What would cities look like if we were to radically redefine the urban living experience by centering it around small interactive communities" The Global Village by MINI LIVING takes an experimental approach to answering that question with five compact, portable dwellings custom-designed for five different cities. The latest iteration is currently on display on the rooftop of ROW DTLA as part of the 2018 LA Design Festival, demonstrating MINI?s vision for improving the quality of urban life while adhering to the brand?s ?creative use of space? credo.

Well aware of the fact that globalization and the internet are leading to a homogenization of architectural styles around the world, MINI LIVING commissioned local architects in each of its chosen cities ? L.A., London, Beijing, Tokyo, and New York ? to infuse each dwelling with the spirit of its locale. The firm Freeland Buck took on this challenge in Los Angeles, producing a dynamic pastel “urban cabin” that captures the city?s sunny, modern sensibilities with a graphic facade and a transforming interior that belies its mere 161-square-foot size.
Compact, attractive, and highly adaptable, this cabin can be placed just about anywhere, opening up to its surroundings by day and closing off for privacy and introversion by night. MINI LIVING?s designers use timber as a core material in every one of their cabins, while the local architects source secondary materials from their respective areas to firmly root eac...