CASE STUDY IN HONG KONG
- This is a case study about how to solve the problems of limited space. Limited
space can be a problem of collective living when there are a
number of people live together and the furniture, household items,
daily supplies and a lot of the fragmentary objects will become
obstacle of a space.
In
Hong Kong, every corner and gap is precious. Architect Gary Chang
knows - he grew up in a 32 sq m (344 sq ft) flat in the Kowloon area.
The flat was partitioned into three tiny bedrooms, a kitchen and a
bathroom. Mr Chang slept in the hallway while five other family
members squeezed into two rooms. Incredibly, they also rented out the
third bedroom.
Mr
Chang says this experience was not unique in the territory in the
1970s.
"Back
then, many people would live together under the same roof," he
said. "We learned to be less vocal in order to keep the peace
between family members." Four decades later, however, the
housing situation has not improved much.
Smaller
living
Mr Chang made stylish improvements to his flat
Property
prices in Hong Kong are among the highest in the world.
According
to government statistics, flats the size of Mr Chang's family home in
the heart of Hong Kong had doubled in price between 2007 and 2012, to
an average of 108,546 Hong Kong dollars ($13,980; £9200) per square
metre.
More
and more, Hong Kong people are coping by living in smaller spaces. A
family of four commonly lives in a flat of less than 50 sq m. Those
at the bottom of the scale cram into older flats that are subdivided
into cubicles.
In
the meantime, those who can afford to own or rent apartments try to
adapt to smaller living.
Costly
renovations
Mr
Chang has found a stylish way to maximise space in his childhood
home, where he now lives alone.
Fig
2.1.2b Maple Ma uses a halogen pot for cooking in her kitchen to save
space
Five
years ago, he installed tracks on the ceiling and rollers to build a
sliding wall system to transform the open-plan studio apartment into
many different rooms.
He
gently pulls the steel handles along the walls to show a walk-in
closet on the other side, then slides another panel out to reveal a
full-sized bathtub. At the other end of the apartment, a kitchen is
hidden behind the wall upon which the television is mounted.
"I'm
too lazy to walk. So I've designed the apartment in a way where the
rooms transform around me. Every room uses the entire floor area to
maximise space," he said.
Mr
Chang did not specify how much he paid for the renovations, but said
they cost as much as the flat itself.
Few
people in Hong Kong can afford that investment. So for most
residents, it's a constant battle against clutter.
On
the other side of the territory, Maple Ma and her husband Dave Li
live in an apartment twice the size of Mr Chang's, but they are
starting to feel cramped.
"When
we buy something it's always a concern whether we have room for it.
If I buy a piece of clothing I might have to throw another one away,"
Ms Ma said.
"It
doesn't always happen but that's what it's come down to."
The
hardest place to find storage is the kitchen - the narrow area tucked
behind the living room also doubles as the laundry room.
So
Ms Ma has learned to adapt by cooking with only one electric pot. The
gadget can grill, bake, fry, defrost and steam using a halogen light
as heat. It replaces her oven, microwave and electric stove.
Fig
2.1.2c A family with four members typically squeezes into a flat of
less than 50sqm
Adapting
gadgets
The
Hong Kong company behind the appliance, German Pool, says sales of
the halogen cooking pot have increased 40-fold since 2006 to 100,000
last year, amid growing demand for space-saving gadgets that perform
multiple functions.
German
Pool started by selling electric water heaters but later branched out
to kitchen appliances. Adapting gadgets to Hong Kong's living
conditions is what will drive the company's future growth, says
managing director Edward Chan.
"In
many of our cooking appliances we want to contain the grease splatter
and steam, so that cooking is more enjoyable in tiny spaces,"
said Mr Chan.
But
he says that although customers want to save space, they do not want
to skimp on quality. German Pool's latest product is an automatic
stir-fry pot that can cook raw grains of rice into a decadent sticky
rice dish in 12 minutes without splattering grease over the
countertop.
Hong
Kong has long dealt with a housing crunch. But an industry based on
small-spaced living is only starting to grow now, says associate
professor of architecture at Hong Kong University, Jia Beisi.
Fig
2.1.2d Mr Chang's creative approach allows him to include a private
home theatre in his flat
In
the past, people had to make whatever space they had work because
they had large families, he said.
Now
that residents have more money and smaller families, they are willing
to spend on gadgets or renovating their small space to make
apartments more multi-functional, he added.
Small
living can also turn out to be quite luxurious, as Mr Chang has
proven.
His
apartment transforms into a home theatre - a blue projector screen
unfurls slowly with the click of a remote.
He
hangs a hammock on industrial hooks attached to the ceiling. "It's
my favourite room," he said.
For
Mr Chang, there is always room for indulgence, no matter how small
the space.
