WeLive micro-apartments in Crystal City have shared communal areas.
With its emphasis on the nuclear family, the U.S. housing market falls short meeting the needs of today’s rising populations who are living with roommates or extended family members or aging in place. “Making Room: Housing for a Changing America,” an exhibit at the National Building Museum, explores alternatives to conventional housing models. For example, on view is a 1,000-square-foot “home” by Italian architect Pierluigi Colombo that contains movable walls and multi-functional furnishings from Resource Furniture.
The exhibit also spotlights successful housing paradigms from around the globe, including WeLive micro-apartments in Crystal City, complete with communal kitchens, and Arizona’s Las Abuelitas rental units, where patios and play spaces were designed for grandparents sharing childcare duties. On view from November 18 to September 16, 2018. nbm.org