These alien-looking dodecahedron houses are part of the Ramot Polin neighbourhood in Israel, penned by the Polish-born architect Zvi Hecker in the late 1970s. Chasing after a dream of perfect communal living, Hecker found inspiration in the geometry of a simple beehive. Since then, his project has taken on a life of its own, constantly modified and updated by its inhabitants, who at first found the avant-garde layout almost completely impractical for living.

One critic described the project as “nothing but sculpture”, but nevertheless, the tenants pushed onwards, enlarging rooms and widening windows to reduce the almost oppressive nature of the original execution; something not uncommon in Israeli construction, where building regulations are often treated more as a suggestion than the rule.

Today, nearly fifty years after the complex was built, the structures barely resemble their original plan, taking on an organic quality that resembles a living, breathing hive more than even Hecker could have ever imagined.