Liberating High-Quality Home Design

Does not having the money to hire a world-class architect mean you shouldn't be able to build a well-designed house? A new website seeks to make high-quality design accessible to the masses with open source architecture.

1 minute read

December 5, 2013, 2:00 PM PST

By Jonathan Nettler @nettsj

"Architecture has long had an accessibility problem: You want a bespoke house? You’re gonna have to pony up a lot of money," writes Liz Stinson. "In the process, good design has become a luxury; a snooty, out-of-reach idea that only the rich have access to, which is actually the exact opposite of what good design should be."

A new platform called Paperhouses, hopes to reduce the barriers to good design by bringing "high-quality open source architecture to the masses," says Stinson. "For its initial launch, Pacheco rounded up 12 well-known architects from around the world to contribute a house blueprint that the public can access for free."

"The plan is to release a new house every month, and build up an ever-growing database of designs that people can access."

FULL STORY: Experimental Website Lets You Download Amazing House Blueprints for Free

Thursday, December 5, 2013 in Wired

Architecture World Open Source Paperhouses

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Get top-rated, practical training

Start Learning

Advertise with us

Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools

This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.