Childless, unmarried, studying for a masters degree at university, and living alone, life for the protagonist is radically different from that of a 1920s, Western, young female.
Prototypes such as the Frankfurt kitchen were designed based on the results of experiments using a young female as a test subject. The protagonist in the following experiments matches the physical attributes of the original test subjects used by Gilbreth, Schuter and the like. Radical societal change over the past 100 years however has resulted in a breaking down of the original stereotypical 23 year old Western female.
The protagonists’ current home is designed to meet minimum standards and is the result of decades old studies. The Protagonist should conform to these standards, as they were created based on the stereotype of young, able-bodied, female – but does she?
Domestic comfort is understood very differently across different cultures and climatic regions. See our protagonist’s profile below.
The Protagonist’s Profile
Age: 23
Sex: Female
Occupation: University Student (Masters)
City of Residence: Liverpool, England, UK
Marital Status: Single
Ethnicity: White
Nationality: British
Religion: None
From Human Protagonist to Obstacle Protagonist
The research found the kitchen and bathroom to form the centre of the home, forcing all other furniture and activities to the extremities. This influences the furniture dimension and layout, and directly impacts upon occupant comfort. The bed is a ¾ size, the dining table doubles up as a desk and the protagonist suffers due to the “practical” positioning of the kitchen and bathroom. In the later stages of our research the obstacle of the home: the kitchen, the bathroom, and the sofa become the protagonists for design.
Follow the links below to explore the first tests we performed on our protagonist and her surroundings…
