Egg-shaped wooden pod makes a strange and fantastical retreat

If you’re in search of a unique glamping experience, this whimsical pod on the banks of the Loire river estuary may be for you. Mr. Plocq’s Caballon is a sort of steampunk tiny house inspired by the 19th-century naturalist and “bird charmer” Émile Plocq. The egg-shaped pavilion was imagined as a flying ship that carried friendly birds to transport Plocq on his research trips.

It was designed by architects Aurélie Poirrier, Igor-Vassili Pouchkarevtch-Dragoche, and Vincent O’Connor for the region’s yearly “Imaginary Nights” festival, which allows visitors to spend the night in a temporary retreat along the Loire from May to October.

The pod was created using carpentry techniques taken from both ship building and aircraft construction. The curved framing of its egg-like form simultaneously resemble the curved hull of a boat and the interior of a century-old airship.

The studio’s bottom half is made of bent wood, while the top is covered in canvas and thick transparent plastic for the “cockpit” window. The egg opens with a double swing door—the lower half containing steps. The pod contains a main room with a double bed and a small bathroom accessed via a curved “shower airlock.”

Via: Inhabitat