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Sunday, 14 October 2007 | Levent OZLER
Universal Home: Ideas for a Living Space for All Stages of Life
Flexibility is the Answer to the Quest for the Universal Home
After one year of intense research work at Zollverein they have been established: The results of the "Universal Home" scholarship competition at Zollverein. In October 2006, ten young designers and architects from all over the world took up their annual scholarship at Zollverein to do research in cooperation with eleven companies on the future oriented issue "Universal Home". Motivated by their own situation, the scholarship holders explored a flexible and at the same time comfortable living scenario of the future. Professor Dr. Peter Zec, Icsid president and head of the project, sums up the results: "Flexibility is the answer to the quest for the Universal Home". Two groups have developed concepts on living space called "Make Yourself at Home" and "S.M.A.R.T.er Home". The research work of the other scholarship holders deals with the reflection of essential values and original forms, which were the basis for a possible living conception of the future.
The Project
In the project "Universal Home" the most different cultures, mentalities and professional backgrounds came together. They offered a broad spectre of experience allowing a constructive discussion. Based on this special situation, the research work of the scholarship holders did not so much concentrate on the question whether there might be a "Universal Home" at all. Instead they attempted to approach the concept of an optimised living situation as far as possible and to venture a look into the future.
Starting the project, the scholarship holders visited each of the cooperating companies all over Germany where they already gathered insight into the professional work of design and research departments. Further meetings between the scholarship holders and the companies were intended for a constructive exchange as well as the promotion and development of various research approaches. The companies participating in the project were Carpet Concept, Dorma, Duravit, Gardena, Kahla, Keuco, Miele, Poggenpohl, Vaillant, Walter Knoll und WMF.
The Project Ideas
"Make Yourself at Home"
The idea "Make Yourself at Home" has been developed by Annemarie Mayo from Malta, the Canadian Katrin Braun, Chao Zheng from China and Iris Prehn and Susann Stiehl from Germany. The idea embraces a flexible living model based on the theory of exchanging different services. The needs of a changing population dynamics, and a global working environment were the basis of the concept "Make Yourself at Home". It is meant to create living quality for the most different inhabitants and to arrange for the possibility of integration. The five scholarship holders chose the area of the Zeche Zollverein (a former coal mine) as locality of the living scenarios. They took their personal situation of transition as a starting point.
"S.M.A.R.T.er Home"
The Turk Asli Börü and the Brazilian Flávio Carrasco developed the idea "S.M.A.R.T.er Home". It describes a home using information devices to connect household appliances with each other and the Internet via an integrated network. The concept focuses on the development of intelligent technical devices and systems meeting the most different requirements and life situations, thus facilitating everyday life. Both scholarship holders chose different stations in life as examples to show how these technological innovations may be used in manifold ways.
"C3 - Cooking, Communication and Community"
The idea of Bálint Pallag from Hungary recollects traditional values and places a stone oven in the centre of the house, respectively of life. The scholarship holder followed a psychological approach and based his concept on the human basic need for protection, security and social integration. With Bálint Pallag's flexible living concept the oven can be complemented with flexible modules, thus becoming a meeting point for "Cooking, Communication and Community".
"Products for spatial relations"
Products for spatial relations - organic forms inspired the Vietnamese The Phuong Nguyen when designing his idea of living in the future. Based on a basic shape that can be complemented according to the particular needs, he developed three living scenarios for different living standards. This idea envisages to enable the residents to express themselves individually thus creating a feeling of security. The typology of the living space can be open or closed and may be flexibly chosen by the residents. Living tools and household appliances have a shape that matches the living concept.
Background of the Project
The Design Zentrum Nordrhein Westfalen organised the competition on behalf of the development society Zollverein, whose task it is to develop and implement the basic planning conception for the world cultural heritage Zollverein. The project was sponsored by the European Union, the federal state North Rhine-Westphalia and the City of Essen.
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