"An innovative and environmentally conscious hospitality system that gracefully translates the organic logic of driftwood into an adaptable, floating architectural intervention."
-------- Review from Future Art & Design Award
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Project description
Driftwood Dom is an adaptive floating hostel conceived for a remote site near Edimonovo on the Upper Volga. Developed through on-site observation and sketching, its architecture translates the logic of driftwood — a floating body formed from connected fragments — into a modular hospitality system shaped by the river.
A fixed two-storey shared core containing bathrooms and a lounge is combined with reception, kitchen and bedroom modules that can be added, removed or reconfigured as seasonal demand changes. Pontoon-based units respond to changing water levels while reducing the need for permanent construction on the riverbank, allowing capacity to grow without permanently overbuilding the site.
Repeated locally sourced timber ribs create the project’s structural identity, combined with reclaimed timber finishes, lightweight weather-resistant membranes, flexible translucent glazing and HDPE flotation pontoons. Photovoltaic strips integrated along the upper faces of the ribs support on-site renewable energy, while water-reuse and compact waste systems enable more independent operation.
By connecting environmental response, modular growth and immersive access to the landscape, Driftwood Dom reimagines hospitality as an adaptable system that follows the rhythms of the river rather than imposing a fixed structure upon it.