Emerging Objects is a self-described 3D Printing MAKE-tank founded by Ronald Rael, an Associate Professor of Architecture at University of California Berkeley, and Virginia San Fratello, an Assistant Professor of Design at San José State University. They are trailblazers in the 3D printing industry, specializing in cutting-edge architecture and building components. Their innovations include a porous ceramic brick that passively cools interiors, a teapot printed from actual tea, furniture made from recycled tires, and now, a fully-livable cabin. 

The Cabin of Curiosities is a culmination of the work the Bay Area start-up has been perfecting since its founding and proves the architectural potential of additive manufacturing on a weathertight, structurally sound building. Made from more than 4,500 3D printed ceramic tiles, the structure demonstrates 3D printing's potential for making highly designed building components from unlikely materials.  

The front facade is composed of their "Planter Tile." Made from shades of portland cement, sawdust, chardonnay, and combinations thereof, the tiles are arranged to create a living wall capable of holding plant life like the succulents that thrive in the Northern Californian climate. The tiles take a hexagonal shape and are formed in a pattern of six, four of which are capable of holding plants. The design on the tiles—various petal motifs—ties them all together.

The roof and contiguous facades are clad in another one of the company's creations, their "Seed Stitch" tiles named after the knitting technique it emulates. According to the firm, the tiles are "an exercise in mass complexity." They are printed at extremely high speeds to create deliberate anomalies that give the tiles an uneven, handmade-looking aesthetic. They are then hung on the surface of the building, employing bent galvanized metal J molding to hang the light-weight ceramic tiles. 

Inside, the walls are clad with the translucent Chroma Curl Wall, made from a bio-based plastic derived from corn, that features custom relief textures and illuminates the interior (as well as the exterior) with color changing LED lights. The interior is then decorated with many of the company's other innovations like their pottery, furniture, and lamps.

The 3D printed cabin certainly is not the first structure to be made through additive manufacturing, one recent example being the affordable housing model that popped up at SXSW over the weekend. But, the Cabin of Curiosities by Emerging Objects certainly marks a departure in its commitment to both sustainability and aesthetics. In an interview, Rael pointed out that "these are not just investigations into testing materials for longevity or for structure, but also a study of aesthetics. We see the future as being elegant, optimistic, and beautiful."