Environmental Artist Bryan Morse traveled to Thailand to consult on the construction of a Natural Swimming Pool adjacent to the Eco Villa under construction at the Six Senses Soneva Kiri Resort on the island of Koh Kood. The site presented particular challenge because it was nestled in a flood plane with the need of creating the regeneration zones on the side of a steep slope adjacent to the Swim Pond.
There’s been a lot of hype about hotels becoming more ecologically responsible but few manage to live up to their public relations spin.
The Bangkok-based luxury resort group, Six Senses, long a vanguard for sustainable travel, recently unveiled the Eco Villa with a Natural Swimming Pool in the hope of resetting these standards.
Tucked into a jungle clearing at the Soneva Kiri Resort, on the Thai island of Koh Kood, the prototype, off-the-grid Eco Villa may look prehistoric but may also signify the future of sustainable accommodation.
The villa has been built entirely from materials found in its immediate environment. The cave-like structure is based on a naturally ventilated tepee design by Miwok Indians from northern California, with casuarina driftwood logs dug out of a nearby beach providing the support.
Stone boulders rendered with a buffalo-skin glue and jaggery line the outside walls; inside, mud bricks covered with plaster made from clay and rice husk radiate a warm glow. The floor is compacted mud, the furniture is fashioned out of driftwood and the whole building has been fixed together with hardwood dowels made by a local boat maker.
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