Hide and Sleep
With the classic Murphy bed as muse, Japanese architect Toshihiko Suzuki transformed a standard Airstream into a versatile small wonder.
In 2009, architect Toshihiko Suzuki, of Tokyo-based design firm Atelier OPA, applied his Japanese small-space sensibility to a gutted Airstream and created what could be considered the ultimate condensed caravan.
Inside the trailer, Suzuki installed a long island based on kenchikukagu, which means “architectural furniture” and is the name of a collection of his designs. The Kenchikukagu-series Mobile Kitchen, Foldaway Office, and Foldaway Guestroom are each housed in a wooden box that hinges open or expands like an accordion to transform into a room that can later be rolled away. Likewise, the island in the mid-dle of the Airstream folds open to reveal an equipped kitchen and either a dining table for six or two beds, each with its own reading light.
The flexibility of the design adds to the longevity—–and the sustainability—–of the space, Suzuki says: “Architecture is seldom destroyed because it has a long life span.” So despite the renovated Airstream’s spatial shortcomings, the multitude of possible arrangements means it has miles of road still ahead of it.
To see more images of the project, please visit our slideshow.
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Although the design is ingenious and sleek, the comfort factor gets a bloody F rating in my books. Can't imagine even a short nap on that thin pad...
Are we running out space here or what?
Does it come with an outhouse?
Simply Amazing. This gives me so many Ideas. Less is truly more.
This has to be the most inefficient use of space I have ever seen in an Airsteam. What a waste. NO, less is definitely not more.
I have lived in travel trailers for 15 of the last 18 years, the last 6 in Airstreams/Avions. This creation is just a glorified party wagon. What is the point of the so-called beds? There is no bathroom, no closet, no place to sit. Why have seating for 6 when you couldn't cook for 6 in this. You can make an Airstream look this minimalist but make it function too. These guys get an F in my book. Wally Byam must be rolling in his grave over this!
I love the aesthetics of this minimalist retro-modern evolution. The comfort factor does not necessarily require "padding", in the conventional sense. Of course a little "memory foam" might go a long way here. There are other air, and fabric technologies that could be applied for a compactable/convertible solution. Also, I'd like to see some integration of new energy technologies and water purification thrown into the mix. Slap some thin and flexible solar panels on this badboy! Keep it off the grid.
P.S. - I hope that is L.E.D. lighting.
I agree this is inefficient. Very clunky & crowded looking. Would never do this to an Airstream!
Twin air mattresses would be more comfortable and could be deflated and tucked away just as neatly as those thin white mats.
It takes camping to a whole other level!
Am I the only one who has noticed the permanent separator down the center line of the bed?
What a great use of space!
This is such a great idea! I was in Tokyo and slept on those futons and found them to be much more comfortable than the versions sold in North America. I also really like the notion of everything being tucked away nicely. The divider between the two twin beds gives a sense of privacy that I really like plus it keeps the arms and legs of by-sleepers off and does away with feelings of suffocation and entrapment. The only other idea that could be added would be a similarly tucked away toilet/shower system that are now available. I am dreaming of a minimalist-style cabin and this gives me ideas/ concepts of effective use of small spaces.
As a long term trailer afficionado, including several airstreams, this is conceptually fascinating! Missing is the bathroom, refrigerator, and seating area, so sad. Totally Japanese -- but really, the bed divider is a waste of space and worst of all, while many ideas are good this comes across as an insult to Airstream who right now offer some models worthy of the pages of Dwell, without the retrofit {and I don't sell Airstreams}! Some combination of ideas would be great.
Great idea, but an insult to an Airstream. It looks like a sushi restaurant on wheels. And the prison bed roll doesn't look that comfy to me. Art... ah, to each is own, I guess.
That looks nice, but very uncomfortable and impersonal. I wouldn't want to live there.
I'm sorry, but this is just terrible. Not everything is cool because it comes from Japan and has silly pseudoarchitectural lingo attached to it. And what's with the separating wall between the beds? Bug or feature?
Hi! I own a blessed Airstream and have gutted it from the original furnishing. What I see here is purely non-functional and esoteric. I'm not an architect, but I know how to make use of a small space and this isn't very ingenious. The kitchen and table/bed are nice in themselves, but not in a camper. I've seen way better.
On first glance, it reminds me of an operating theatre. Creepy!
I love dual-purpose furnishings, but these aren't even an ingenious use of this space. A center aisle is axiomatic (so to speak) in a space that slopes to the sides. It feels much better than moving around the perimeter of furnishings in such a tight area. This comes off as quite shallowly conceived.
The rounded no-corner style of the airstream requires a different lighting system to make it look other than a cave painted in white, and I don't like moving in such a structure where the edges of the living space have been deliberately blurred. I've been once standing in a shower booth with "rounded edges", and moving around with my eyes covered with soap is a clear slipping hazard. It is also a hazard to walk in this area at night. The wall settings look incomplete, and are contrasted by the oversized "coffin" using-up any walking space left inside, as well as the tube running across the walls towards the lamp. This electrical wiring should have been imbedded inside the walls of the trailer, as it is the custom. The overall setting is that of a spartan industrial building. There seems no reason for the furniture to fold this way, as it saves no space. There isn't even space for a toilet room!
What a design dud. Thanks for sharing.
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