Denizen Bushwick . Image Courtesy of ODA Architecture
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Humanity is facing a collective new challenge unprecedented in our lifetime. One of isolation, driven by self-quarantine, for a period unknown. It is a social experiment with no predictable outcome. But one constant in the equation is architecture.
With over half the world’s population inhabiting cities or densely populated areas, billions of people are currently residing in small spaces, disconnected from one another by brick, concrete and steel. The social housing experiment of the 1950s and 60s created a new architectural typology, which was compounded by an underlying social construct, driven by capitalism, that told us to mind our own business. Somehow, during the age of high rises that followed, turned this idea of isolation into a status symbol, as private penthouses, accessed by private elevators, today float high above the city streets.