The house that HUMAN built

Non-fiction about architecture with elements
of wimmelbook and comics

On planet Earth, there are 8 billion people. And everyone needs a home. Over time, we have learned not just to survive, but to live. People have ascended into the sky, descended to the ocean floor, ventured into outer space, and even left footprints on the Moon. After all these adventures, the most important thing always and at all times remains the desire — to come home.

People all over the planet are connected by this desire, despite different lifestyles, values, tastes. Where do you live? In a tent, on a cliff, in a castle, or maybe renting a room in an attic? Cast into uncertainty, WE ALL look for the light in the windows of our home. The home that HUMAN built.

The house that HUMAN built

Pani Krani is a little spider searching for home. He travels using his spider web. Did you know that spiders could do that? He crosses continents and countries, visiting the most diverse people in the most amazing HOMES. Pani Krani knew that his journey would be read by children, that is why he chose VERY magical houses! Our spider has visited a shoe-house, a pine-cone house, a stone house, an invisible house, a house... But why shall we list them all? You’d better read about them in detail.

Of course, from all his journeys, Pani has brought a small souvenir. Can you guess what it was? Besides souvenirs, Pani has gathered very important knowledge: what HOME meant to different people. And, of course, at the end of his journey, he understood what HOME meant to him — little spider who had everything to weave his own unique web.

We are all a little Pani Krani

Cosswiller, France

Yamal, Russia

Heliodome / The Whirligig House

Yaranga

California, USA

The Pine Cone House

Vals, Switzerland

The Underground House

Mexico City, Mexico

Italy

Villa Barbaro

The Snake House

Barcelona, Spain

Gaudi's Casa Batlló

Maryland, USA

Lighthouse

Gotland, Sweden

The Invisible House

Iceland

The Loneliest House

South Sudan

Traditional huts

Dresden, Germany

Африка, ЮАР

The Singing House

Vienna, Austria

The Very Narrow House

Hundertwasser House

Fafe, Portugal

The Stone House

Houses we tell about

Hundertwasser House / Austria, Vienna, Kegelgasse 36-38

The most unusual residential building in Austria! Inside this house, you won't find a single straight line, even the steps are curved. Word of Hundertwasser! The courtyard, too, is all bumpy, indeed! The windows, of course, are all different. The architect loved to play around. And he allowed the tenants of the house to do the same. Therefore, they joyfully painted the facade directly from the windows of their apartments, as well as the walls inside the house. A forest of 200–250 trees spread out on the roof of the building (what's the big deal?). The architect decided not to tease over the balconies and left them French. The facade of the house also has a typical style for that time (Viennese, not French). To create architectural masterpieces, Hundertwasser skillfully combined familiar classic aesthetics with his unique vision of the world. In addition, he passionately advocated for ecology, using residual materials from various construction companies for this and other houses: stone, tile, roofing, etc.

Casa Batlló Gaudí, also known as "Bone House" / Spain, Barcelona, Pg. de Gràcia, 43

Dragon house. Wavy house. A house seemingly made of skulls and bones. There are practically no straight lines here. Wavy elements are everywhere: in the design of the facade and interior. Skulls — balconies, bones — supports holding the body of the house... all these are the remains of a huge shining monster. No, this is not just a house! This is a dragon, defeated by Saint George's spear. At least, that's what the Catalans are convinced of. On the roof of the house, you can find a turret, crowned with a Georgian cross — here's the spear, thrust into the dragon's very spine. The facade is carved out of hewn stone, mined on the Montjuic hill in Barcelona. The windows of the dragon building change their size depending on the height of their location, thus providing even lighting in all rooms.

The Underground House / Switzerland, Vals

Villa Vals is an amazing and unique example of how a house, built by human, can be ecologically integrated into the natural environment, while being a model of traditions and technologies of a specific location. This villa is literally merged into the Alpine slope and almost entirely is underground! But from a huge terrace (60 square meters), framed by the glass facade of the house, there is a stunning view of the mountains and Alpine meadows. The creators of this truly fabulous house are the architectural companies SeARCH and Christian Muller Architects.

Tukel — the house that woman built / Traditional dwellings, South Sudan

A large part of the population of South Sudan is represented by the Toposa people. They live in very unusual hut-houses. Traditionally, tukels — that’ s how they are called — are built by women using earth and shrubbery. The roof is made of straw. This structure is attached to wooden frames, intertwined with cords. It is then raised on stilts, thereby creating the necessary shade for animals and a place for work. Yes, houses can even be like this!

Quetzalcoatl's Nest / Mexico, Mexico City, Manzana 002, 53297 Naucalpan de Juárez

Probably, the most psychedelic residential complex in the world. Truly surreal! By the way, with 10 apartments inside. The house is located on a plot of 5 000 square meters. And what do we have on relief? Let’s take a look: ravines, hills, caves, and natural tunnels, running along the slopes like veins! "Once I noticed that the yawning of a cave resembles a snake's head with an open mouth. We created a scale model and saw that it really resembles a winding snake, which, as if "diving", either enters or exits the earth. We added a "tail" to it and named it Quetzalcoatl in honor of the ancient Aztec deity," says Javier Senosiain, the creator of this fabulous house. By the way, not a single tree was harmed during the construction!

