Thank you for sending those pictures of your homeland. They are all quite lovely. This all substantiates what my Swedish friend has told me about the charm of Sweden. Of course everyone around the world is familiar with the famed beauty of Stockholm. Surely it is very high on the list of places people would like to visit. Do you ever wonder why we can’t build such humane, handsome cities again?
What do you think of my idea of building vernacular (= local-style) housing for people of modest means instead of concrete boxes? Do you think this would accord with the tastes and lifestyle of Swedish people, or would they rather have the boxes?
You may know that after Katrina, the American government furnished displaced people with tiny cottages that could later be used as a studio, storage house, or guest cottage, or could be added onto later, when the displaced people were again settled. These cottages were built in a traditional style rather than as a harsh box, and it seems that people really like them.
“Thank you for sending those pictures of your homeland. They are all quite lovely.”
- Glad you enjoyed them.
“Do you ever wonder why we can’t build such humane, handsome cities again?”
- I agree something has been lost. On the other hand, I find a lot of the houses we’re building in the Western World today as much more attractive than the architecture of the 1960’s and 1970’s.
One nice project in my home city, Gothenburg, is that of “Norra Älvstranden” (meaning “the Northern River Bank”). It used to be a shipbuilding yard and a location of some other industry, but lately it has been transformed into an area of nice condo’s and office buildings. Most people here in Gothenburg seem to agree the outcome of this project has been very successful. Some pictures:
http://www.pixgallery.com/cs?ess=MC9tLTF8Mi9pZC01NjZ8OC9hY3Rpb24tbGlzdHwxMS9hY3Rpb24tdmlld3wx
“What do you think of my idea of building vernacular (= local-style) housing for people of modest means instead of concrete boxes?”
- That is a great idea that I fully support.
Here in Sweden a lot of new ‘middle class’ houses are built very much in the traditional style. A nice example of this from the same website as the Gothenburg pictures:
Another nice ‘middle class’ home built of wood in more or less an traditional style in Sweden:
This house I also find very tasteful and not especially expensive for being Stockholm (- but where’s the jacuzzi? These things have become very affordable in Sweden just like in the US):
http://www.svenskfast.se/Pages/ObjectViewPictures.aspx?objectid=3D94K2R77MGNF49S
The examples above clearly illustrate that it is possible to build comfortable houses for ordinary people in a traditional style even today.
But what about poorer people in Sweden?
Most of them live in apartments in concrete ‘box’ houses built in the era of 1950-1970 and these houses are often thought of as very depressing and inattractive. A lot of immigrants live in such places.
In many cases, these houses have been renovated and been equipped with ‘glass’ balconies (and many of them have also been repainted). One such example:
http://www.sr.se/ekot/arkiv.asp?DagensDatum=2003-08-01&Artikel=268627
This is of course to be prefered to decay, but still few ordinary Swedes wish to live in such areas.
As far as I know, few houses are built for low income earners in Sweden like students, immigrants and single mothers. Perhaps IKEA houses could offer a nice solution as a single mother or an unemployed immigrant can’t afford houses like the ones of the links above (although ordinary middle class families in Sweden easily can).
“You may know that after Katrina, the American government furnished displaced people with tiny cottages that could later be used as a studio, storage house, or guest cottage, or could be added onto later, when the displaced people were again settled. These cottages were built in a traditional style rather than as a harsh box, and it seems that people really like them.”
- That’s nice to hear. I really hope these people feel like they have received ticket to a new start in life. How much of the pre-Katarina population of New Orleans have returned to thier city by now?