Designing a sociable home

Architecture and interior design can help build our personal relationships, and numerous design strategies can nurture fertile ground for social interaction. We explore how to foster feelings of togetherness and set the tone for sociable life at home.

- JESSICA BELLEF

Humans have been communing around a fire since the first flintstones were bashed together to ignite a spark. Archaeologists and anthropologists suggest that tending fires and performing rituals taught Homo sapiens how to plan, cooperate and possibly even speak. Those early gatherings established the essential social interdependence of human groups. We are social creatures, and our mental and physical health is closely tied to our connection with others.

Loneliness manifests when a person feels a mismatch between the relationships they have and those they want, and when the innate need to belong to a group is unmet. According to research on the impacts of COVID-19 on health and wellbeing, conducted by Swinburne University at the end of 2020, one in two Australians reported feeling lonelier since the onset of the pandemic. The social isolation and loneliness widely experienced during the crisis exemplifies how vital meaningful social relationships are.

A home’s design plays a significant role in an individual’s ability to survive and thrive. Jenna Mikus is the founder of Eudae Group LLC, a Washington DC-based design consultancy that advises clients about how to enhance the connection between people and the built environment. The business name stems from the ancient Greek word “eudaemonia”, loosely translating to a state of human flourishing and happiness. “We look at understanding how you can design homes, in addition to offices, commercial spaces and more, to enable people to be their best, or ‘eudaemonic’, selves,” says Mikus.