Awesome Architecture

Take a ride on what is now the steepest funicular railway, a marvel of engineering that carries passengers up a mountain in Stoos, Switzerland at a crazy 110º gradient. It lifts more than 89,000 pounds, nearly 2500 feet in altitude along its 1.07-mile route.

Shipping containers are sometimes used to build tiny homes, but this unique home is anything but small. Levi Kelly takes us on a tour of the Woodside Container home, a spacious modern home built from six shipping containers. Located in Millersburg, Ohio, the 2 bedroom / 2 bath home is available to rent on AirBNB.

Tired of looking at the same view, day after day? Perhaps you should do what Vojin Kusic did, and build a house on top of a turntable. He constructed this unusual house in northern Bosnia so that his wife could always enjoy a different view. It can spin as slow as one rotation per 24 hours to a dizzying one rotation every 22 seconds.

Like most big cities, living in Paris, France can be very expensive. Architect Matthieu Torres and his girlfriend made the most of their 344 square foot apartment in the 20th arrondissement through the smart use of custom built-in furniture and the addition of skylights. Never Too Small takes us inside the tiny but efficient living space.

Las Vegas is always trying to outdo itself, and the MSG Sphere looks to transform Sin City’s skyline again. The B1M showcases this 367 foot-tool structure, located behind The Venetian. Its main attractions will be a 17,000 seat theater with a wraparound LED screen, and an exterior covered with millions of LEDs. Opening is set for 2023.

The Lumipod offers a modern take on the cabin in the woods. The compact dwelling’s most notable feature is its curved glass picture windows which can be retracted into its walls, so its main space can transform from an indoor space to an outdoor one in seconds. It’s available in three sizes, ranging from 18m² to 42m².

The Ruyi Bridge is one of the most interesting bridge designs on the planet. Located in the Shenxianju Scenic Area in Taizhou, China, it features three connected arches – one that rises and two that dip. The two lower bridges are connected by a glass walkway which allows pedestrians to peer down to the forest 459 feet below.

Now that we’ve seen how the real Statue of Liberty was built, you can make your own tabletop version using 1685 LEGO bricks. The LEGO Architecture 21042 Statue of Liberty depicts America’s iconic statue along with its intricate pedestal. The statue includes the golden torch, crown, and tablet.

Hailing from rural China, a man going by the nickname “Mr. Tiger” has been painstakingly digging into a mountainside to build a house. He used various hand and power tools to gradually chip away at the rock to create a small living space, which he hopes to expand over time. Follow his progress on YouTube or Ixigua.

We love seeing how creative architects and builders can get with small spaces. Never Too Small, shows us around a 291 square foot home in Australia that was created to offer big-city apartment style while being surrounded by a peaceful country setting. Its top section was designed to be collapsible for transport.

At a height of 2717 feet, Dubai’s Burj Khalifa is the tallest building on Earth, towering over its nearest competition. TED-Ed takes a look at the engineering innovations that made it possible. Though its rapid, 5-year construction didn’t come without a cost for those who toiled to build it for low wages in poor working conditions.

Artist Ekow Nimako celebrates African culture through his incredible LEGO brick constructions. His most recent works are constructed entirely from black bricks, revealing their details through light and shadow. His epic Kumbi Saleh 3020 CE, pays tribute to West Africa’s medieval kingdoms through the lens of Afrofuturism.

Despite being made almost entirely out of bamboo, this unique handmade home has a contemporary aesthetic. The guys from Primitive Survival Tool spent about 60 days in the woods building this villa from scratch. It’s not obvious at first glance, but it actually has a basement with a bedroom hidden inside.

How’d you like to spend your weekends in a lunar lander? Catamaran designer Kurt Hughes turned his skills towards building an earthbound structure inspired by the iconic space vehicle. His 250 sq.ft. “fishing shack” sits along the banks of the Columbia River, and is made from carbon fiber panels, plywood, and epoxy.

Every time we see a cool tiny house, it makes us want to downsize and live a more spartan and economical life. Living Big in a Tiny House introduces us to Jason and Summer, who built themselves a modern and pragmatic house on her parent’s land and filled it with art. We love that indoor/outdoor kitchen passthrough.

Marc Hagan-Guirey – aka “the dark king of kirigami” – creates marvels with paper, a ruler, a sharp blade, and an equally sharp eye. For Le Corbusier Paper Models, he created templates and step-by-step guides so patient crafters can cut and fold their own mini-models of 10 iconic buildings by modernist architect Le Corbusier.