christophe benichou's sliding shelter appears to descend towards an icy lake

christophe benichou, the designer of the vertigo inducing ‘tip-box’ pavilion and the balconies for climbers suspended above a canyon, has now presented another conceptual design. the ‘sliding shelter’ is described as an isolated refuge set amid vast snowy slopes. after the precarious balance of the tip-box pavilion, the sliding shelter suggests a motionless slip towards the freezing depths below. ‘both structures may question the place of man in his environment and the future of this cohabitation,’ says benichou.

all images by christophe benichou

embedded into the terrain, christophe benichou’s sliding shelter contains a series of living spaces connected by a single staircase. upon entry, visitors are welcomed into a thermal airlock that serves as a temperate storage space. like a greenhouse, it preheats the rest of the building: an open volume subdivided into a succession of platforms that reveal the slope and house’s different functions. these cascading terraces culminate with a dizzying view of the landscape and lake below.

other projects by christophe benichou include: ‘sesame’, a solitary monolith in the desert; ‘lumishell’, a prefabricated peanut-shaped dwelling; and the ‘wall of logs’, a narrow country house punctured with two large windows. see all of benichou’s work on designboom here.

project info:

name: the sliding shelter
design: christophe benichou architectures
type: fictional project
date: 2019