September 23, 2009
The term "Outside the Box" describes approaching concepts in a different way, from a new perspective. The Interior Design Show West is all about being "outside the box", so-much-so that this year, the show took the outside, inside.
Introducing “Designing Inside the Box”, a West Coast take on creating spaces that are original design installations. As part of the recent show, IDSwest and the IDIBC challenged six IDIBC members to develop unique spaces that showcase their creativity and originality; design that truly makes you think. Each original space was contained within a 20ft x 8ft shipping container, where firms were encouraged to stage cutting edge design ideas. The intent was to show creativity and imagination when firms were given a blank space.
Omicron was one of six firms chosen to participate in this exciting event. We combined the creativity, skills and abilities of our in-house interior design, architecture and construction teams to create an installation proudly called “H-Omi”.
H-Omi is a concept for a low-cost living space that makes use of redundant shipping containers when it is uneconomical to return them to their port of origin. With their inherent strength and relative abundance in a port city such as Vancouver, it makes sense to ‘up-cycle’ these readymade shelters into short-term affordable accommodation units where a pressing need has been identified such as Olympic and other large-scale sporting events, social housing and disaster relief shelters. Inspired by small space living in RVs, yachts and capsule hotels, H-Omi comprises a series of pared down modules that support basic human needs: live/eat/sleep/bathe. These modules would be simple in their construction and would be built using recycled/sustainable materials.
This exercise truly showcases the elegance and benefits of Omicron’s design/build model. Congratulations to the H-Omi team on a job well done and thank you to IDSwest for once again providing a platform to showcase BC’s design talent and innovation.
For more information, contact:
Beverley Attfield, BA
Marketing and Public Relations Manager
Omicron
604 632 4353
battfield@omicronaec.com
