Stuart Weitzman School of Design
102 Meyerson Hall
210 South 34th Street
Philadelphia, PA 19104
The precondition of this project is based on Abalos’ comparative dichotomy of two different houses from Tati’s movie, Mon Oncle. The Arpels live in a positivist house, where each element is representational rather than functional, an environment completely hostile to the comfort of its occupants. On the other hand, the uncle’s house is full of unpredictable color, light and frivolity, which allows kids to escape at any time without the surveillance from the adults. The uncle’s house creates spontaneous protection for the intimacy of spaces for different age groups through labyrinthine wandering routes and overlapping programs, as well as the lively composition of vernacular.
Based on the key words extracted from Abolos’ chapter and the natural language of the rolling plains at the edge of Marfa, the speculation of houses near future would be a house containing unpredictable spaces for overlapping programs and protection for the intimacy of different age groups, as well as the possibility of flexible aggregation strategy growing with kids. To achieve that, movable curtain system is introduced as the main strategy for time-dimensional transformation of the interior. The various tactility of canvas and blurriness of light through curtains help to form ambiguous spaces for users. By blurring the boundary of public and private, void and solid spaces, one single space could be shifted into multiple-functioned spaces, creating the possibility for overlapping programs and unpredictable spatial experiences.