Daily Life in the Transformers Room in the Monster Building - Jingsen He

Daily life in the Transformers Room in the Monster Building

Hong Kong

Compared to mainland China, Hong Kong is a small island with a limited land area. However, its population density per square kilometer far exceeds that of New York City, the most crowded city in the United States. With limited land for housing and a growing population, the living crisis is a major issue in Hong Kong.

A skilled worker must work for years to be able to afford a small house in Hong Kong, where designers must work hard to organize so that there are multiple functions to meet the daily needs of humans. Many but not chaotic, well organized and multi-faceted is the design philosophy in Hong Kong residential design.

Location

People/ km2 in Hong Kong & New York

Hong Kong

A skilled worker in Hong Kong must work 21 years to afford an average (650 square foot) apartment near the city Small living space usually comes with less lighting or ventilation, so it feels oppressive if you live there for a long time. The common result is that you don’t want to stay home.

Just 7% of land is zoned for housing. Its 7.5 million population must cram into dense, high-rise neighborhoods sandwiched between sea and mountains.

Hong Kong apartments don’t come with closets, meaning that wardrobe cabinets and other storage take precious square footage away from the living space.

-Bloomberg.com

386.53 sq ft/ 35.91 m2

2.66 X Average family size in Hong Kong, 2019

Hong Kong

146 sq ft/ 13.5 m2

Average house size in Hong Kong, 2019

Average living space of public rental housing tenant in Hong Kong, 2021

1981.12sq ft/ 184.05 m2 Average family living space per person in Cincinnati, 2021

3.02 X Average family size in Cincinnati 2020

U.S.

656 sq ft/ 61m2

Average living space per person in Cincinnati, 2021

-Statista.com

User analysis & research

Out of home 26.2%

37.1%

Out of home 26.2%

37.1%

20.0-29.9 m2 22.9%

Living room 28%

30.0-39.9 m2 47.1%

Living room 28%

Other 3.4%

Indonesian 2.1% othe Indonesia r n 3.4% 2.1%

othe Filipin Indonesia r o n 3.4% 2.5% 2.1%

Filipin o 2.5%

Filipino 2.5%

20.0-29.9 m2 22.9%

30.0-39.9 m2 47.1%

0-14 12.8%

0-14 years 12.8%

Othe 65 years and Specialized 65 years and r room over 5.7% over 3% 18.5% 18.5%

65 and over 18.5%

15-24 15-24 8.8%years

Bedroo m 37.1%

Out of home 26.2%

<20 m2 (215.3sq ft) < 20.0 m2 12.2% 13.2%

≥ 40 m2 (430.6 sq ft) ≥ 40.0 m2 16.7% 16.7%

0-14 years 12.8%

15-24 years 8.8%

8.8%

20-29.9 m2 20.0-29.9 (215.3-322.9 sq ft) m2

55-64 55-64 17.2% years

55-64 years 17.2%

Chinese 92% Chines e 92%

Chines e 92%

22.9%22.9%

17.2%

Living room 28%

42.7%

othe Indonesia r n 3.4% 2.1%

Hong Kong Demographics Profile

25-54 25-54 42.7% years

25-54 years 42.7%

30- 39.9 m2 (322.9- 430.6) sq ft) 30.0-39.9 47.1% m2 47.1%

Filipin o 2.5%

65 years and over 18.5%

Age structure

0-14 years 12.8%

15-24 years 8.8%

House size

55-64 years 17.2%

Chines e 92%

User Profile

25-54 years 42.7%

-indexmundi.com &thb.gov.hk

Based on previous information and the data collected, we can speculate what our target user profile will look like.

Chinese Young Professionals Single/Young Couple No children Age between25-54 years old Living in 30-39.9 sqm (322.9-430.6 sq ft)

Target user Profile

Daily Grocery Shopping

Group dining, sharing everything

Feng Shui

Everyday groceries are an important part of Hong Kong people’s eating habits. People prefer to cook with fresh food rather than using frozen and prepared food in the refrigerator. Therefore, huge storage refrigerators are not necessary in Hong Kong because people don’t really need to store any frozen products.

People like to eat with their friends and invite their friends to their places from time to time. People like to have parties in their houses, so having some space for gathering is essential.

Feng Shui, an ancient philosophy developed in China, has been particularly influential in Hong Kong. When we do design, we need to consider the use of feng shui.

