Designing the SocialDesigning the Social

Develop good, affordable housing for everyone - especially for people who are in difficult circumstances. Waste as little material as possible and use the latest knowledge in the design and construction process. Research the current essential requirements that a home must meet.    Given the shortage of good and affordable housing, this  formula  could be at the forefront of  current government policy.  Yet the concept of the 'minimum dwelling', and the social ambitions behind the idea, are a century old. Building on the struggles of various groups, including the suffragettes, a group of progressive, internationally oriented architects around the magazine  De 8 en  Opbouw acted as a focal point for innovation within the design disciplines. 

Social inequality, poverty, unemployment and housing shortages characterised the crisis climate of the 1920s and 30s. Architects such as Jacob Oud, Mart Stam, Willem van Tijen and Gerrit Rietveld argued for the need for radical change within their own profession and in society. They saw the minimum dwelling as a functional alternative to public housing at the time. New materials and techniques and standardisation in the building process could ensure that there would be a good, affordable home for everyone. 

Initially, there was mainly foreign interest. Witness, for example, the construction of various minimum housing units in a model district in Stuttgart. Ultimately, the idea also got a foothold in the Netherlands. Various projects have been realised on behalf of the municipal housing services of Rotterdam and Amsterdam. 

The current interest in the 'tiny house' has similarities with the minimum dwelling. But where the minimum dwelling aimed at contributing to the emancipation of an entire social class, the tiny house is above all an individualistic and rather ecologically motivated response to the wasteful practice of building, housing, consuming and living. 

Concept, research, design and videos: Golnar Abbasi / Arvand Pourabbasi (WORKNOT!)

Research and texts: Suzanne Mulder, Golnar Abbasi and Arvand Pourabbasi