UX Copy - Microcosms by Inda International Program in Design & Architecture at Chulangkorn University

The distinction between residential and work place is a relatively recent one. Buildings combining living and business spaces still form the historical urban fabric of many European and Asian cities with different peculiar architectural articulations.

In South East Asia, shophouses provided the convenience of living in close proximity to one's business but also created the space for a community formed by an extended family. Small businesses have been outgrown by corporations and industrialization made extended communities less necessary introducing the notion of workplace away from home.

An ongoing environmental crisis, the past global pandemic and an augmented connectivity are shifting some of these values, urging us to rethink our lifestyles and shape them towards a lesser impact on the environment and a focus on mindfulness.

It is well known that the construction industry is responsible for almost 30% of the global carbon footprint. One effective way to reduce emissions is to build less by repurposing and adapting existing buildings but also using the space efficiently, for example by avoiding empty homes during business time or deserted offices in the evenings or weekends.

An architectural typology that combines private and work places could support a lifestyle that reduces commuting traffic, optimises the use of spaces thus reducing carbon emissions, while nurturing personal connections with family and community.

The studio aims to develop architectural prototypes that combine multiple residential units and work spaces for the residents (between 20 and 200) limited to publicfacing businesses or desktop communities with shared infrastructures.

The brief intends to question architectural typologies by fulfilling opportunities within the constraints of the site, while ensuring that the design proposals remain rooted in the realm of architecture as a discipline that engages with the creation of tangible, functional, andcontextuallyresponsive built environments suitable to humans and the laws of physics.

Each studio cluster worked around a studio focus outlined by the instructor. The studio focus is intended to guide students design approach to the brief and offered a degree of specificity within the brief