Das Zentrum des Wohnens

The center of the home is a very broad question and can be interpreted differently depending on how you look at it. Historically, the fire formed the center of the home within the living situation, partly because much took place in one room. It was only over the course of time that the floor plan and the way we live evolved.

In this paper, the living room is mainly considered the center of the home, as it is in most cases the largest room in the home. However, the key point is that the living room is socially the most important room. It is the place where the family or residents consciously seek contact with each other and can therefore be seen as a meeting point within the home. However, this is not only justified in spatial terms, but also with the help of various objects that promote this development. These strengthen the position of the living room either through history and tradition or through technical achievements that modernize and fundamentally influence the household. The following six objects are crucial in explaining why the living room is the center of the home: the extractor fan, the television, the central heating system, the stove, the fireplace and the radio.

The geographical focus of this work is on German-speaking Switzerland and spans the period from the beginning of the 20th century to the end of the 1960s. This is due to the study of the magazine Bauen + Wohnen (1947-1979). This made it possible to find and analyze specific examples from the relevant period. In addition to built examples, advertisements were also examined. From these circumstances and the analysis of these six objects, an answer was sought as to how the living room became established as the center of living in German-speaking Switzerland during this period.