A design for a house whose structural elements can be printed with a 3D printer has been shortlisted for the Top 50 of the international competition The Micro Housing 2022. The concept by Anna Famulska and Magda Obsadna, as well as Jakub Tokarczyk and Szymon Wajda of the Wroclaw-based architecture studio Panate can be made independently in any part of the world.
The aim of The Micro Housing 2022, organized by Impact Competition, was to highlight the importance that small architecture can have in the face of the housing, economic and climate crisis. The competition task was to create imaginative, experimental architectural solutions that respond to the current demands of the housing market in large cities. The organizers were looking for modular, innovative housing solutions with which to create a contemporary community.
The competition design should be both functional and aesthetically pleasing, and the area of a single unit, designed for about four users, should not exceed 106 square meters. The designed apartments should include a bedroom, kitchen, bathroom and common space, as well as appropriate communication solutions.
The project was to include residential units and common areas
© Anna Famulska, Magda Obsadna, Jakub Tokarczyk, Szymon Wajda
Poles on the Top 50 list
The international competition jury awarded three main prizes (First Prize went to Henry Smith from the United States for the Occupy the streets project), two special mentions and ten honorable mentions, and announced the Top 50 list, which included two projects from Poland. They are Bridge Town by Piotr Gajdka, Zuzanna Boberek and Alicja Krzeminska, and Blocky House by a team consisting of: Anna Famulska, Magda Obsadna, Jakub Tokarczyk and Szymon Wajda.
The panels can be printed in a 3D printer
© Anna Famulska, Magda Obsadna, Jakub Tokarczyk, Szymon Wajda
one-block printed house
Blocky House - a one-block house by Poles can be built by yourself. As the authors explain, a single panel can be made locally - printed as a 3D element or as a cut panel in a CNC workshop. The proposed module consists of panels filled with thermal insulation together to form a single panel module. The individual panels are then attached with metal joints to form a single panel house. Mobility inside the building is provided by groove-rails that allow the walls to be moved and the space to be easily shaped.
Blocky House project, plans and sections
© Anna Famulska, Magda Obsadna, Jakub Tokarczyk, Szymon Wajda
one project many possibilities
The discussed, single objects, depending on the needs, can create individual estates, infill houses, as well as high-rise buildings.
An interesting solution is sliding walls
© Anna Famulska, Magda Obsadna, Jakub Tokarczyk, Szymon Wajda
Thanks to the vertical communication core and modular construction grid, we can freely shape the space in our habitat. Individual blocks can be arranged to create private, semi-private and public spaces. For this we can use, among other things, the roofs of the blocks, the spaces between them as communication bridges, the spaces around the core, the public square at ground level, the architects explain.
Blocky House can be built in any configuration and location
© Anna Famulska, Magda Obsadna, Jakub Tokarczyk, Szymon Wajda
The design of the project is independent of the modules and does not limit the arrangement of the blocks, which fill the space according to functional and social needs. Importantly, they can always be rearranged according to the changing needs of users.
