Stockholm-based Tham & Videgård (of wooden high-rise fame) took an unusual approach while aiming to design a house that could be all things to all people. The firm analyzed data created by roughly 2 million Swedes – or 20 percent of the country's population – to design what's billed as a new type of democratic architecture.
The home's design process involved Tham & Videgård analyzing what users of a popular Swedish property website looked for in a dwelling. This included size, cost, the number of rooms, and even the color of the surfaces. In all, the firm drew upon roughly 2 million visitors, 200 million clicks, and 86,000 properties between January and October 2014. It then added a little artistic license based on classic Swedish design principles.
"The house is in short based on two parts: first a direct interpretation of Big Data statistics from all the Hemnet users, an average value that determined the measurable properties of the home, including size, price, number of rooms, bathrooms and floors," says Tham & Videgård.
"To this Tham & Videgård have added a reading of the Swedish house condensed into two iconic types: the red wooden cottage that represents history, local resources, crafts and national building traditions; and the white functionalist box, which stands for modernity, optimism, industrial development, the welfare state and international ideals."
Referred to as both the House of Clicks and Hemnet Home (the latter named after the website from which the data was gleaned), the resulting residence is surprisingly appealing, if a little bland from the outside. Taking the form of a simple cube, it comprises a total floorspace of 103 sq m (1,115 sq ft), and includes a bathroom, guest WC, three bedrooms, and a large kitchen with high ceiling.
Generous windows and skylights promote natural light, and the home also boasts a terrace that's protected from the wind and can be converted into an additional room if required. The facade is made from red wooden boarding and the house is surrounded by a modest garden plot.
While it remains a concept at present, the House of Clicks is due to be built soon and will then be put up for sale.
Sources: Tham & Videgård, Hemnet
