Prefab

Organized around a central courtyard, the home’s three modules are oriented to maximize views of downtown Marfa; 20-foot-deep piers drilled below each concrete footing root the structure to the site and help stabilize it against West Texas winds, which can reach 120 miles per hour.

“The house almost doesn’t exist, but serves as the subtle cloak between inhabitant and environment.”—Cynthia, resident

When they are eventually integrated into the parks, the cabins are meant to stand in groups of ten to 15.

The L-shaped secondary building perches over a craggy escarpment. It offers the best vantage point for taking in the moss-planted roof, forest, and ocean.

The main building sinks then elevates in full view of ocean.

NOEM, a Barcelona–based architecture firm, created a metal-clad house for a young client just outside Madrid. It’s raised 12 feet off the ground to offer better views of the landscape, lending it "the futuristic feeling that it just landed," says Pol Guiu, one of NOEM’s cofounders.

The jaunty boat-like shell of the Hütte Hut began with a case study undertaken by Brian and Katrina Manzo, a husband-and-wife team of industrial designers behind Sprouting Sprocket Studio.

Studio owner Joey Williams uses his space to work from home as an Austin-based media director.

Subtle features incorporated into the design, including an elevated terrace and jetty, help the home float above the island.

Embedded in the desert, this Marmol Radziner–designed prefab home for a Las Vegas casino executive features a James Turrell pyramidal Skyspace structure.

Nestled in a field of praire grass in the Wisconsin woods, the Weekn’der is a dynamic contrast of minimalist black and white.

In the rendering for the zeroHouse, the building appears to be both a harmonious addition to the landscape and a harbinger of future architectural forms.

An Asymmetrical Prefab Home in Sweden It took a mere six months—three in the factory and three on-site—for this prefab to come to fruition on the shore of Sweden’s Müsko Island.

A Simple Plan A Marmol Radziner–designed prefab house, trucked onto a remote Northern California site, takes the pain out of the construction process.

An imaginary axis divides the floor plan down the middle, with the open plan living room and kitchen to the south and three bedrooms to the north. In the dining area, a freestanding island hides appliances and piping while also providing counter space. Floor-to-ceiling windows make the outside deck and garden feel like an extension of the interior.

Organized around the staircase and entrance, or core, is a succession of communal living spaces that connect to the outdoors via seamless windows. Images courtesy Claesson Koivisto Rune.

“One of the goals of Zenkaya was to create employment in a country crippled by [an unemployment rate of over 25 percent],” explains the architect, who likes to call himself a social entrepreneur.