Different societies produce different ways of living and living together. As our society is subject to constant change, our forms of housing constantly adapt with it. The profound changes that our society is currently undergoing lead to a rediscovery and reinterpretation of communal forms of living. The first part of this master’s thesis looks at the development of cooperative forms of living and the impact of social interaction on spatial requirements. The second topic this thesis deals with is fractal geometric systems, in particular branching systems, as they often occur in nature, for example in trees, rivers, etc. These geometric structures were explored in various studies and then translated into an architectural context. Finally, these two topics were brought together in a design project. On the “Ferrariwiese” plot south of Innsbruck, the thesis envisions a residential area, which creates a space for shared living in a floor plan system developed on the basis of branching systems.
The project takes a detailed look at both the urban-planning context for this newly created living environment and a small section of the area to see what living together would actually look like for the inhabitants. Furthermore, the paper examines the relationship between private areas and collectively used spaces whose function is determined by various different groups of users. The branching system allows for various diverse scenarios, which are immensely valuable for a community.
The underlying social concept of cooperative cohabitation determines the structure of the residential building project while its form is defined in greater detail by the geometric branching system.