Concept
Residential
The main functions of kitchens are; cooking and storage. Typically, kitchen designs focuses on the benchtop, stove, sink, fridge etc. before storage in considered. As a result, once all the appliances have been positioned the remaining space become cupboards and drawers. To match the depth of the appliances, the cupboards are unnecessarily deep and awkward to use.
The driving question behind the Cloud Kitchen concept are:
How can we create a kitchen that adapts to its use?. Kitchen are the largest piece of furniture in the house, they also contain the largest collection of hinges, runners and flap hinges in any furniture, making them potentially the most adaptable. Lets use all these great standard cabinet fittings to create a kitchen which can respond to our needs. First we reduce the footprint of the kitchen (floor area is extremely valuable in a small space, the large deep kitchens are govern by oversized appliances) with the emphasis on storage. Making this thin allows us to gain floor space. Then we insert the appliances, cooktop and sinks independently. The modern aesthetic has created a contemporary ‘need’ to envelop every part of the kitchen in one form. lets move away from this aesthetic for the sake of functionality. By combining the best qualities from the ordinary cupboard and drawer, we can create an hybrid. That allows the thin joinery unit to extend and retract to suit the contents. The benchtop flips down. Not only does this create a large bench it also reveals the coffee machine, toaster and more. Providing a full functioning bench with all the appliances ready at an arms length away, and in seconds all can be hidden by flipping the benchtop back up.
How do we make the dining space work? The problem is not the location of the dining table, it is the dining table itself. In a small space, large pieces of furniture require flexibility. We continue our approach from the kitchen to the dining table. Instead of a static object which is moved around the house, a slim object is fitted to the wall. On most occasion, a small space saving table can flip up, perfect for day-to-day use. Every now and then, the top half of the unit can flip down, creating a long dinner-party-friendly table. And on special occasions both tables can disappear, freeing up the kitchen space for cocktail party of a make-shift dance floor. The goal is simple, to create no dining table and to create all the dining tables one will ever need. by moving away from traditional kitchen approaches, the Cloud Kitchen aims to provide the apartment with the functionality of a great kitchen, the room for a great dining and quality of a great space.
