Born from the COVID-19 pandemic, this unprecedented home improvement project is a rare solo endeavor—entirely conceived and built by the designer. Drawing from personal experience, the project is rooted in the universally human idea of a family haven. Life is a voyage on the open sea, and home its harbor—a metaphor that transcends culture and geography. The pandemic deepened this shared awareness, inspiring the designer to build his own “family harbor” within his courtyard.
More than a renovation, the project is a deeply personal and artistic response to the social dynamics of a pandemic-shaped world. Through landscape design, it tells a broader story—transforming a modest courtyard into a symbolic and functional piece of environmental art. The result is an ecological sanctuary that symbolizes resilience and renewal, emphasizing how individual home environments can serve as building blocks for more humane, sustainable settlements.
A dramatic yet intimate scene unfolds: sixty-eight “boats” are docked in rhythmic formations throughout the yard, forming the heart of the design. These elements generate strong reverse movements, powerful contrasts, and dramatic tension—simulating boats breaking through turbulent waves. This striking composition pays tribute to the profound resilience of humanity during the pandemic. The courtyard becomes a poetic space—an inland ocean of resolve and grace.
But this space is more than a refuge from isolation. It becomes a sanctuary—a dreamscape of stars and seas that fosters warmth, connection, and community. Unique gathering spaces aboard boats and over water redefine the experience of home, presenting a lifestyle enriched by architectural ingenuity, adaptability, imagination, and thoughtful design.
At its core, the project reimagines the residential courtyard—not as a static space, but as a living, breathing narrative of human experience during and beyond the pandemic. By night, the courtyard glows like a fleet at anchor, its lights shimmering like fishing fires on calm water. The space embraces a networked-thinking approach, bridging Eastern and Western aesthetics, ancient sensibilities, avant-garde experimentation, and future visions. It becomes an interactive, ever-evolving environment, radiating warmth and grace. Suspended boats appear to float, creating a surreal sense of weightlessness and a symbolic journey through time.
Ecological values are embedded throughout. A preserved tree grows through the tea pavilion, offering shade and anchoring the space. Recycled natural materials are transformed into elegant structures, while sustainable strategies—solar power, rainwater harvesting, and permeable surfaces—maximize resource efficiency. Built at minimal cost by a senior individual working alone, the project exemplifies ingenuity, independence, and sustainability.
Interwoven and multidimensional, this “harbor” invites new ways of thinking about home—as a sanctuary of memory, hope, and a new lifestyle.