Les patterns de Christopher Alexander appliqués aux cuisines domiciliaires modernes

This research focuses on design and architectural conflicts found in modern kitchens. The addition of mechanized objects in the daily food ritual has completely changed the overall dynamic of this space. As a matter of fact, the Occidental architecture of modern kitchens is filled with unsolved contradictions. Based on architectural standards, modular or fitted kitchens do not reflect fresh food’s variety and uniqueness to which they should be dedicated. Kitchens should be the mirror of the innate liveliness of fresh foods and of the pleasure offered by communal meals through human interactions and gustative discoveries. In the hopes of proposing useful tools in order to reestablish a balanced dynamic in these spaces, a theoretical framework was establishedbased on Christopher Alexander’s architectural theories. Alexander is a reknown English mathematician and architect. Supportive of the present research, his theories were inspired by the study of structural and compositionnal qualities of things derived from nature and ancients monuments in order to establish simple and balanced design recommendations (quality of life, patterns, configurations of events, configurations of space, …). These theories helped in planning participatory workshops that have as main objective the empowerment of householders and occupants in their planning of a renovation process. Moreover, as, most of the time, these occupants are non-professionals in the field of architecture and design the workshops have to be quite inuitive. These workshops propose a well supervised process which allows participants to redesign their kitchen space according to their tastes and needs. Working directly on the plan of the floor on which their kitchen is located, participants have as first task to transform the actual kitchen area in their ideal kitchen. The second step of this participatory process is accomplished in teams of participating members; during this step, participants are asked to reduce the importance of planned changes in order to propose a more realistic result. The noted enthusiasm throughout the participatory process has confirmed that non-professionals can develop a high interest for the overall improvement of their daily interactions whether it is with the space or amongst occupants. Thanks to the narratives and drawing material collected during the participatory workshops and to the data analysis, a series of interesting interpretations have emerged. For instance, the data showed the positive influence linked to the use of Alexander’s patterns. Moreover, the analysis underlined the design tendencies that emerged from the use of the patterns in kitchen spaces : definitely, kitchens were transformed in shared and versatile living spaces. Finally, the present research concludes with a series of recommandations linked to various aspects of this research: the structure and organisation of kitchens, participatory workshops and patterns. First, the impact of the use of these architectural notions on spaces is very impressive and was successful. Spaces are well organized, vast, and, most importantly, reflect their daily inhabitants. Moreover, having established the patterns’ versatility and usefullness, some details were noted as to be improved. For exemple, the modernization of some patterns, the time-length of the participatory process, the maximizing of the overall method and the future distribution of the results.

Keyphrases: Design, Christopher Alexander, Patterns, Nature, Kitchen