Sälgen 4 : Adaptable housing in Stockholm

Abstract: I have designed a housing project that is an infill to an existing housing block in the city center of Stockholm. When I started this project the themes everydayness and building typology was central for me. That is why I also chose to work with the site Sälgen 4; a corner site and one of few remaining gaps in the block structure of the city center. Today there is a gas station on the site, which I for this project presume could be removed. When working with this project I found interest in what simplified could be called soft flexibility, where measurement, shape and connection to other spaces are dealt with in order to enable for different kinds of usage. This type of flexibility I encountered when studying late 19th century dwellings in Stockholm city center. I have developed similar apartments, often with a size of about 140 m2 with 4,5 rooms and an additional kitchen. Even all the room units are similar with over 4 m width and close to square shapes. This enabled the creation of very generic spaces but also introduced me to an interesting paradox; the on the architectural drawing less dynamic floor plan create on the other hand the most dynamic ways to inhabit the spaces. Also the loggia has been an important feature in my design.