Interior: a meeting place for cultures and generations

The contemporary housing environment in Europe is changing dynamically, influenced by factors related to the struggle against climate change and adverse demographic phenomena. The pace of change has also increased in response to the challenges posed by the pandemic, conflicts and the energy crisis. These reasons have started a process of change in the approach to the design of residential areas, directing the attention of designers towards meeting the needs linked to creating housing architecture that implements the postulates of connection to nature, inclusivity in response to cultural diversity, and sustainable design by extending the residential space to include rooms or facilities with a different use. The aim of the research presented in this paper was to diagnose the factors that influence the creation of an interior space that is conducive to intergenerational and intercultural integration. The study was carried out under the FRSE, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway grants programme (EOG/21/K4/W/0048W/0175). By assessing the elements of an interior’s composition, the factors that exclude as well as activate its space were examined, as were the spatial conditions that affect building its place-based identity and which influence its activation. The study’s conclusions are illustrated using projects prepared by second-year, first-cycle students at the Faculty of Architecture of the Cracow University of Technology, enrolled in Architecture and Architecture in English programmes.