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INTRO

What is a family ?

To begin with this presenta:on, we would like to ask for your par:cipa:on. We are
going to hand out small papers on which you’re invited to draw what comes first to
your mind when thinking about the no:on of « family ».

The centre of Kreis 12 is characterised by the omnipresence of care facili:es, such as

supermarkets, medical clinics or childcare services, in place to cater to the
predominantly family-inhabited surrounding area, where mainly families reside. The
neighbourhood acts like an upscaled mismatch family whose care network is
however lacking the in:macy that a family usually forms.

Our proposal is one of community-based dwelling following our analysis in the

neighbourhood of Schwamendingen, by altering the exis:ng Blauäcker building
complex.

“To ensure human survival everywhere in the world, females and males organize
themselves into communi9es. Communi9es sustain life, not nuclear families, or the
"couple," and certainly not the rugged individualist. There is no be?er place to learn
the art of loving than in community.”

This passage is taken from Bell Hooks, all about love, published in January 2001.

COMMUNITY

The Blauäcker Siedlung follows precisely the blueprint of nuclear family housing for
lower income zones in the outskirts of European urban areas. It compactly features
small familial units sharing an overexposed garden and staircases.

Our proposal is to adapt a floor plan modelled on the constella:on of the nuclear
family to accommodate extended families, a process of merging this typically smaller
en:ty into a bigger one, along merging individual apartments into one.
We aim to extend the family by reshaping the dwelling, join the small units to alter
the social dynamics and spa:al configura:on.

We will all start speaking with a quote of our case study, the movie "Shopli[ers", by
Hirokazu Kore-eda, released in 2018

RENO EN GROS

We don't need her help.

This is what you
call work-share.
What's that?
It means what it sounds like,
we all share the work.
She's in the way.
Don't say that,
she's your sister.

The process of revising an exis:ng structure and significantly change its inner
dynamics, while crea:ng a replicable model/blueprint for future projects,
necessitates a balanced propor:on of changes.
The main structure stays the same and three glazed extensions are added holding
new common living spaces.

While a lot is changed, it is important to work with the exis:ng instead of against it,
thus the water rooms are not moved, the toilets are kept as they are, and there is no
added water pipes in the expansions we build. Most walls, stairs and li[s remain
unchanged.

The 35 original apartments distributed on 7 floors, each equipped with a bathroom,

kitchen and living room, are merged into 5, adding 45 rooms for a total capacity of
129 people per building. This allows more private space per person and a densifying
dimension at the same :me. The square metres per person of common living space
remain rela:vely consistent.

Circula:on areas such as hallways and staircases are also altered, keeping the central
staircase as the entry point for all residents, serving all apartments. The two lateral
staircases are horizontally segmented and provide access only between specific
floors within each apartment. For instance, from our second-floor flat, access
extends to the le[ side of the third floor, but not beyond.

ORGANISATION OF 1 FLAT

How about the name "No lonely

death" for the insurance plan?

Decorum Rulebook of our project :

You receive one room to yourself, and decide what to do with it. While the primary
concept does not promote co-sleeping but it stays an op:on, for those who want to
share a playroom, an atelier, or else. You are always able to switch rooms as you
wish.

Your family is composed of 17 to 29 people, blood related or not, people you were
previously close to or not, encompassing diverse exis:ng rela:onships, be it partners,
parents, children, siblings, friends from various stages of life, among others, or
forming new ones with strangers. This allows an upscaled intergenera:onal form of
living and sharing.

You share your living spaces, such as the living room, the balcony, and a library with
your family.

You have the opportunity to share meals, to share finances with your family, rent,
food or even belongings. You economically care for each other, providing mutual
support in :mes of need, ensuring a comfortable household even if something
unexpected was to happen, being one member ceasing to work or another
unfavourable unexpecta:on. You also share the kitchen as well as the domes:c work
with your family, caring materially for each other.

In addi:on, you share a bathing space with your family. While the exis:ng toilets are
kept throughout the building, the showers and sinks come at the core of the
apartment.

Helping to scrub your mother’s back, washing your grandmother’s hair when she
cannot reach for it anymore and teaching your younger cousin how to shave are the
kind of daily exchanges happening inside our community.
WHAT IS INTIMACY, WHAT IS A FAMILY

Do you think she... chose us?

Usually, you can't choose
your own parents.
But then, maybe it's stronger
when you choose them yourself.
What is?
What is...
The bond.
The bond.
I chose you, too.

Family, is your support system, whether material or emo:onal, whether chosen or

blood related. Your family are the people you can count on in :me of need, you grow
up with and or learn form. You are in a constant exchange with them. All of your
needs are taken care of inside this en:ty. The work-load is shared. It is this invaluable
dynamic that has inspired us to come up with our project proposal.
Family benevolence was taken as the basis for this project. The aim here was
therefore to apply this more widely, to increase the number of people benefi:ng
from this enriching exchange.
To end with this presenta:on I would like to quote another passage from Bell Hooks,
All bout love :

“Moving from solitude into community heightens our capacity for fellowship with
one another. Through fellowship we learn how to serve one another. Service is
another dimension of communal love.”