SANTANDREA AND DOMUS ACADEMY: COMING TOGETHER TO DESIGN THE FUTURE
Santandrea joined the Domus Academy, established for more than 20 years as one of Italy’s most prestigious postgraduate educational institutions in design and fashion, to contribute to the subjects of students’ graduation theses for the Master's degree course in Interior and Living Design. The course was attended by 50 students from 22 different countries, whose varying visions further enriched a learning experience already of great cultural interest in its own right. One of the two briefs given, “Come Together – Condo hotel” asked students to investigate the future of the condominium concept. They considered topics which involve rethinking residential architecture, presenting and analysing new types of home: cohousing, condominiums or individual houses with shared spaces and services which can improve the quality of daily life in terms of both cost and sustainability. Cohousing allows the use of shared infrastructure, and enables residents to choose the highest possible level of comfort and the services required to suit their specific lifestyles, making luxury homes available at affordable prices, and on an environmentally sustainable basis.
In the other thesis topic on offer, “Placelook: new ways of living the city”, students were asked to analyse the way in which technology and globalisation affect lifestyles and living space. Individuals and society are increasingly represented by means of the Internet, where relationships and friendships define new senses of belonging. This new style in communication and personal relationships is also redefining the latest generation’s style and their choice of living space: as part of the project, new home design scenarios were explored, intended for a young, temporary, flexible group of residents.