Linda Ledina
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P1 Cell
During the Covid-19 pandemic, pet ownership has skyrocketed, with over 59% of UK households living with pets, up from 41% in 2019. This trend is lead by young adult couples, with over 35% already having embarked on lives as new pet owners. This is also the demographic starting their journey of homeowning.
Their living spaces now not only had to accommodate working from home but also provide a healthy and engaging environment to the newest members of the family. This creates the question of how to accommodate both labour and domesticity for all.
This cell showcases an eased daily routine of pet owners, with an accessible washing space by the entrance with storage, built-in food and water bowls,
provided accessibility to living spaces, specialised sleeping nooks and interactive spaces that engage the whole family.
The cell’s inhabitants are protected from the outside environment with a protective polycarbonate shell that encases the spacial terrace with animal-friendly grass and allows for unsupervised access.
Both animals and humans are creatures of habit and the zoning of the cell provides a structured routine. The productive-surplus labour is housed closer to the entrance, while the more private-restful spaces are located further into the unit. The inwardly focused spaces such as the kitchen, dining room and shower room are separated from the open-public spaces with a gallery.
P3 URBAN HOUSING
P3 URBAN HOUSING/ Familification of the Urban Garden City
The recent pandemic has highlighted the issues in modern urban inhabitation, especially within the family unit. The urban homes are unable to provide the necessary spaces to live from micro to macro scales.
The incorporation of surplus labour into the home during the pandemic has negatively impacted the mental health of 80% of Brits, as a third reported difficulty switching off at the end of the day and had seen a strain on relationships with their partners and family. Experts have concerns that this may be contributing to higher levels of anxiety, stress, and loneliness. To cope with this, during the pandemic, Brits have brought more than 2 million animals into their homes, further densifying the activities within their units and communities.
This project’s goal is to create an urban housing environment that encourages a mentally and physically sustainable and healthy lifestyle that creates a healthy environment from the micro, intermediate to macro scales, for all inhabitants.
This has been explored using a medieval, communal planning approach that intertwines with Christopher Alexander’s Semi-latticed approach in the creation of a “natural” neighbourhood, where the plan, section and materiality are decided through a human-centred lens. These are supplemented with the “20-minute neighbourhood” principle and “The Blue Zones” research findings that combine together, to inform on how to successfully integrate the housing scheme in a contemporary urban setting while recognizing the architectural and programmatic features within the housing scheme itself.
Calton district demographics highlight the need to provide family housing for its inhabitants, especially with 50% of inhabitants being single parents. By providing a series of communal infrastructure spaces on all scales the inhabitants are able to bring their work to their homes if necessary, while benefiting from the collective support that helps to distance themselves from work, helps relieve work-related stress, promotes healthy living habits as exercising and healthy eating and helps to find a sustainable work-life balance.
P4 Urban building
The Dreaming machine
Imagining the future is one of the more difficult tasks undertaken by both governments and people, and this project strives to encourage dreaming and envisioning possible futures as a creative community.
With the recent flares of social and environmental issues, a more engaging, permanent and direct discussion and active involvement between the public and the state, businesses and politicians is required, subsequently, needing a new built environment for these activities to take place.
The Dreaming Machine is a new future-focused civic typology with inventor markets and civic discourse spaces, where discussions about current issues take place and possible solutions are housed on-site, becoming a monument of human imagination and perseverance.
It enables the public and creatives to be directly involved in the wider range of formal civic discourses ranging from politics and economics to environment and culture while allowing for the free exchange of ideas. With time, these active civic engagement forums could take place in all major cities and could connect to link even wider communities for questions that impact the wider society.
PROBLEM- DISCUSSION- INVENTION- SOLUTION