Chinese preferences

Our living room already serves a triple function of living area (sofa/television/bookcase) I would like to have a more open kitchen that has more counter space and ability to move around a bit more.

I worked at a desk located inside of my living room.

The rest of the activities mostly took place in either my living room, bedroom, or kitchen.

Due to the climate/weather in Hong Kong, the outside space is mostly only usable from October through May.

We are friends with our current neighbors on our floor. We know them, and have visited one another’s homes to hang out, prepare meals, have drinks, and play board games.

User preferences(Young Professionals)

-Interviewee currently living in Hong Kong

Draw around the participants as they use the appropriate objects in different circumstances and with their comfortable postures.I learned further about the relationship between humans and space.

What I learned from my previous research

Human activities can define space meanings Human comfortable positions are similar

People can find their own comfortable postilion under the constraints Human activities use less space than we think

Mental comfort space needs more space than physical comfort space Objects/furniture can limit human need for space What I learned from my previous research

Based on previous information and the data collected, this is the design goal I have for now.

The placement and color of the room should be based on Feng Shui Furniture should be multi-purpose Meet the lifestyle of the young professional Provides more space for highly used areas Provide space for mental comfort Defining space based on human activity

Design goal

Site analysis & research

Yick Cheong Building (Monster Build ing) Public housing projects built in the 1960s n for the low-income residents The upper floors for domestic use while the ground floor is for selling An E-shaped concrete complex, 2,243 units in five blocks with 18 floors in height. 10,000 people live there The nickname “Monster Building” comes from the movie “Transformers.”

Site

Upper residential area

Lower level stores and meeting places

Site

Site

20m/ 70 ft

96m/ 315 ft

With the floor plan of the building, and a typical unit I found online, we can get a sense of how densely designed the building is and how much space this unit has compared to the whole building. Each unit looks similar and has a similar design. Everyone lives in a cramped unit. In this building it is necessary to apply, a well-designed prototype unit that can meet the needs of each person and make the unit more organized

Site

Total 33.5 m2/ 360.59 sq ft

Typical design in this building

Current Problem Not suitable for different activities Not feel spacious Not satisfy everyone needs Not for multipurpose Not optimized space utilization Not organized

Problems with current condition

Multi-room setup Changes in different types of rooms should be quick and easy Should have a spacious feel Provides more in a smaller space Optimize space utilization

+

The placement and color of the room should be based on Feng Shui Furniture should be multi-purpose Meet the lifestyle of the young professional Provides more space for highly used areas Provide space for mental comfort Defining space based on human activity Refine design goal

Design analysis & research

Multipurpose furniture

Diverse room setting

Human activity defines the room

-Ifdesign.com

Work room 2.25m2/ 24 sq

Bedroom 8.56m2/ 92.14 sq ft

Living room 4m2/ 43 sq

Restroom 2.42m2/26.05sq ft

Eating 1.125m2/ 12 sq

Dining room 4 m2/ 43.6 sq

Kitchen table 0.91 m2/9.8 sq

Stove Fridge 0.91 m2/9.8 sq 0.91 m2/9.8 sq

Minimum living space standards and highly used space in the house,according to cpami.gov.tw,

Programing

-Cpami.gov.tw

Bed NOT faces the door Bathroom’s door CANNOT be directly opposite to the front door, the corridor and the kitchen door.

Basic Feng shui rules

Restroom should NOT be in the east The kitchen and the bathroom CANNOT be connected

The darker color at the bottom and the lighter color at the top represents a lighter sky and a heavier ground.

Use neutral colors

Design

Curtain Light Scale=1:64

Video display

Drawing

Total: 20.7 m2/ 222.82 sq ft

Scale=1:64

Main bed

Sofa

2

Main bed & Sofa

Guest bed

Table

10

Guest bed & Table

Study desk

Dining Table

1

Study desk/ Dining Table

Kitchen

Projector screen

Cutting board

8

Moving Kitchen

Fridge

9

Fridge

7

Washer & dryer

6

Cloest

5

Entrance

4

Restroom & Bathroom

3

Bookshelf

The placement and color of the room based on Feng Shui Use of the current 20.7 m2 /222.82 sq. ft. is less than the standard required space, but provides enough of the required space.

Catering to the lifestyles of young professionals with more space for kitchens, bedrooms and living room Changes in different types of rooms is quick and easy The use of neutral colors and hide-and-seek features give this design a spacious feel.

Overlay areas and optimize space utilization Multi-purpose furniture Offers more in less space

Conclusion