fairy tale archetecture

I've always adored fairy tales, and am particularly drawn to re-imaginings of classic stories. Usually, these modern adaptations are presented in written form, such as can be found in Kate Bernheimer's fantastic fairy tale anthologies. Every once in a while, however, there will be a project that takes a look at fairy tales through an entirely different medium, and I'm reminded all over again not only of how incredible the original stories are, but of the type of imaginative thinking that they can inspire.

Design Observer’s series of fairy tale architecture, for which Kate and Andrew Bernheimer asked different firms to re-imagine the magical homes of three classic fairy tales, through the lens of architecture, is exactly the sort of project that I love:

Houses in fairy tales are never just houses; they always contain secrets and dreams. This project presents a new path of inquiry, a new line of flight into architecture as a fantastic, literary realm of becoming. We welcome you to these fairy-tale places.

The first design, by Bernehimer Architecture, focuses on the contradictions and challenges inherent in the Russian folkloric figure of Baba Yaga and her house on chicken feet.

Part two has Leven Betts Architects designing a hybrid beanstalk that acts as an infrastructural network between Jack and the Giant's world in Jack and the Beanstalk.

And for part three, structural engineers Guy Norden and Associates tackle the complexities of the tower in Rapunzel.

(Via Brain Pickings)