When Nina Flohr set out to build Kisawa Sanctuary, a new beach resort located on Benguerra Island, off the coast of southern Mozambique, she had a very clear mandate. "I wanted the architecture guided by what we saw around us," says Flohr, referring to the waves of the Indian Ocean and the giant dunes that surround the property's 22 bungalows, spread out across 750 acres. The aim was to blend rather than to interrupt. Kisawa, which opened this fall, is being touted as the first 3D-printed resort, but Flohr sees that as only one component of the sustainable-design mission. "I think using 3D printing is an example of the spirit of the place," says the Swiss-born entrepreneur, who served as creative director of VistaJet until 2016. In fact, she used the technology to make building materials from what was already at hand: namely, sand and seawater. This mortar became the blocks used to realize everything from the naturally textured facades to the floors to the soaking tubs in the guest bathrooms.
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