Yaranga — a house to take with you

Somewhere far away in the north — say, in Siberia or Alaska, where it's very cold and deer roam — there are yarangas. Yarangas are traditional portable or stationary dwellings. They are built by the Chukchi, Eskimos, and Koryaks. Yaranga is not a spell! It's a dome-shaped house, which, if desired, can be portable. Well, if you suddenly want to move to another district, for example. A yaranga is constructed like this: a round frame is made from poles, then it's covered with whale, seal, or deer skins.

The Very Narrow House in South Africa / This house is simply unimaginable! Becauseits width is only 3.3 meters

"The building is shaped by the surrounding space. It cannot exist anywhere else in the world. This is a direct expression of its location," says Frankie Pappas, the architect. The silhouette of the house clearly follows the layout of the trees. Therefore, not only was no tree harmed during the construction of this unique house, but not even a single branch was cut off.

Heliodome or The Whirligig House / France, Coswiller, 10 Rue du Diebach

Welcome to the bioclimatic solar house built by Eric Wasser. The house resembles a tilted spinning top. It is a real sundial! Three-dimensional, by the way. This house is set at a specific angle relative to the sun's movement. In winter, sunlight penetrates the rooms and warms them. And in summer, this house is a haven of shade and coolness.

The Pine Cone House in the California forest

No, this house was not built by squirrels or aliens. And yes, it does look like a giant pine cone that has dropped from space. This is another eco-friendly house that is quite habitable. And this house is, or rather, hangs in a real forest. The scales of the pine cone, oh, that is, the scales of the house, serve as protective screens for the windows. They are everywhere here: on the floor and on the ceiling. At night, you can admire the crowns of trees right from the windows of your pine cone house. And to do this you don't have to be a squirrel. It's fine to be a human who loves nature very much. Like architect Dustin Feider, who created this unique forest home.

The Singing House / Dresden, Germany, Görlitzer Straße 25

If you think that houses can't sing or create music — welcome to Dresden! Here one can find the most musical (and perhaps the bluest) house in the world! And in it, of course, live the most ordinary people. This is a multi-apartment orchestra-house. Funnels and drainage pipes framing the facade of the house look like various wind instruments and create a single orchestral system. As soon as the rain starts, the house begins to create its own music. Water slides down the pipes — the orchestra-house plays jazz.

Villa Barbaro / Italy, Comuna Maser, Via Cornuda, 7

Welcome to the past! Or rather, to the timeless classic. A masterpiece of world architecture. The villa was built in the second half of the 16th century by Andrea Palladio for his clients — the Barbaro brothers Daniele and Marcantonio. This unique residential building is an example of the fusion of architecture, painting, and sculpture into a single masterpiece, impervious to lapse of time. Show me your house, and I will tell you who you are. Andrea Palladio was convinced that the house a person lives in says more about its owner than anything else.

The Stone House / Portugal, Fafe, Rua Rally de Portugal #1610

A mysterious and truly fairy-tale house, carved from stone. Four huge boulders serve as its foundation and walls. Windows of different sizes, a roof as if trimmed by a strong wind. This house was not built by hobbits, but by storytellers. People with a rich imagination who really wanted solitude.

Thomas Point Lighthouse House / USA, Maryland, Chesapeake Bay

There are houses that play like orchestras, and houses that are silent like stones. And there are houses that save ships. The house, built in the shallow water in the late 19th century, still works as a lighthouse. It is built on screw piles. The cast-iron beams of the house are screwed into the sea bed. This is not a house created in a lighthouse — it's a lighthouse created in a real cottage, towering above the water. That’s what it is: not the usual lighthouse tower, recognizable from afar, but a residential building that works as a lighthouse, helping passing ships avoid danger.

The Invisible House, or Juniper House / Sweden, Gotland, Kattamarsvik Village

Okay, okay, you might say there are many invisible houses in the world. Or we might say it, since we've been scrutinizing the most unusual residential houses in the world. And Pani Krani, of course. This invisible house made our list for a reason: it stands out from other invisible houses. Its facade is not made of mirrors — but of fabric. And this fabric is printed with photos of a juniper forest, the one that surrounds the Swedish invisible house. Now, if you ever find yourself in this juniper forest, be careful while roaming among the greenery not to bump your nose into the wall of the invisible house. What camouflage!

The World’s Loneliest House / Iceland, Ellidaey Island

Somewhere out there, in the midst of the Atlantic Ocean, on a huge green plateau, stands a single house. It's not easy to get there! Try docking a boat to the rocky slopes of the island. And then scramble onto the shore without any help. Shh! Only birds, the wind, and silence live here. Who built this house and when? Does anyone live here now? Pani Krani will, of course, find out.

