Prefab Pods Create a Super-Efficient Floating Apartment That Shape-Shifts at Sea
Michael K. Chen Architecture channels Le Corbusier vibes into a modular and multifunctional holiday home aboard the world’s largest residential yacht.
![Prefab Pods Create a Super-Efficient Floating Apartment That Shape-Shifts at Sea](https://images.dwell.com/photos-6328431439726800896/6710233625711112192-small/the-600-square-foot-apartment-contains-two-bedrooms-two-bathrooms-a-kitchen-a-dressing-room-a-sitting-area-a-trunk-room-an-entry-hall-and-storage-space.jpg?#)
Michael K. Chen Architecture channels Le Corbusier vibes into a modular and multifunctional holiday home aboard the world’s largest residential yacht.
![The 600-square-foot apartment contains two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a kitchen, a dressing room, a sitting area, a trunk room, an entry hall, and storage space.](https://images.dwell.com/photos-6328431439726800896/6710233625711112192-large/the-600-square-foot-apartment-contains-two-bedrooms-two-bathrooms-a-kitchen-a-dressing-room-a-sitting-area-a-trunk-room-an-entry-hall-and-storage-space.jpg)
Architect Michael K. Chen is renowned for creating stylish, compact homes—and he just unveiled his latest endeavor: a 600-square-foot luxury residence on the largest private cruise ship in the world. Playfully named Pied-à-Mer, the holiday apartment is awash with nautical-inspired midcentury modernist influences—drawing particularly upon Le Corbusier’s ocean liner–like 1952 Unite D’Habitation.
The sleek design morphs from a spacious one-bedroom for a globe-trotting couple to a two-bedroom dwelling large enough to accommodate visits from the clients’ adult children.
![The 600-square-foot apartment contains two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a kitchen, a dressing room, a sitting area, a trunk room, an entry hall, and storage space.](https://images.dwell.com/photos-6328431439726800896/6710233625711112192-medium/the-600-square-foot-apartment-contains-two-bedrooms-two-bathrooms-a-kitchen-a-dressing-room-a-sitting-area-a-trunk-room-an-entry-hall-and-storage-space.jpg)
The 600-square-foot apartment contains two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a kitchen, a dressing room, a sitting area, a trunk room, an entry hall, and storage space.
Alan Tansey
![Terrazzo flooring lines the foyer, which is flanked by storage (a trunk room on one side and a coat closet on the other).](https://images.dwell.com/photos-6328431439726800896/6710233625384792064-medium/terrazzo-flooring-lines-the-foyer-which-is-flanked-by-storage-a-trunk-room-on-one-side-and-a-coat-closet-on-the-other.jpg)
Terrazzo flooring lines the foyer, which is flanked by storage (a trunk room on one side and a coat closet on the other).
Alan Tansey
The key to the design is a series of prefabricated pod-like volumes that organize the apartment and contain hidden elements, such as the fold-up cantilevered beds and integrated appliances.
![The entry space leads to a hallway between the pair of prefabricated, pod-like volumes. A guest closet lies to the left, and the guest bathroom is on the right.](https://images.dwell.com/photos-6328431439726800896/6710233625504694272-medium/the-entry-space-leads-to-a-hallway-between-the-pair-of-prefabricated-pod-like-volumes-a-guest-closet-lies-to-the-left-and-the-guest-bathroom-is-on-the-right.jpg)
The entry space leads to a hallway between the pair of prefabricated, pod-like volumes. A guest closet lies to the left, and the guest bathroom is on the right.
Alan Tansey
See the full story on Dwell.com: Prefab Pods Create a Super-Efficient Floating Apartment That Shape-Shifts at Sea
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