#Industry News
Architectkidd’s Blue Bird Hut saves injured birds in Thailand
Did you know that nearly 10,000 birds are smuggled in and out of Thailand every year? Design studio ArchitectKidd wants to combat that problem with their brilliant Blue Bird Hut, a small bird shelter made of recycled materials that doubles as an educational display.
The bird hut was recently awarded the Holcim Gold prize for sustainable construction for the structure’s use of recycled oil palm fibers—a commonly found agricultural waste in Thailand—and focus on political activism. The design was created as part of Architectkidd’s ongoing research for their Bird Sanctuary project.
Although the Blue Bird Hut was built primarily as a bird sanctuary prototype, its 2.45-meter-tall (8-foot-tall) conic form is large enough to provide shelter for people as well. A metal structure supports the natural palm fiber surface, which not only has thermal and acoustic insulation benefits, but can also serves as a food source and habitat for birds. The fibers were naturally dyed a rich indigo blue. Visitors to the bird hut can use the structure as a bird watch tower by prying apart the fibers to create a viewing window.
“The intricate construction of the Bird Hut aims to provide an intimate architecture for both human and animal habitat,” writes Architectkidd. “The aim is to create something that can express this co-existence: to see architecture as a form of protection, a method of disguise, and as an expressive body.”
