AESTHETICS AND ARCHITECTURE FOR THE DEPENDENT AGEING PROCESS: : SIX ARCHITECTURAL COMPETITIONS IN SWEDEN, 1907–2012

• In Sweden, the search for an appropriate space for accommodating dependent older people can be associated with the construction of the development of the modern welfare society. Despite different political paradigms, the notion of a comfortable ageing process in a familiar home environment, complemented by individualized caregiving, has become the dominant idea for architecture for the frail ageing process. This study explores the evolution of this particular aesthetics by examining six architectural competitions that were organized during the period from 1907 to 2012. These competitions served as research material. The documentation of each of these competitions was subjected to a close-reading and drawing-analysis procedure. Being national, these competitions forged the positive connotations of the locus of home into aesthetical criteria for a normative homelikeness, which was implemented by the Swedish municipalities. In the course of time, homelikeness has changed from an emotional understanding into an approach for architectural critique. Based on the six competitions, this study postulates that the aesthetics of homelikeness involves the following aspects: 1) small-scale buildings with interior space that is designed for communal or individual usage; 2) small-scale buildings in a large-scale configuration with space for individual and communal use; 3) integration in and location to surrounding areas for residential use; 4) exploration of sensory aspects of the indoor and the outdoor environment that the architectural design created; and 5) architectural design promoting the individual process of appropriating it into becoming a locus of home.

Ämnesord

HUMANIORA  -- Konst -- Arkitektur (hsv//swe)

HUMANITIES  -- Arts -- Architecture (hsv//eng)

Nyckelord

architectural competitions

programming space for frail ageing

aesthetics

socio-politics

Arkitektur

Architecture

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