. From a young age I was fascinated with this country and had always dreamed of travelling. What really surprised me was the diverse landscape and the contrast between the North and South Island. Even the weather varied massively from city to city. Therefore, some days we wore T-shirts and on other day’s rain jackets. The country also is a hot bed of culture and is a very spiritual environment.
Whilst we were in New Zealand we took a day trip over to Christchurch. This remarkable city has been devastated twice by earthquakes and is currently undergoing a huge transformation. Even though many buildings were reduced to rubble it is still an exciting and vibrant location. What really appealed to me was the main shopping area, which is composed mostly from shipping containers. Interestingly many trendy cafes and bars pop up for the summer duration. This method of construction is also cost effective and time efficient.
A few years ago I watched an episode of Grand Designs featuring a Belfast based architect called Patrick Bradley. He had just secured a plot of land on his family’s farm and wanted to construct his own home. However, when he informed them that he wanted to construct the residence out of four 45-foot shipping containers the project was treated with a certain skepticism. I think the main concerns were that it would look too industrial and uninviting. Fortunately, Patrick Bradley, through an enormous amount of skill ,executed the project to perfection.
Visually the building has a wonderful contemporary appearance and you would never know it was constructed from shipping containers. Primarily this is because the building is encased in a sleek dark metal cladding. Even though the property only offers 1236 sqft of internal living it doesn’t appear small. Patrick Bradley has cleverly used a range of high quality materials like steel glass and stone to create a sublime modernistic haven. He has even added a touch of luxury and fitted the bathroom with a sculptural hammock style bath from innovative UK design company SplinterWorks.