Spreads

Details

Sketch of the spread with The Singing House

Download illustrations

Features of the book, and beware of SARCASM

Non-fiction, wimmelbook and a bit of comics. This book combines elements of a wimmelbook, non-fiction and even comics. You can examine, read, explore the world of architecture and enjoy the amazing journey of Pani Krani on each spread.

An architect participated in the work on the book. Thanks to this, the illustrator took into account the true scales and constructive features of the houses. We thoroughly studied the ideas of the authors-architects, conveyed these ideas simply and accessibly. So that this complex interesting book would be understandable not only to children but also to adults ;)

That's why the houses in this book look SO realistic. And each of these fairy-tale houses takes your breath away.
You will definitely want to travel after our book! Or maybe...
well, maybe,
maybe,
build
your unique HOME,
to...
keep a spider in it.
All these houses have been or remain residential.

Series (because Pani Krani has many stories):

The house that HUMAN built
While working on this book, we found SO MANY unique houses that there are enough for another edition. > View the list of houses that did not make it into this book.

The house that ANIMAL built (and BIRD, and FISH, and INSECT)
Here Pani embarks on a world journey to houses built by animals and insects. All these dwellings also represent high architectural value! We will see that every house that human builds is inspired by houses from the animal world.

The House That IS OUT THERE
So! Pani Krani has mastered all the earthly dwellings. But the research thirst sends our hero to SPACE. Pani is going to visit space stations and see how astronauts live. What is their life OUT THERE high up where we so eagerly look at during the night? Do the astronauts miss the Earth? What attracts them to the space? What is home to them? And is it possible to build a house on the Moon? Or on one of Earth's neighboring planets? What could such houses look like... Interesting, isn't it?

The House that Once WAS
During his space adventure, Pani Krani meets a physicist scholar. Pani begins to eagerly study the mysteries of the Universe structure. This is how he discovers a way to travel in time and space. What did houses look like in the eleventh century, hmm, and BCE? What did HOME mean for people of the past? Get ready to go on the most unusual journey in your life and maybe, get a little bit closer to the home.

The House that is a Restaurant
Pani Krani is a gourmet spider. Haven’t you seen him cooking flies forshmak? Well, and after so many travels, one needs to go on a real gastronomic tour! This time, he goes on a world tour of the most unique restaurants. Where it's not only delicious, but also architecturally beautiful. You will like it.

The author’s story:
"A couple of years ago, my daughter, who was two at the time, found a stick like this on the road. She said it was a spider named Pani Krani and we need to paint him!
— Why Pani Krani? — I asked.
— Because it is his name.

I noted down this idea and thought that one day Pani Krani would tell us his story. And so it happened."

Where did Pani Krani come from?

Technical Information

Non-fiction + wimmelbook

Genre

Number of pages

Age

235*316 mm

Format

Svetlana writes fairy tales in the genres of surrealism, psychedelics, absurdity, and non-fiction.
She worked for a long time as a fine art photographer in the international market. This has influenced her writing. In her works, she likes to mix different genres and areas, including photography and illustration.

Author of the publishing projects studio of Russian writer and literary agent Darya Plaksunova

Graduate of the writing workshop of Russian children's writer Anna Nikolskaya

Svetlana lives and works in Graz, Austria

Svetlana Dimitrova /
Author

Portfolio

Graduated from the Art and Industry Academy in St. Petersburg, Graphic Design department.

Twice winner of the international competition for book illustration and design "Image of the Book"in 2020 and 2022, nominations: "Best non-fiction illustrations" and "Author's book".

Anna’s books "Where Letters Come From" and "Just Draw!" are published by EKSMO, the largest publisher in Russia, imprint BOMBORA.

Anna works with publishers such as EKSMO, A Walk Through History, Gorodets, Vakosha.

Created a lettering course for beginners for the online design school CONTENTED

Anna Lyubimova / Illustrator

Portfolio

Graduated from one of Europe's best universities, RWTH Aachen, with a degree in architecture.

She works in an architectural studio in Germany and implements her own author's projects as a freelance architect and designer in Russia and Europe.
She has worked on federal construction projects in Russia: Perinatal Center, Republican Hospital, Museum and Cultural Complex of Khakassia.
She has been awarded governmental certificates.

Anna Kempf / Architect and Interior Designer

Some of the major projects include:
— Reconstruction of the Drama Theater, Khakassia, Russia
— Design of the tourist information center, Russia
— Design of the Psychoneurological Dispensary, Khakassia, Russia
— Office designs in Germany
— Developed and implemented an exhibition concept for fashion designers at the "De Mains de Maitres Luxem" exhibition in Luxembourg
— The author and architect of the museum center project "Ancient mounds of the Salbyk steppe", Khakassia, Russia

If you like the project, write to:
panikranihome@gmail.com