The past few weeks, I spotted many coolhunts that were often alike. They were all about micro homes or projects created for people who didn't want/could live in a big house. Then I start wondering: if there is this gigantic interest for little houses, then what would this mean for our 'living future?'
First off, let me show you some examples of these coolhunts.
The picture you see above is a project created by Ole Robin Storjohann and Mateusz, two Denmark architects. It's called "Live between Buildings" and this project won first place in a Loft 2 competition held by FAKRO, which challenged contestants to rethink loft living and material efficiency without sacrificing light and space.
It's perfect for 'filling up' gaps between buildings in big cities.
The next one is a project called "Hank bought a bus" by Hank Butitta. He's a graduate of the University of Minnesota and he actually bought a genuine schoolbus to convert it into a liveable interior for his graduate project. He got inspired by Scandinavian design and decided to create a living space of 225 square feet. He wanted to do this project because he was frustated with the architecture education system, because he thought it had a little basis on reality and lacked constraints. The bus is suitable to live in; it has a bed, a kitchen, cabinets and a little living room.
Okay, this one isn't really a house, but it fits the category of 'micro living'. The "Living Cube" is a smart designed all-in-one piece of furniture, designed by the German Till Koenneker. It's a bed, bookcase and storage compartmen in one. This is what Till says about the "Living Cube": 'A house is not really flexible but we can re-think the space and furniture inside.
I believe useful furniture must be adaptable to the needs of the user.' So it's not really about living in a small space, but how to utilize the space you have.
And last but not least: the "Smart Student Unit". A miniature home created by the Swedish architectual firm Tengbom Architects to try solving the hard accommodation problem students are dealing with. This little home is just 107 square feet and provided with everything you need: a bed, kitchen, shower, toilet and even a little desk to do your homework on. The used materials are mainly wood and recycled materials. Thanks to this inexpensive use of materials, the "Smart Student Unit" can be offered for a low price as well. Tengbom Architects is still in the 'project phase' and hopes to have finished 20 units by next year.
This is all very well, but what does this mean to our society? Will all people want to live in a small home in the next 10 years? Will we all want to experience a new kind of living?
I think these coolhunts arise from two things: our society being in a critical stage and people longing for cosiness. The last one actually is a consequence fromt the first one. Please let me explain.
Our society is living in a world filled with crisis at the moment. Our economy isn't doing very well, our politics systems aren't reliable anymore and the housing market is stuck. Many people are living in a "Stress Society" and are longing for cosiness. They need moments to relax and there's just one perfect place for them: their homes. But their homes have gone along with the crisis as well, unnoticed that is. Our homes have become reflections of the society we are living in: (too) big, messy and unpleasant. Therefore we need to go back to basics, we need to go back to a home wherein only the necessary is presented. We need little rooms to get that cosy and warm feeling again. Dump all the things we don't need anymore and start living in a home where you can relax and won't get distracted by useless things.
Obviously, not all people are having these thoughts, but I truly believe many people are. We should just try to live in a home like one of these for just a week and then decide what we like more. I bet many people would like the simplicity of little homes.
(Source: Link & Link & Link & Link & Link & Link & Link & Link)
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