Written by: Edgar Alfonso Rodríguez
Edited by: Nathalie Mezza-Garcia
Architects such as Giancarlo Zema and his team are inspired by nature and the way it works. They generate innovative habitat solutions integrating the use of cutting-edge technologies within an attractive, efficient, and sustainable design.
In aquatecture, bioarchitecture, and biomimetic architecture, the use of eco and bio-sustainable materials becomes key for the generation of projects that go beyond average. These projects are designed in an innovative way. In them, creativity and imagination play a fundamental role in resignifying elements of the environment where they will be implanted. From their combination arises the use of local materials for construction and the inclusion of technological elements. The result: self-sustaining biomimetic OR bio-inspired projects.
According to Guiseppe Carusi, a very talented engineer and technology lover, there are many people producing very striking futuristic designs where the technologies to be used are only briefly mentioned in a descriptive way. However, behind the designs, there is no deep study of the viability of their implementation. Carusi, on the other hand, has collaborated in the design of different eco-sustainable floating architecture projects while working at Giarcalo Zema. For this aquatecture company, the inclusion of technology in the design is fundamental. Guiseppe has created designs that look nice and attractive but at the same time, their technological implementation is possible.
But in terms of design, Giancarlo Zema’s aquatecture doesn’t only focus on technology. Its interior design finds perfect harmony with the environment or place of implementation. Its furniture is sometimes made of cardboard, like the one shown in the image below. The WaterNest, one of a sample of the work of Giancarlo Zema Design Group’s projects uses this type of furniture.
"The WaterNest" is an ecological floating house of approximately 100 m2, equipped with 60m2 of photovoltaic panels on top. The panels elegantly follow the WaterNest’sspherical volumetry. These panels generate 4kw of energy daily, which is enough to make each Nest energetically self-sustaining. Another characteristic to highlight is the use of materials in its construction. 98% are recyclable.
We could dedicate entire pages to the study and analysis of this and many other projects carried out by Giancarlo and his group, but here we want to highlight the philosophy of thought behind the generation of these projects: nothing is impossible! Letting creativity flow inspired by almost perfect bio-inspired engineering results in innovations in drones, the production of clean energy, the use of biomaterials, and the inclusion of processes such as artificial photosynthesis, among others. Giancarlo Zema’s approach leads to projects that provide solutions to current and future problems. The solutions involve energy and being self-sustainable in aspects such as food production. Overall, floating houses and city projects, although they have not become too popular yet and at the moment they may seem to be within the reach of only a few, in the future they will be a great habitat alternative for entire communities. I dare to say, they already are.
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