The Sophisticated Hut

The Sophisticated Hut
Dan Dorocic
A future hut: a sustainable, high-tech, off-the-grid experiment as a prototype for a future home in the Croatian mountains for the remote worker.

ONOFF with WiMaLa and Armina Pilav
46°09'56.1"N 16°17'34.1"E near Topličica, Croatia
Links
Team members
Samuel Dias Carvalho
Gianni Laneri Deforne
Armina Pilav
Field of work
Architecture, Design, Ecology
Project category
Rural spaces
Project submitted
2022

ONOFF: is an interdisciplinary design studio based in Berlin.
Wimala™ is a Store for Materials that have already been in the building cycle.
Dan Dorocic, Croatia, part of ONOFF is an architect and geologist
Sam Carvalho, Portugal, part of ONOFF is an architect, prof. at Chalmers University
Dr. Armina Pilav, Bosnia, architect, educator at the University of Sheffield, and local vernacular hut expert
Gianni Laneri Deforne, Chile, part of ONOFF, Industrial Designer, and mycelium expert


Ever since we started living in cities we needed an escape. The busier we get the more we need to unplug. Current trends of real estate speculation, the pursuit of nomadism, and the search for freedom have made small-scale houses a trend. There’s a whole industry and a whole category on Airbnb for off-the-grid tiny homes and cabins.

Playing off of this trend, without the constant ding of your smartphone, the site and the project resist the accelerating speeds of daily life and of our relationship with technology and constant connectedness. On the one hand, it’s a throwback to life in the olden times, on the other hand, it’s a retreat for the remote worker. The site of the sophisticated hut is anchored in the bygone times and is to be built on the over 100-year-old cellar wall. The hut's foundation is the oldest vernacular structure on the mountain, and the extension is an experiment for a new vernacular.

The Sophisticated hut combines emerging materials, such as Hempcrete, Mycelium insulation, and more traditional ones such as Rammed Earth / Cob, and Wooden framing. In the end, the Hut will be self-sustained and off the grid using solar energy, smart embodied energy, insulation, etc. This project is not a polemic, our plan is to build it as a concrete example.