You know how sometimes you find yourself drawn to something without even knowing it? Lately I realize I have been eyeing projects that tend towards dematerialization—mostly architecture that plays off the solid and the void and turns our idea of a building inside out. I know Philip Johnson did this years ago, but I thought it would be fun to share some fun new takes on it too.
Like this fabulous house (above) in Sweden designed by architect Elding Oscarson. I love that the timber second floor seems to hover over the transparent ground floor. Though it would be hard to pull off a Tom Cruise Risky Business move in that living room!
Or this crazy building, called the 'Sliding House', whose wooden exterior literally peels away to reveal a shining glass skin inside. Designed by dRMM Architecture, the double layer structure has the added bonus of regulating heating and cooling during the winter and summer. 
Or how about this cool place called the Mirror House? The Danish-American firm MLRP transformed a rundown park pavilion into this fabulously reflective funhouse. I love the undulating mirrors on either end of the building, turning the surrounding landscape into a twisting Van Gogh-like scene.
And it's not all about buildings. How about this incredible artist's book by Olafur Eliasson? Isn't it beautiful how it slowly reveals the empty spaces in the house, starting with the building's facade and delving into its inner sanctums? I would love to have that 908 page tome on my coffee table, wouldn't you?
And last but not least, I spotted this cool project by Alyson Shotz some time ago and have been dying to share it with you ever since. If you look very closely at the bottom photo above you can see how well the mirrored fence blends into the landscape (see it below the tree all the way on the left?). Stunning, right? Talk about dematerialization! I would love to see this in different landscapes: along a canal in Venice, on a dune in the desert, beside a mountain range. . . I bet it would have a completely different effect in each new location.
Any reflective/transparent/solid-void spaces I missed?
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