Shifting domesticities: recent social housing practices and policies in Spain

Abstract

Instances of crisis have always marked pivotal moments in housing design, acting as catalysts for re-evaluating models and practices and bringing forth systemic changes already latent in the discipline. Such revelation of hidden latencies is a characteristic phenomenon of today's housing panorama, influenced by factors such as the recent COVID-19 pandemic, the imperative shift toward ecological sustainability, and a growing discourse prompting the reconsideration of the human body at both individual and social levels. This article delves into such a system of adjustments within the contextualised case of Spanish social housing. It does so by focusing on two complementary sources. Firstly, recent shifts in housing policies, encompassing new regulations, programs, legal frameworks, and urban strategies; and secondly, a selection of projects emerging from competitions and new developments that either anticipate or result from these policy changes, introducing innovative design devices working on the following fronts: (1) the presence of nature and open space, interpreted as a fundamental element for social comfort related with broader ecological concerns, (2) a heterogeneous and complex articulation of in-between collective spaces, responding to emerging trends around the concept of sharing, and (3) the reconceptualization of the traditional core of interior private space, namely the kitchen, which in turn raises important questions on gender equality and care. Analysing the ever-evolving interplay between policies and practices, theories and projects, will reveal that the multifaceted crises of recent decades have played a pivotal role in shaping a redefined understanding of domestic spaces. Most significantly, this reinterpretation goes beyond addressing environmental sustainability and energy efficiency, placing a great emphasis on social innovation within and beyond the home, inside and outside the building.