Collection by Megan Hamaker

Examples of Modern Communal Living

Many camps argue that communal living is the way of the future because of it's lower impact on the environment. Could you do it? Here, we take a look at five examples of modern communal living situations that are making it work and doing it in style.

The first floor houses a machine shop--where prototypes for LED lighting and folding glass facades are fabricated for Larissa's architecture office, housed on the second floor along with Jeff's industrial design studio. The third story is the couple's and their seven-year-old daughter's living space, making for an ideal commute.
The first floor houses a machine shop--where prototypes for LED lighting and folding glass facades are fabricated for Larissa's architecture office, housed on the second floor along with Jeff's industrial design studio. The third story is the couple's and their seven-year-old daughter's living space, making for an ideal commute.
Made from wooden pallets, the tree house was a requirement for the kids in this Hawaiian home. Photo by: Linny Morris
Made from wooden pallets, the tree house was a requirement for the kids in this Hawaiian home. Photo by: Linny Morris
Millennium City is an experiment in sustainable living created by Japanese architect Hiroshi Iguchi. The buildings, shown in the photo above, utilize natural light by using floor-to-ceiling windows as walls. Inhabitants of the commune use the space as a way to escape from the hustle of nearby Tokyo. Photo by Alessio Guarino.
Millennium City is an experiment in sustainable living created by Japanese architect Hiroshi Iguchi. The buildings, shown in the photo above, utilize natural light by using floor-to-ceiling windows as walls. Inhabitants of the commune use the space as a way to escape from the hustle of nearby Tokyo. Photo by Alessio Guarino.
Seen here from the south, Villa van Vijven’s orange facade is meant to mimic the tiled rooftops of Holland’s country buildings, while the building’s horizontal pull echoes the flat landscape. The second-floor living rooms look out on the 4,200-square-foot communal garden, one of only two shared spaces in the whole community. Bob Krone, Koos Sweringa, and Marianne Schram stroll the grounds.
Seen here from the south, Villa van Vijven’s orange facade is meant to mimic the tiled rooftops of Holland’s country buildings, while the building’s horizontal pull echoes the flat landscape. The second-floor living rooms look out on the 4,200-square-foot communal garden, one of only two shared spaces in the whole community. Bob Krone, Koos Sweringa, and Marianne Schram stroll the grounds.
For Karina Inzunza, Graham Barker, Melana Janzen, and John McMinn (pictured left to right), a shared vacation home on Georgian Bay was the perfect opportunity to pool resources, split costs, and create an extended family unit.
For Karina Inzunza, Graham Barker, Melana Janzen, and John McMinn (pictured left to right), a shared vacation home on Georgian Bay was the perfect opportunity to pool resources, split costs, and create an extended family unit.
The Miner and Major is an experiment in communal living and fantastical form.
The Miner and Major is an experiment in communal living and fantastical form.
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None of the ten units is purely communal, but detached Unit C, Yasuo Moriyama’s 

“living room,” functions the most publicly. It houses a DVD player, a plasma screen TV, and little else, but it has a tea-room ambience. Moriyama says, “This space gives you the freedom to do anything you like, and it makes you want to.” Here, Moriyama and his pomeranian Shinnosuke visit with Ippei Takahashi, project manager and fellow resident.
None of the ten units is purely communal, but detached Unit C, Yasuo Moriyama’s “living room,” functions the most publicly. It houses a DVD player, a plasma screen TV, and little else, but it has a tea-room ambience. Moriyama says, “This space gives you the freedom to do anything you like, and it makes you want to.” Here, Moriyama and his pomeranian Shinnosuke visit with Ippei Takahashi, project manager and fellow resident.