Nautilus-shaped houseboats mimic natural proportions in Berlin

The houseboats are modeled on their namesake, the spiraled-shell mollusc, to fit seamlessly with the natural world. owner/founder Andreas Hoffmann designed the craft when he couldn't find the right for his family. As a trained and architect and sailor/windsurfer, he wanted to combine his passion for water and his professional skills.

The -modern-inspired comes in two sizes- the mini (16m²) and the maxi (21.5m²)- and is prefabbed with a front of solid glass walls so nature is always in view. Even the 16m² (172 square foot) space can sleep 6 (a pop-up roof bedroom, plus one downstairs, as well as a double sofabed). Measuring approximately 13.3 meters long (43.6 feet) it features a convertible roof that expands into the bedroom, foldable gangways, and a foldable cabin for passage through narrow locks and low bridges.

Hoffman's newest floating home the (“Ei” is German for egg) is an egg-shaped floating home with windows covering one side of the structure.

https://www.nautilus-hausboote.de/en

On *faircompanies https://faircompanies.com/videos/nautilus-shaped-houseboats-mimic-natural-proportions-in-berlin/

25 Comments

    • It’s definitely phi not pi (I’ve just been teaching trig to my daughter during covid-19 lockdown — earlier this week she was required to derive the value of phi using pythagorus rather than the standard way via the quadratic equation). Great video Kirsten, as always, and much needed at this time…

    • I use sacred geometry in my art and architecture, and have for years. Pi and Phi are two different Greek letters, representing related but differing mathematical concepts. I’ve known the Pi proportion as the correct 3.14+ most of my 71 years.

  1. Sees a shell, wants- no needs to live in one. Maybe a hermit crab pinched his mommy’s toe when she was carrying him. 🙂 Very nice project! Enjoy it.

  2. My grandparents (german-American) lived on a house boat- it brings back great memories- we had so much fun – I miss them very much!

  3. A radiused edge does not a nautilus make. I understand the inspiration, but if I weren’t being prompted to consider it, I wouldn’t think, ‘ah, nautilus,’ at first sight of this houseboat. It’s a nice design, but I’d like to see even more design innovation here that draws from the nautilus form.

  4. the boat will be moving back & forth all day even if your boat stay in 1 spot?
    to many windows people see u inside?
    what if u get sea sick from the boat?
    look like a small cruise ..

  5. Honestly I’d prefer a square shape to maximise the internal and external space, the curved area seems like a saste of both the internal volume and the surface area of the upper deck.

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