At Home with Density

CONCLUSION

CONCLUSION I doubt i f any of these families hav e ever taken a s many photograph s of their home i n one day, in such detail , a s I did in 1992 . Just a s I am sure the y hav e neve r consciousl y spen t s o muc h tim e scrutinizin g the layout o f their home s o r reflecting o n the significance o f clutter , art and housework i n their lives, or in relation t o interior design. It is very likely that these homes (those that still exist) have changed sinc e these photograph s wer e taken . I t i s perhap s eve n mor e likel y tha t these same residents would today give different response s to the very same questions. Interior design is not something normally associate d with HKH A homes . Bu t wit h thi s smal l sampl e o f publi c housin g tenants, I set ou t t o recor d wha t they though t abou t thei r home s t o discover somethin g abou t thei r knowledg e o f designin g i n hig h density. Th e fac t wa s tha t mos t familie s ha d a lo t t o say , becaus e their practical experience of high-density living had clearly informe d their knowledg e o f space and design . Several factors have contributed to the transformation o f the Hong Kong public rental home. First, the move from one-roo m spac e to th e new styl e HKH A renta l block s buil t t o a highe r desig n an d spatia l allocation has significantly shifte d th e baseline of what tenants expec t from publi c renta l housing . A s thes e becam e mor e common, 1 i t i s natural that the older flats would increasingly be perceived by tenant s to b e sub-standard , rathe r tha n typica l publi c housing . Secondly , a t the time of these interviews about 40% of the Hong Kong populatio n lived i n publi c renta l housing ; b y 200 1 wit h drive s toward s home - 194 A t Home With Densit y ownership an d tightenin g u p o f incom e level s pe r household , th e percentage figure has been reduced to about 31.9% of the population. 2 For man y long-ter m resident s o f governmen t housing , onc e thei r children hav e grow n u p an d move d out , the y fin d the y hav e mor e space and often mor e disposable income. Should they decide to remain in publi c renta l housing , rathe r tha n optin g fo r homeownership , clearly the y hav e mor e opportunit y eithe r t o reorganiz e o r remode l their home . Thirdly , Hon g Kon g consumers toda y hav e muc h mor e choice o f furniture , fittings , an d lightin g tha n eve r before. A glut o f interior desig n magazine s o n th e marke t als o mean s tha t publi c housing residents have much more exposure the design and to consider it a s part o f their lives . To date there has been little consideration o f how residents hav e managed t o cop e s o well wit h thi s for m o f high-densit y livin g fro m the perspectiv e o f interio r design . Historically , issue s concernin g density have been limited by the basic assumption that density create s crowding, which is considered to be a negative subjective experience . While i t i s eviden t tha t laborator y test s o f animals , whic h clai m knowledge o f th e effect s o f densit y o n humans , lose s sigh t o f th e complexity o f human spatia l experience, mos t studie s of Hong Kon g density hav e indicate d tha t ther e i s littl e evidenc e t o suppor t th e pathology of density argument in Hong Kong. According to Freedman, crowding is a psychological state , a...