dodo van
year: 2021
type: micro-living, mobile home
team: juan alberto andrade, cuqui rodríguez
contractors: eucebio tomalá
area: 5 m2
photography: jag studio
The Dodo Van is a design practice focused on limitations, transformation and spatiality. The project brought with it a space conditioned by a 1993 Chevy Van that was intended to become a mobile home for the users. The architectural result responds to the resolution of the needs of a young couple, who, through participatory work with local communities, intend to explore new places, taking the essential with them.
The architectural program, contained in 5m2 of intervention, has: seats for the transport of 4 to 6 people, a portable table to eat and / or work, a bed for two people, a kitchenette, and storage space. The area conditions the space: developing a project that is flexible enough to adapt to different everyday situations, solving the basic needs of living.
Design strategies were developed that allowed the space to be transformed into various configurations according to its needs, based on the decision to liberate longitudinal circulation and maintain the interior morphology of the vehicle.
The longitudinal flanks were ranked with elements that contain services and functions. A large “appliance” tacitly divides the space into thirds, leaving the kitchen in the first part, with a greater direct relationship to the outside, the storage area in the second, and the living space as the third tract.
6mm plywood boards were used for the vehicle cladding, and 12 and 15mm boards for the floor and the appliances, in a natural matte finish to increase the interior space. Mineral wool was used as a thermo-acoustic insulation system, on the floor, on the walls, and ceiling.
The Dodo Van has a self-generated electrical system based on an independent battery linked to the vehicle's alternator, a 110v transformer and a network of lighting and sockets; as well as a water and drainage system with bearing tanks.
