Mechanization, mass-production and the accompanying commodification of building culture
drastically changed domesticity. The dwelling was forever more technology
driven and a vessel for enjoying services and amenities. Standard of
living was anchored to the idea of convenience and lifestyles were projected to
be increasingly dynamic. Diversity in matters of family type and composition
was to become the norm. Houses would need an integrated capacity to adapt to
this intensifying change.
Twentieth century architecture is fraught with projects proposing
dwellings that could at once transform and adjust to varying conditions,
lifestyles or context. Further the theme of mobility accompanied adaptability
and flexibility to advance the idea of a multifunctional house. A sample experiment, «suitcase
house» proposed by the Palace Corporation in 1945 was an easily
assembled, demountable and transportable dwelling unit suited to the needs of
migrating populations.
More than half a century later, another «suitcase house» was
proposed by an architect exploring the notion of multiple functions and their
time-based interaction. Gary Chang designed the multi-use house with the
idea of spatial transformation in mind. Known for his 24 room variation of a
344 sq ft apartment, (see 24 Rooms Tucked Into One by Virginia
Gardiner in New York Times; January 14,
2009), his design for the
suitcase house is a veritable architectural transformer. The house’s piano nobile is cantilevered into the
landscape by an opaque foundation prism. The two-storey house is anchored to
the Chinese landscape in a town named Badaling just north of Beijing. The house
is a simple manifestation of an open plan structured by a series of structural
porticoes.
The box frame structured plan is reconfigurable accommodating up to 14
people in numerous functional scenarios. The multifunctional strata can be adapted
by manipulating screens, which divide the open plan into a series of
rooms. The house’s foundation is where most of the multiple functions are concealed.
Trap doors access these chambers used for sleeping, working or
relaxing.
Built in 2001, the utopian longhouse
employs a stratified section of served and service spaces. The service spaces
housed in the lower container are closed off to the surrounding landscape while
the relationship between the living spaces and the environment is filtered by a
matrix of varying filigree screens.
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| Suitcase House confirguration |
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