Product details
- ISBN 9783869228204
- Dimensions: 228 x 209mm
- Publication Date: 01 Jan 2023
- Publisher: DOM Publishers
- Publication City/Country: DE
- Product Form: Paperback
- Language: English
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After the discovery of oil, the Kuwaiti State established a means of wealth distribution for its citizens through housing programs aimed at improving standards of living. It allocated residential neighbourhoods for Kuwaitis and non-Kuwaitis through the introduction of two main architectural typologies: the apartment and the villa. However, in response to certain economic, sociocultural, and regulatory constraints, an unplanned hybrid typology has recently emerged. The multiplex, specific to Kuwait and yet not officially recognized by the state, has become the informal expression of specific living needs that is now ubiquitous across Kuwait.
Here, for the first time, the authors of The Multiplex Typology explore everyday life in these hybrid homes, arguing that the one-size-fits-all housing model of the past is both outdated and unsustainable. But this book is not merely a documentation of the current state of living in Kuwait, nor a straightforward analysis of Kuwaiti domestic architecture today. It is also an urgent and timely call for alternative approaches to housing that are sustainably driven, culturally rooted and responsive to future change.
Sharifa S. Alshafan is an architect, urban researcher and educator. She has worked as a consultant with the World Bank on multiple urban planning projects and has also been an urban development advisor for several governmental projects.
Joaquín Pérez-Goicoechea is an architect and researcher. Since 2005, as cofounder of AGi architects, he has led and completed several projects in the fields of building, urban design, planning, and interior & industrial design.
Sarah Alfraih is an architect and educator. In 2014, she co-founded Madeenah; a multidisciplinary platform based in Kuwait City, that curates cultural walking tours, and delivers spatial studies on the built environment.
