Sunday, October 16, 2022

‘Patterns of Life’ (POL) analysis – use in design of homes

 Pattern of life (POL) or behavior pattern describes a recurrent (e.g., normalcy) way of acting by an individual or group toward a given object or in a given situation[1]

Considering that people may have recurring habits and behavioral patterns in their homes based on multiple factors like age , sex, cultural background, religion, rituals, genetic influences, associations , interests , , work systems, hobbies etc, it is possible to identify certain typical behavior patterns that can be the basis used to create their living environments. An attempt to decipher life patterns has been made in the book ‘Pattern Language’ by Prof. Christopher Alexander[2]  in 1977, where around 253 livability patterns were identified  within scale from Region to individual homes based on contemporary readings of people and spaces mainly in the western world. Another inspiration to develop the idea, is the concept of ‘Emergent’ or ‘Self organized’ systems that let human beings to organize themselves spontaneously in terms of social networks or physical orders[3].

The idea put forth is that, if data by families regarding multiple patterns of their life and how they use different spaces within their homes is analyzed, it may be possible to derive space syntax[4] based on the social logic of people within the family. This gives unique codes and ideas in terms of associations between spaces, furniture, building elements and people that may formed as the basis of customizing various living spaces in their homes.

The three broad types of variables at the intersection of which POL could be understood are

1)    People – various members of the family

2)    Spaces & Objects – different spaces in the household  along with the related objects like furniture as well as temporary objects of use in various activities

3)    Activitieschanging associations between people and objects in various spaces

  The POL studies need to be understood for various spaces in the house not only for routine daily life but also special occasions and situations like festivals or lockdowns where they undergo temporary changes.

 

POL as the basis of creating responsive living environments:

The various fields where designers are involved into creation of living environments have an approach where the spaces are considered to be static environments frozen in time. Thus the visual feel of the rooms, objects, furniture, light, color and finishes attain prime importance. The linear approach where the designer responds to series of requirements of the clients through various drawings and 3rd dimension views ends up shaping a sculptural edifice where the users living in the newly defined space adjust with time. The critical point at which requirements are finalized is overlooked and the design is worked upon within the available standardized alternatives of room sizes, shapes, fixed furniture pieces, modular systems, movable seating, working and eating furniture, light fixtures etc.

 


POL analysis gives unique patterns of life of different families that serve as starting point to see design of living environment as flexible and modifiable spaces. Homes are not static entities but dynamic spaces where there are multiple patterns of activities happening throughout the day. These activities and their patterns also change contextually with respect to special occasions like festivals.  Families may have their own unique patterns of storing, cooking, serving and eating food. The kitchen platform and dining table may double up for many things.   The recent pandemic and lockdowns where most people spent larger time at homes used their living rooms, terraces, dining areas in more multiple ways beyond the intentions meant. The WFH & SFH (Work / Study from Home) activity were carried out in multiple ways and multiple spaces in our houses. Apart from these daily activities, the Asian culture has multiple family events and festivals where friends and family gather together to celebrate. The extent of use of spaces in multiple ways is usually inversely proportional to the average size of homes. Thus we find families living within frugal means in smaller houses being compelled to use living space in multiple manners. Above all enforces a belief that homes and living environment are more like living organisms which should have spaces and living environment that respond to the ever-changing momentary reality of the users. This logic is similar to the way we change user interface and apps in our mobile phones for different purposes.

POL analysis leads to study and reorganization of multiple types of data based on the unique life of the inhabitants and their family. The end result in such a kind of an activity in terms of design and execution may not be in form of typical spaces but may be in form of rooms and living spaces which allow flexibility , incrementality and modifications in fixed as well as movable objects , through which it may be possible to the end user to respond to their unique patterns of life that are dynamic..

 Hrishikesh Ashtekar

Architect Urban designer 



[1] https://www.spiedigitallibrary.org/conference-proceedings-of-spie/8745/1/Pattern-of-life-from-WAMI-objects-tracking-based-on-visual/10.1117/12.2015612.short

[2] A Pattern Language: Towns, Buildings, Construction is a 1977 book on architecture, urban design, and community livability. It was authored by Christopher Alexander, Sara Ishikawa and Murray Silverstein of the Center for Environmental Structure of Berkeley,

[3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spontaneous_order, http://csis.pace.edu/~marchese/CS396x/Computing/Ashby.pdf

[4] Social logic of space – Bill Hillier & Julienne Hanson

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