DBOOK. Density, Data, Diagrams, Dwellings


Análisis visual de 64 proyectos de vivienda colectiva
Visual Analysis of 64 Collective Housing Projects


DBOOK comprises a group of 64 collective housing projects, analyzed according to their contribution to the dense city.
After the release of Density. New collective Housing, Dbook represents a leap forward in the diffusion of architectural examples which promote the compact development of urban settlements.
The unorganised invasion of the environment is often justified by the expensive price of urban land and the need for larger homes. Moreover, the freedom to choose one’s residence is no minor argument for those who have dreams of green prairies with the promising independence of a single-family home, of the semi-detached home or even a row house, as opposed to that routine of stairs and lift. To complete that landscape, large consumer centres that are strategically placed next to motorways offer drivers a world of low-priced pleasure.

What should be done about such a panorama? Is there any possiblity for collective housing to be wanted by city dwellers? Is it true that urban centres will soon be inhabited only by the well-off and those at a disadvantage? What advantages can apartment life offer when the price per metre is more expensive than that of a single family house? Is it worth walking all the way to the supermarket when there are only two kinds of jam? What is the point of cultural activities if everything is on Internet? Is it true that collective transport makes dispersion even easier? Is there anyone who has never had problems with their fellow flat-owners? Does density not cause many of the conflicts that arise in coexistence?

We do not honestly have an answer to any of these questions. We have only a selection of projects that give breath to the hope that life in common is still possible and that it improves when architectural conditions improve.