BUREAU, led by Daniel Zamarbide, Carine Pimenta, and Galliane Zamarbide, challenges conventional housing typologies with their project, MARIA Apartment. Here’s an exploration of how MARIA defies norms and fosters diverse inhabitation experiences.
Reimagining Typological Constraints
The concept of housing typology dictates how apartment plans are distributed and organized. Typically, these typologies are based on standardized models of room distribution. However, applying a specific plan to a particular context often involves conforming to predetermined norms and regulations. These norms are deeply ingrained with societal expectations and cultural conventions, often reflecting a traditional nuclear family structure.
Challenging Norms
MARIA Apartment disrupts these norms by questioning the assumptions underlying traditional housing typologies. Instead of designing for a narrow, predefined household model, MARIA embraces diversity and fluidity. It rejects the notion that living spaces should cater exclusively to heterosexual nuclear families, acknowledging the existence of alternative lifestyles and living arrangements.
Digital Parallels
Drawing a parallel with digital avatars, the architects highlight how technology can shape our understanding of ourselves and our surroundings. Just as memojis create digital representations of our emotional gestures, housing typologies impose predefined spatial configurations. This raises questions about agency and control—who determines the parameters of inhabitation, and to what extent are they influenced by societal norms and technological constraints?
Embracing Diversity
MARIA Apartment embodies an inclusive approach to design, accommodating a wide range of lifestyles and preferences. It rejects the idea of prescribing specific ways of living and instead offers a flexible, open-ended space for inhabitants to define and personalize according to their needs. Whether it’s sleeping on a couch, living with a pet, or cooking on the balcony, MARIA encourages freedom of expression and self-determination.
