Reconsidered Layouts - My space is my space!

Reverse brainstorming is a method companies use to up-end thinking. One literally thinks in an upside-down way. That encourages thinking out of the box – the aim being to come up with fresh ideas. Says Mindtools.com: “Reverse brainstorming is a good technique for creative problem solving and can lead to robust solutions.”



Kobus Neethling of brain profile fame also suggested turning a problem on its head and looking at it from unusual angles, so as to get a new grip on the challenge.

Our theme for this issue – reconsidered layouts – is similar to this reversal process. We can purposefully take a fresh look at our living and working spaces. Who says a front porch can’t be a gym? The trend towards more defined spaces has come to the fore as people criticise the lack of privacy in open-plan offices and homes. Perhaps this speaks to the innate need we all have to be hemmed in safely – much like being in the womb. Walls can be protective, especially for neurodivergent people who abhor the exposure of too much open space and too many eyes watching. People hard of hearing also prefer spaces with less noise and maddening echoes.

The trend reflects a desire for privacy, functionality, intimacy, and sustainability in residential design. It's not so much a complete shift away from open-plan layouts as it is a recognition of the benefits that confined spaces can offer in certain contexts.

Albert Hadley, an American interior designer from the previous century, reckoned one should forget the floor plans. “Arrange the furniture where it is the most comfortable and will look best.” His words still ring true today: make your space your space. At home, that is possible but at the office that is easier said than done.

Prof Linda Lai from the BI Norwegian Business School writes in their Business Review: “The research in this area is clear: open-plan offices have significant negative effects for employees as well as organizations… they result in lower performance, especially for tasks that require concentration and memory.”

So, after being trendy since the two Franks (Frank Lloyd Wright, the American and Frank Duffy, the Brit) opened up floor plans in the middle 1900s, is open-plan architecture taking a nosedive? Who determines a trend anyway? And will overseas trends necessarily reach Namibia? We design airy spaces so that the heat can rise and get lost and, although our winters can be grim, we still have three months summer and nine months of hell to contend with. You be the judge.

Christine Stoman