‘Common’ Living
Public vs. Living Space

Fall 2015
3rd Year Architecture Studio,University of Southern California
Type: Architecture, Residential
Location: Chinatown, Downtown Los Angeles
Instructor: Valery Augustin
Individual Work



Living in Downtown Los Angeles is greatly different from living in other areas. Downtown Los Angeles has entered a new, rapid phase of urban revitalization, and the typical living typology of LA area, either the single- family house or residential complex, is inefficient in satisfying the increasing needs for dynamic and interactive living space.

With the notion of creating a new living space, the initial approach is to open the ground floor space as public area, both indoor and outdoor, offering more opportunities to interact with surroundings. Meanwhile, the public space also happens inside the architecture to assure privacy of the residents. By creating patches of public space both in and outside the building, the project is able to feature daily activities and urban scenarios.