Plastic Paradise
A short history about an unusual home.
Written by Ashley Steenson
THIS AQUA FUTURO HOME LOCATED IN FINLAND TAKES IN A LOVELY WATERSIDE VIEW. (PHOTO COURTESY OF PIXABAY)
“THERE’S A GREAT FUTURE IN PLASTICS.” That’s what actor Walter Brooke’s character, Mr. Maguire, told Dustin Hoffman’s character, Ben, in the 1967 film, “The Graduate.”
In the late 1960s, the oil that was required to manufacture plastic was cheap, and architects drew inspiration from the material.
After a friend requested a ski chalet, Finnish architect Matti Suuronen (1933–2013) designed the fiberglass-reinforced polyester plastic “Futuro House” in 1968. Shaped like a UFO, the house had a diameter of 26 feet and square footage of 538.