Kimberly Tan

The Ambivert Co-Housing Project focuses on how introverted and extroverted personalities or situations can work together in co-housing and finding the middle ground between the two. Ambivert means that people are able to switch to introversion and extroversion depending on their mood, context, or situation. The idea for the Ambivert Co-Housing concept is to provide flexibility for the inhabitants to choose whether to isolate or expose themselves whenever they please as social situations do not always happen.

Four apartment blocks are situated across the site, each connected with linking bridges to enable residents to access other apartment blocks. Apartment block 2 connects to the heritage building which was a former gas retort house,, labeled number 4. The apartment units in block 2 are new extensions and it shows the distinction between the new and old.

Communal and commercial areas are located on the ground floor including the foyer, coworking space, cafe and communal library. The first and second floors are mainly the residential levels and focuses on going back to the concept of “ambivert” through the communal dining area and the apartment units.

The ambivert seating strategy begins in stage 1 as a continuous table, and in stage 2, the fragmentation allows people to be separated into singular or smaller groups which allows people to choose if they want to sit alone or in a group. But it is also still able to be all-inclusive which involves the larger group. In stage 3, the table extends to the second floor and people are seated facing inwards so they are still able to feel like they are involved together in a meal whether they are seated alone or in a group. The final diagram shows how this space could potentially be turned into an even space where everyone can gather.

The open plan living room and kitchen can be closed off from the private spaces and becomes a semi-public social space where residents can interact with each other from the inside or outside through the living room and kitchen windows. Instead of having dining tables in the unit, residents’ dining tables are communal and situated outside of their unit to encourage them to come out of their homes. From their bedrooms to the communal dining table, it creates a gradual shift from private, to semi-public, to public spaces.

The perspective section mainly focuses on showing the volume of spaces in the communal dining area and the adaptive reuse heritage building that includes the foyer, residential multipurpose studio and gym.