In September 2000, urban designer and self-proclaimed anti-architect David Greenberg launched an international competition to solicit innovative, ecological treehouse designs for implementation as hotels at far-flung resorts in Hawaii, China, Vietnam, and Fiji. Nearly 500 architects responded. This book compiles the top 99 designs, chosen by an esteemed panel of judges. One look at the fantastic structures presented here makes it clear this isn't Swiss Family Robinson territory: These treehouses are pure flights of fancy, many of which would look right at home in a science fiction film, but many of which are also ecological and use indigenous materials. Floor plans, computer-generated renderings, elevation plans, and scale models appear with the wildly creative designs, along with descriptive essays by the architects, bringing these high-tech, low-cost structures to life, and giving readers a look into an environmentally-friendly architectural future that is all too present.
