Presentations and information 
Barbara RODOŠEK 


The typology of multi-dwelling buil­dings: New possibilities of living 
Title of the work: Tipologija večstano­vanjskih stavb [Typology of multi-dwel­ling buildings] Authors: David Azinovič, Petra Kregar, Tanja Marn, Petra Sajovic and Aleksan­der Vujovič Editor: Prof. Janez Koželj, Architect Publisher and year of issue: In obs me-dicus, Ptujska Gora, 2009 [ISBN: 978-961-6513-38-8] 
This group of five graduates from the Faculty of Architecture, University of Ljubljana, prepared the manual under the guidance and editorial tutelage of Professor Janez Koželj. The work is the result of a longer study concerning mo­dern multi-dwelling architecture. The aim of the manual is to present a tran­sparent set of options when considering, designing and constructing residential buildings. 
The authors are in fact convinced that knowledge of the typology in archi­tecture is an important platform for creative design and for the search for new ideas. Thus in one place, examples of good practice when planning multi-dwelling buildings from the end of the 20th and early 21st century are gathe­red. The fact is that today’s housing needs are completely different. Due to different lifestyles and communication opportunities as well as the offer of different services, the concept of re­sidential culture is also different. It is provided by the type of family, work at home opportunity, mobility, infor­mation technology, climate changes, purchasing power and the concept of home itself. One architectural solution should therefore satisfy all the factors listed above and also give the answer to the following questions: 


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How to update the standard elements of multi-dwelling architecture, 

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How to edit their new functional connections, 

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Ensuring privacy of residents, 

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The possibility of quick and easy re­arrangements of the dwelling. 

A set of types of multi-dwelling buil­dings within the manual, allows for the adaptation to specific situations, locati­ons, social and cultural environments and in particular, the many variations and different combinations and so allow for new solutions. Existing residential buildings are classified into three basic categories: 

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Blocks (basic, narrow, deep, atrial, low, short, high, terraced, chain block leaflet, conform and puzzle), 

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Towers (tower, small tower and villa block), 

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Linked houses (semi-detached, terra­ced, chain, atrial, honeycomb houses, houses in a row, terraced houses, bu­ilt-in and parasite). 


Each type of building contains a detai­led description, commentary, layout and schematic cross-section (scale 1:1,000), examples of the typical floor plan of flo­ors (scale 1:500); strengthened by the examples of practices applied around the world in the last ten years. 
Such a publication will certainly con­tribute to better education, planning, research and promoting good practice in this area. Not only that - the work is an interesting cross-section of the living culture at the turn of the century. 
Barbara Rodošek, Ethnologist and Anthro­pologist In obs medicus, d. o. o., Ptujska Gora, Slovenia E-mail: barbara@inobsmedicus.si 

Urbani izziv/Urban Challenge, volume 20, no. 2, 2009