flexibility and agency in housing

examining the promises and the pitfalls of overlooked ideas from the recent past…

Flexibility and Agency in Housing

online symposium on flexibility, resident input, and modular building in contemporary housing

This symposium extended the themes explored in the exhibition Mass Support: Flexibility and Resident Agency in Housing—organized by the CRC and designed by office ca—by questioning both the legacy and the contemporary relevance of the Stichting Architecten Research (SAR), in the context of the ongoing global house emergency.

Specifically, as many new ideas are needed to address the quality, availability, and attainability of shelter, the work of the SAR and John Habraken offers useful pathways to consider a range of seemingly contradictory contemporary imperatives. How do we balance a commitment to the self-determination of residents with the need to build more housing units quickly and economically? How do we leverage a detailed understanding of the minutiae of zoning and building codes in the service of bold visions to reshape the built fabric of our cities and suburbs? How can we utilize sustained observation of demographic change and household diversity to inform concrete design proposals for housing that empowers its users, that overcomes political and financial inertia, that anticipates change?

Practitioners and researchers from around the world discussed these questions in light of a range of contemporary design strategies to increase the supply of housing without sacrificing the self-determination of residents.

date

April 26, 2023

venue

Spitzer School of Architecture at CCNY

Team

Sergio M. Figueiredo

Simon Rabyniuk

Cassim Shepard

Partners

Spitzer School of Architecture at CCNY

TU Eindhoven

The Architectural League of NY

Dutch Culture USA

video

SESSIONS

INTRODUCTION

Marta Gutman, Spitzer School of Architecture
Sergio M. Figueiredo, TUe / CRC
Cassim Shepard, Spitzer School of Architecture
Tom Frantzen, Frantzen et al Architects and Lemniskade

The SAR's historical context, its contemporary significance and offshoots.

Session 1: What can resident control enable politically?

Cristina Gamboa, Lacol
Christoph Heinemann, ifau
Juliane Greb, Büro Juliane Greb

Panel discussion moderated by Susanne Schindler, ETH Zurich.

New organizational forms for (social) housing development, lessons on the politics of sharing space, working with municipalities, and co-designing for flexibility.

SESSION 2: What can modular construction enable architecturally?

Deborah Gans, Gans & Co
James Shen, People’s Architecture Office
Tim Swanson, Inherent Homes

Panel discussion moderated by Laura Wainer, Spitzer School of Architecture

Modular construction is about more than efficiency and cost: perspectives on modular as a strategy for neighborhood preservation, resident decision-making, and reinvigorating local labor economies.

SESSION 3: What What can flexibility enable at the neighborhood scale?

Michael Piper, University of Toronto
Dana Cuff, UCLA
Renee Chow, UC Berkeley

Panel discussion, moderated by June Williamson, Spitzer School of Architecture

Flexibility is about more than design and construction: understanding the potential to retrofit suburban fabric requires a deep understanding of the policies that perpetuate unsustainable and inflexible settlement patterns as well as the local adaptations that enable change.

CLOSING REFLECTION

Rosalie Genevro, The Architectural League of New York
Karen Kubey, University of Toronto
Cassim Shepard, Spitzer School of Architecture