Re-Designing the Common

 Re-Designing the Common

Rietveld's Schroder House


"What is common cannot be special, but it can be of high quality," but, "sharing of qualities in a same locality, is what makes a good environment." -John Habraken

Habraken states that "the issue here is not design ability, but design control", meaning that architects are used to designing entire spaces with permanent uses, historically disregarding the input of other design professions and omitting the everyday. The idea of flex-spaces and "small scale adaptability" is not implemented in many architectural projects. This adaptability means new and creative ways of designing spaces, an architecture where "the permanent is truly structural and meaningful and the short-lived full of energy and surprises". Adaptability means more complexity and a more dynamic live, work, everyday environment, which architects are fully capable of designing, but may require further merging of "ideology and reality", school and practice. This could perhaps spur a new age and a new type of architecture: one that is designed with adaptability and seamlessly integrates live, work, and the everyday, and includes both principle and method as described by Habraken. Although principle is dictated more by "shared values" found in historical modern architecture, method is deeply rooted in practice and the everyday. 



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