Two-Door City

Workhome

In reality there is no one-size fits all solution for the diverse home-based workforce, which includes entrepreneurs, piece workers, knowledge workers, artists and makers and carers. A huge variety of architectural and urban approaches is needed to provide effective space for the working practice – along with profound and radical changes in culture and policy frameworks.

But Two-Door City suggests that there is in fact a single idea to solve not just one but a myriad of the challenges posed by a future of working from home, which acts on the three levels of design, policy and culture – two doors.

The two-doors solution allows spatial, social and acoustic separation between home and work. It makes home-based work visible in the neighbourhood, and increases permeability between public realm and building interiors, especially important for occupations that interact with the public – from architect to hairdresser. It also builds in flexibility and adaptability over the lifetimes of buildings and their occupants – as a family or business grows or shrinks, or by providing semi-independent space for teenagers, a lodger, or a live-in carer.

Two-Door City addresses new buildings and the renovation of many existing ones. It can be applied to housing types from blocks of flats to maisonettes and from terraces to semi-detached and detached houses.

Team: The Workhome Project

Architect
Frances Holliss

Ash Sakula
Cany Ash, Maggie Atanasova, Julie Oti, Carlos Penalver

Architectural Designer and Urbanist
Richard Brown

Author and Professor of Architecture
Howard Davis

Graphic Artist
Sam Hart

Interdisciplinary
Joseph Kohlmaier

Influencer and Author
Jeremy Porteus