For this week's tutorial we had to pair up and conduct a series of tasks to conduct more research, assess our design proposal and establish who our clients really are.
1. The understanding of "Home" has evolved over the past decades which has been caused by many factors such as a change in culture, a change in lifestyle and possibly the overall change in the economy. In the last few decades a home was used as a symbol to identify the rank and stature of an individual. The scale, cost and finishes were the main elements that contributed to what many saw as an ideal home.
Nowadays, a home reflects a person's way of life, their culture and beliefs irrespective of its scale, cost or finishes and irrespective of the opinions of other individuals. A home is no longer understood just as a structure to provide shelter but it is a personal canvas that we use to paint our memories on that we can then look back on and remember our personal history that has occurred.
2. A home is a place that successfully offers the essentials of living and to what we have become accustomed to as a way of life but that should not be the only role of a home. A home must be able to successfully adapt to the ever growing evolution of trends and lifestyles and allow us to be a part of such evolution rather than isolate us but most importantly a home must be able to adapt and serve for our personal lifestyle through its features, spaces and style.
3. For this part of week 2 tasks, we had to conduct research on who our client actually is. Below is our findings.
Who has been affected?
The people of Japan
How have they been affected?
A magnitude 9 earthquake struck on march 11 which created a 52 foot tsunami which destroyed 95% of building on one town.
What are their needs and vulnerabilities?
Shortage in living facilities which have also been worsened are causing illnesses in the affected population.
Are they in an urban or rural location?
Urban location
What housing existed before the natural disaster?
A mixture of unit complexes and detached housing are the main housing means that existed prior to the disaster.
How did it deal with the division of spaces, privacy, security, climate control?
Each town or suburb has been subdivided to isolate commercial and industrial areas from residential areas. In the residential areas, each detached dwelling is confined by boundaries which make up the lot that it sits on. The same subdivision applies to commercial and industrial areas. Security and order is established due to this subdivision and the boundaries that exist between dwellings. Most of the dwellings that existed in the areas that were affected by the tsunami used openings such as doors and windows to allow for cross ventilation.
What are the climatic conditions?
Winter from December to February, is quite dry and sunny along the Pacific coast and the temperatures rarely drop below 0°C. The temperatures drop as you move north, with the Central and Northern regions experiencing snowfall. Southern Japan is relatively temperate and experiences a mild winter.
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Spring is from March to May. Temperatures are warm but not too hot, plus there isn't too much rain. The famous cherry blossoms are out during this time and there are plenty of festivals to enjoy.
Summer begins in June and the country experiences a three to four-week rainy season during which the farmers plant their rice. It is hot and humid during this time and temperatures are often in the high 30’s. Summer wraps up in August.
Autumn is from September to November and is characterised by light breezes and cooler temperatures of around 8-10oC. It’s during autumn that many exhibitions, music concerts and sports tournaments are held in Japan.
Do those displaced dwellers have cultural or religious traditions which influence their apparel, day to day activities, or social interactions?
Most of the displaced dwellers in Japan are Buddhists who enjoy the natural surroundings and live in harmony. In the Japanese culture, way of life seems to be structured in an orderly manner and many people abide by their daily routines on a regular basis.
4. I believe that my main design idea of mainly using portable partition walls to define spaces would be the ideal solution to allow the dwellers to carry on their daily routines. I believe that the standard size of one shipping container when turned into a house container would not adequately provide the dweller with the essential living spaces that they are use to and are accustomed to before the occurrence of the natural disaster.
Therefore, the portable partition walls would allow for the reuse of one space repeatedly for different purposes thus providing all the essential living needs required. A perfect example would be reusing a space that was used as the living room during the day as a bedroom in the evening.
5. I have chosen the "Flexibility in Use" principle of universal design because I think that it will aid me in developing my design ideas for this project further. Designing a temporary housing structure for the displaced dwellers that is capable of being flexible in its design further solidifies this universal design principle that I have chosen and my design proposal for this project.
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