The world we knew and lived before the pandemic looks like history. The time has changed drastically. Like everyone on the face of earth; architecture and architects got affected by coronavirus ineptly. Different measures were taken to curtail the effect of the said disease but as the whole world went towards closure and lockdown; architecture field was bound to adapt according to the situation and introduce the new norms to keep on working efficiently.
In recent months, we have arrived at a new juncture of disease and architecture, where fear of contamination again controls what kinds of spaces, we want to be in.
Empty walls, open floors, and polished surfaces became synonymous with high-minded nomadism, the style of the person who lived nowhere and belonged everywhere.
The airy, pristine emptiness of modernism, the space needed for quarantine is primarily defensive, with taped lines and Plexiglas walls segmenting the outside world into zones of socially distanced safety. Wide-open spaces are best avoided. Barriers are our friends. Stores and offices will have to be reformatted in order to reopen; our spatial routines fundamentally changed. And, at home, we might find ourselves longing for a few more walls and dark corners.
How covid-19 reshaped us:
Covid-19 called for prophylactic design. Masks and gloves barricaded our bodies like a second skin. Taped circles spaced six feet apart made sure we don’t contaminate others while standing in line at the grocery store.
Quarantine turned us into explorers of the familiar. So far, the pandemic’s impact on urbanism has shown up in small changes that can be implemented faster than a new building or zoning plan.
We are in a situation where density is something to be avoided. The challenge is reconciling the need for a long-term architectural plan with the pandemic’s ongoing unknowability.
The changes that happened all over the world:
Coronavirus shaped the whole world. Each and every organism living on planet earth faced the consequences of this disease and had to adapt newer ways of life that became the norm and an essential part of their lifestyle.
Following are few changes that were observed all over the world.
- Shifting away from large offices and working from home
- Decrease in car reliance
- New forms of public spaces
- New restaurant layouts
- Increase in modular construction
- An increasing reliance on adaptive reuse
Shaping up Architecture in accordance with coronavirus:
New innovations were made in light weighted designs and constructions. Since the onset of the pandemic, many companies have developed various architecture and design solutions that address the need for emergency facilities. Many have been tented structures, built to serve as field hospitals and test centres.
Other examples include a rapidly deployable, pop-up recovery unit, shipping containers converted into bio containment pods and modular critical care units that can be easily transported. The portability and ease of assemblage of lightweight architecture is perfect for disaster and crisis response.
With pandemic on the roll; flexible building designs were introduced and further conceptualized. While not a new concept, the importance of adaptability has become increasingly evident during this pandemic. From creating make-shift emergency facilities to reorganizing one’s home that’s better suited for working remotely, flexible design has proven to be essential. It includes a series of adjustable walls and screens that would be used to segment an open-plan apartment into various dedicated spaces. The same approach could be made in office buildings.
“Floor plans will look different, be more flexible and space allocation will be adjusted. Companies will want the ability to quickly modify and scale their workplaces in the case that something like this were to happen again in the future.”
