Hostel Cube
Location: Budapest, Photo: Danyi Balázs, Project year: 2015
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Variable living unit for individual travelers, Creating spaces for privacy in a hostel is a challenging design task, since almost all its functions are shared. Even one of the most intimate human activities, sleeping, must be performed in a room full of strangers. Thus, a dormitory room cannot be regarded as a private unit. The bed is the only ‘place’ that is both formally and informally regarded as one's own property. The bed cannot be dealt with simply as a piece of furniture in a private room, but as a minimal private room, a ‘living unit’ in a shared space. Partizan Architecture have been developing an experimental structure that tries to expand the bed’s usability from a piece of furniture to a room: The Hostel Cube intends to achieve this by empowering the users with increased control over their environment and enabling them to perform various activities: Users have control over lighting and visibility. They can store personal belongings safely in their direct environment. The dimensions of the unit enable different body positions. It provides opportunities to connect to wired and wireless networks. Since the first implementation of Hostel Cube in 2014, several developments have been made in order to extend its usability and adapt more precisely to the spatial requirements of contemporary travelers.