Living Geometry is a prefabricated flexible housing prototype that not only adapts to individual  residents needs at a micro scale but also create a mutual community at a macro scale. Starting  from a cube as a basic unit, cubic city utilized prefabricated cubes with customized panel  selections to serve different functions. By aggregating with different numbers of cubes, different sizes of family can find their own apartment that suits their needs. The entire city grows taller as  more people live here over years. Cubes can be changed into open structure when no residents  resides or combined with nearby apartment by simply changing the panel to connect.

Third Award | RTFSA 2016 Awards
Category: Housing (Concept)

©Rong Zhao Architecture

Living Geometry is an all­service community that integrates social services, community recreational facilities, and residential units in one building. It sets a new model for urbanism by  incorporating a new type of shared public space within the building. Living Geometry is  organized around a communal path that links the street with the community. The path also  serves as the main circulation path for its residents.Public service programs including a farmers  market at the street level, a second level for community and wellness programs, and retail  space, restaurants at the lower level along the path. There is a kindergarten connected with  public playground on the 3rd floor to provide education service for second generation refugees.  Living Geometry is made of a 3.6 m structural grid combined with an aggregation of  prefabricated living modules. It starts from a module which is a cube with 3.6 meters in all  dimensions. The cube starts as a blank abstract void or enclosures living unit in the massive  grid skeleton. Along with component panels including flooring, shading and glazing devices, a  set of typologies are created based on a set of rules. Each cube with a total area of 13 sm2. can  accommodate a kitchen with a living room, or a bedroom. By aggregating cubes vertically and  combing cubes horizontally, Different types of apartments are generated.

©Rong Zhao Architecture

The colossal structure, comprises of structures from each individual dwelling capsules gives freedom to the community  to create big public space for everyone. A Utopian communities is pictured in my mind where residents in Living Geometry can communicate freely in the entry lobby on the ground floor. The open cubes supporting the mega structure invites natural
sunlight, natural ventilation inside the community.

Each cube is prefabricated in a factory and lifted into place, which will help provide a higher quality of construction, meet tighter construction tolerances, accelerate construction time, and accomplish the project’s ambitious sustainability goals.

©Rong Zhao Architecture

Panel Market is an ideal supermarket where residences can order choose and redesign their own apartments by combining different prefabricated panel types. Operable louvres and  different partition materials and colors are available for residences to choose from. By  combining the prefabricated facade panel with cube structure, residences redesign their own apartments according to their individual needs. The combined panel with cube structure would be assembled in the factory and later shipped to the site.