Parking Lot Turned into Homes: Architects making Space

Booster Blog

parking lots turned homes

As space becomes a luxury of the past, architects are encouraged to make innovative manoeuvres that savour the space we do have. (All) Zone are an architectural firm that have such a manoeuvre in their repertoire.

Displayed at the Chicago Architecture Biennial, the studio from Bangkok have developed their own solution to a global problem. It’s called the Light house, and it is indeed very ‘light’, in more ways than one.

It’s a temporary living space that can quite easily be dismantled and put together again after a relocation.  The structure is made from several layers of perforated wall, which outline the 11.5 square meters of living space.

The prototype is designed for inhabitants of a tropical climate. In fact the prototypes were set up in a parking lot in Thailand where two young designers lived over a few days. With translucent walls it makes the most out of the abundance of daylight available.

The most exciting aspect of their design is that it can be set up just about anywhere. Thus, it can make us of spaces that were previously redundant. The shots presented at the Chicago Architecture Biennial were taken from an abandoned parking lot in the middle of Bangkok. The team envision that such spaces could be filled with temporary living spaces such as theirs.

In their own words, the team are interested in an area of architecture which ‘stems from less solid materiality’. From their perspective, architecture is no different from furniture or utensils. Consequently, their vernacular houses can be picked up and moved just as you would with furniture.

Their concept also opens the door to the young middle-class generation who cannot afford to live in a big city. As one time buyers becomes a thing of the past in the housing market, short to mid-term living space becomes more and more appealing. So how about it? Do you think you could live in a space like this for a front row ticket in a big city?