The Modest House was conceived of as a collaborative effort from the students of the Building Institute at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. The project led us to examine the < 200 square foot space of an 8ft x 20ft flatbed trailer as the replacement home for a victim of Louisiana flooding in August 2016. Tiny homes are a recent fad for young minimalists and older empty nesters, but also serve as a viable option for those who have lost their homes and possessions as a result of natural disasters. We proposed this project as the Anti-FEMA Trailer of past Louisiana hurricanes' fame, and sought to maximize storage space, light, and innovative construction opportunities resembling boat-building via CNC routing. The Modeste House is not the end-all-be-all solution, but it is our first attempt to investigate how new technology and building trends could provide victims of natural disasters with temporary shelter that has the ability to evolve into a permanent home.

UL Lafayette Spring 2017 Design Build

Photos courtesy of Catherine Guidry

Instructor: Geoff Gjertson