Disconnected Home

     Designing with a typically person’s everyday life in mind is not always at the forefront of design considerations. Homes provide us with a sense of disconnect from the outside world and allows us to live private lives, but everyone lives in unique ways. For the most part, everyday activities stay the same, so an architecture that supports such activities makes the most sense. Sleeping, cooking, eating, using the bathroom, socializing with roommates, and, in a covid ridden world, working are all of the typical day-day activities that the majority of people living in a home will run through daily. 

            Often times, residential architecture strives to reinforce this idea of separation from the outside world and create a living space that feels private. After this past year of working/studying from home, I am tired of the privacy and seclusion from others. Architecture has to reevaluate its role in creating gathering spaces that allow the typical day to day routine to start including interaction with neighbors. The front/back yard, and the desire to be separated from one another was a direct cause of urban sprawl, and these elements within residential architecture and urban design need to be reconsidered. There should not be a strict line between the private and public spaces (front yard to the sidewalk), but rather a gradient of spaces that moves from private spaces, private public spaces, and public spaces. These private public spaces that connect the residents will merge neighbor’s daily routines and allow interaction with one another more so than sitting in traffic together.