Meet Mast, the emerging masters of floating architecture

The Wallpaper* Architects’ Directory 2024 includes Mast, a young practice joining our annual round-up of exciting emerging architecture studios.

Who: Mast

Mast, founded in 2021 by Australian architect Marshall Blecher and Danish maritime designer and architect Magnus Maarbjerg, is on a mission to improve the relationship between the city and the sea.

'We are motivated by the amazing potential that comes from reconnecting with water, as we have seen the amazing effect that even small improvements to water access and quality can produce in cities,' Blecher explains.

Specialising in architecture on or near water, the duo have completed several small structures floating around Copenhagen harbour. There is the 20 sq m tiny prototype floating island KBHØ1 (KBH for Copenhagen and Ø for island) with its 6m tall Linden tree; and the portable ‘harbour bath’, or Dyppezone, which can be freely moved around the city’s waterways, creating intimate bathing experience along its way.

Our favourite is perhaps the recently finished floating Sauna KFF, developed in collaboration with Copenhagen City. Complete with a cold water plunge pool, this has export potential to any place with a clean body of water and a sauna-hungry population.

Mast also works on larger-scale projects, like the transformation of a sand quarry outside of Milan and a proposal for a floating hotel in an abandoned salt production facility in southern Portugal.

What: Houseboat Svenborgsund

Extending the life of a discontinued car ferry from 1947 into a two-storey houseboat was what made Blecher and Maarbjerg formally join their previously separate offices into Mast and set their direction towards working with maritime architecture.

'The houseboat started out as a 1940s Danish car ferry with a timber hull. Many ferries like this once served the small islands around Denmark but have been decommissioned as bridges have been built and modern ferries have replaced them,' Blecher explains.

With the help of the nearby professional shipyard Krohns Bådbyggeri, Maarbjerg and Blecher designed and built the houseboat over 18 months. 'Almost all the interior, including the flooring, kitchen cabinets and the staircase are made of solid Danish oak to keep the materials authentic and close to the original,' Maarbjerg explains. The lower floors consist of a large master bedroom, bathroom, a lounge area and a workshop. The upper deck is kept as one large 22m-long living, kitchen, and lounge area.

The old wheelhouse was renovated and added back on top of the vessel; it has become a small bar with access to the old lookout platform that now serves as a small terrace.

Why: Architects’ Directory 2024

Conceived in 2000 as an international index of emerging architectural talent, the Wallpaper* Architects’ Directory is our annual listing of promising practices from across the globe. While always championing the best and most promising young studios, over the years, the project has showcased inspiring work with an emphasis on the residential realm. Now including more than 500 alumni, the Architects’ Directory is back for its 24th edition. Join us as we launch this year’s survey – 20 young studios from Australia, Brazil, British Virgin Islands, Canada, China, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, India, New Zealand, Nigeria, Portugal, Singapore, South Korea, Spain, Thailand, Tunisia, the UK, the USA, with plenty of promise, ideas and exciting architecture.

mast.dk