CHILD´S INTERIOR SPACE = CHILDREN´S INTERIOR SPACE

DESIGN REPORT

In the context of general problems stated by this competition, it appears an additional question we consider central at the moment of making a proposal:
How to confront the increasing social isolation of a child as a consequence of the omnipresence and undiscriminated use of multimedia technology?
On the other hand, the use of living space models, which are indifferent to economical, technical, geographical and cultural resources, does not contribute to think about a solution to this problem that could come from Architecture itself.
Facing the need of counteracting this isolation we propose an environment which contributes to revert this tendency. A containing environment where technology encourages interaction between children.
We believe it is possible to look for traditional references that feeds this new environment by reinterpreting ancient logic of organizing domestic space and social life in China: on the one hand, the patio recurrence in public and private architectonic structures; on the other hand, the underground construction that takes advantage of easily excavating soil predominating huge Chinese lands.
The proposal works on the coexistence of two social institutions within the same architectonic structure: the family and the school (understood as a learning environment founded on social interaction).
In terms of achieving this objective, living spaces are displayed, depending on the moment of the day, in two areas with clearly differentiated functions:

During the day, while parents are working, the child's room is integrated to a patio, which is shared by another seven similar rooms. A responsible adult takes care of the children. The child's interior space, in this way, turns into the children's interior space. Here, interior is determined by the security of their own territory protected from exterior. INTERIOR ( Inter: between) = SITUATED WITHIN / INNER / INLAND

After working day, parents and child gather together around a private environment, which favors family integration through spatial continuities.

Even if we are not able to say that an architecture plan can oblige people to behave in a particular way in relation with others- as Robin Evans suggests in his article Bodies, Doors and Corridors - it surely can prevent certain behaviours or at least indicate how to do them.

DESIGN DESCRIPTION
The proposal consists in a two bedroom unit household organized in such a way that it establishes, during the day, a direct contact between the child's room and a patio (DAYLIGHT SPACE FOR CHILDREN) shared by another seven similar rooms of another seven similar unit households. A difference of level protects the patio from public space and makes exterior direct access impossible. So this patio becomes a contained playing and studying area spatially dominated by the tree, the sky and a line of running water obtained by accumulating rain.
The child's room is equipped with an unplugged multimedia desk, the only moving element that can easily be taken out to the patio and matched with others.

Once finished the working day, the child's room turns into a private interior by setting its limit to the patio and giving place to another environment where parents and child can gather together (FAMILY SPACE). This new dominant area corresponds to the unit highest level in relation with public space. Here, the domestic rituals of living, bathing, cooking and eating take place.

The parent's room, located at an intermediate level and having a nocturnal use, links the already described domains.

The eight unit households that give configuration to the complete building unit are situated in order to receive the best sunlight. Following this idea, the three typological variations, based on analogue spatial structures, solve private expansions as well as the rotation needed to organize the whole building around de children's patio.

From a technical point of view, the underground construction favors the heating during winter, the refreshment in summer, the protection from the wind, or the movement of rainwater by gravity, allowing an optimum use of these natural resources.

Comments by juries

Alessandro Mendini :
In view of the traditional house, system is well equipped.
It may deserves such evaluation that not only the original system is equipped in it very well, but also the traditional format is expressed excellently.
The house makes us draw our attention to it as an attractive - noticeable - project, and understand it was studied in a constructive direction.

Seok-Chul Kim :
This work has the format that one independent element composes the upper level independent element and the upper level independent one cosmoses the 2nd upper level independent one of the 1st upper level independent one.
Each independent child room composes a completed shape together with attached play ground, and every independent child room doesn't end up as it is but composes the elements of the entire house. The house composed of such set of these rooms composes the completed architecture the play ground is attached, and such houses compose a wider completed space together with the other houses.
This work has such format that these small spaces harmonized with nature compose a wider space through incessant connection and bridge, and adversely such completed spaces are broken down into a number of small independent and completed subspaces, through which it shows that it responds continuously to nature and complements each other with it.
Under this work, child is allowed to have a constructed space of one completeness to be interactive each other at the same time to have an independent space of its own. So through this, the child can be enabled to displays creative power not as a simple individual body but as one of interactive rapport with others.

Weiyu Wang : The detail of the combination of tradition grace and modernity has been expressed in this design work. As the order from the intermingled nature and architecture crossing and gearing each other has been achieved thanks to the concentrated reflection of grace and characteristics of the traditional one-story house on this design, this design makes us think that while the inhabitants of this architecture has the merit that they can cooperate with their neighbors, the privacy of each house may be protected in space wise. The good combination of inner and outer field make us agree further that it shall satisfy the demands of modern life, kid's space, lighting arrangement, airing and afforestation. Because this design, however, fits only to the low story housing complex, it looks to have limitation to make it come true.