A Solution from the Past?
A horrible war in the Middle-east has forced hundreds of thousands to flee their home country and seek a new life in another country. Many are coming to Europe which puts an immense pressure on the European countries and their international relations. A problem evolving around how to handle and house so many people. Houses are in demand, and the supply is under heavy stress.
Politicians are looking for an answer and perhaps the answer can be found in an uncompleted project by Danish architect, J?rn Utzon. We begin our search for a solution in the Netherlands during another and more gruesome war.
Self-sustaining and mobile
More than one million Dutchmen are on their way back home. The second world war has scattered them across the European continent, and now that this horrible war is over Dutchmen are returning home looking for a place to begin a new chapter in their life. Housing is in dire need, and a solution has to be found as quickly as possible.
Danish architect, J?rn Utzon, and illustrator Volmer Sufzkyewicz has found a potential solution. Their collaboration is a try at making provisional dwellings. But due to the circumstances, this relief action had to be self-sustaining and as mobile and adaptable as possible.
Utzon’s and Sufzkyewicz’ project is based on a train wagon. By modifying them and making them into small houses complete with kitchens and rooms, they can be self-sustaining while still being mobile, since the wagons were on wheels. Therefore, the transportation would be instant. They would be ready for use as soon as they reached their destination.
Also the carriages were adaptable and could be combined for a variety of purposes. The scheme conceived here implies the beginning of the additive architecture Utzon develops after 1970. Read more about Utzon’s additive architecture over at www.utzonphotos.com.
Perhaps today’s housing problem can be solved partly through the unconventional use of carriages. It would provide more flexibility and mobility to the refugees and country’s receiving them.