SO–IL’s Ethereal Home Redefines Shared City Living in Milan

MINI LIVING has created another breathtaking new housing prototype that demonstrates their authority in designing creative small spaces. This time, they teamed up with New York studio SO–IL to create MINI LIVING — Breathe, a translucent, modular installation that debuted this week at Salone del Mobile in Milan, Italy.

An experiment in shared city living within a compact footprint, Breathe is composed as a loose stack of porous realms that incorporate sustainable materials for future reuse. The six potential rooms it creates have the ability to house up to three people. For Salone, the project has been set up on an unused, 50-square-meter [540-square-foot] urban plot.

“[The project] brings its residents into direct contact with their environment,” said SO–IL Principal Ilias Papageorgiou in a press release. “By making living an active experience, the installation encourages visitors to confront our tendency to take resources for granted.”

Breathe’s basic structure is supported by a network of stacked metal frames.

The entrance and kitchen takes up the ground floor level, while living spaces and a wet area are spread out over the upper three levels.

The design features a flexible outer skin that filters in daylight and neutralizes the air within the structure. This translucent cover not only acts as a barrier between the outside and inside worlds, but also allows silhouettes and movement to be seen throughout the structure, evoking a dual sense of connectedness and privacy. The fabric on the structure can be replaced to fit a range of climates and environmental conditions.

A rooftop garden collects rainwater and uses oxygen-producing plants to further improve air quality and the urban microclimate. From top to bottom, the project promotes a shared sense of responsibility between inhabitants as well as encourages dialogue with the surrounding environment.

Breathe is part of MINI LIVING, an initiative launched in 2016 by the British automotive marque and created to develop architectural solutions that advance urban living. Last year, MINI LIVING showcased its first two visionary concepts: MINI LIVING — Do Disturb at the Salone del Mobile in Milan and MINI LIVING — Forests at the London Design Festival. MINI will show a further installation at its brand’s own A/D/O design and research headquarters in New York later this year.

MINI LIVING — Breathe will be on view at the Salone del Mobile in Milan, Italy, through April 9.

Images via SO–IL