The Tatami Room: Creating Versatile Space

5/28/2008

I remember attending a talk conducted by Dean Manahan of UP about low cost housing. I was then fresh out of college, so — gee — that must have been several pounds ago. They were discussing a low cost housing development in Dagat-dagatan where the floor area per unit was 36 square meters. The late architect, Ipe Mendoza, who was also a participant, remarked that that was too small and considered it to be of subhuman condition. That could have been because the latter was used to designing houses for the elite wherein 36 square meters may be the size of a regular bedroom.

Today, a 36 square meter condominium or flat is not unheard of. A space with dimensions of 6m x 6m can allow for two bedrooms. Currently, the majority of people in Metro Manila live in spaces even smaller than this, particularly those living in densely populated areas. If we look back, our indigenous houses may have been of the same size too. The “bahay kubo kahit munti”, the stone houses of Batanes, the Ifugao huts, the Badjao houses on stilts over water, all have very small floor areas.  Many of our Filipino brothers have lived decently in small spaces like this all their lives. These houses had a floor space of merely 15 square meters, yet allowed a family of four or five to live comfortably inside. Most of these native structures ingenuously apply the principles of passive cooling. In addition, good ventilation, multi-functionality of space, and minimal furnishings are key concepts.

Then came our colonizers and changed all that. They started "civilizing" and changing our lifestyle and made us believe that we need king-size mattresses in full bed frames, both formal and informal dining rooms that can seat at least eight, clean kitchens and dirty kitchens, and a 7-piece sofa set that we end up covering so it does not collect dust from disuse. These had to come with a well appointed toilet with double wash basins, bidet, separate shower and tub, and a huge walk-in closet, sometimes bigger than a low-cost house. This was the "way of life" our colonizers went to such lengths to preserve; and, sadly, they have bequeathed it to us. Now, many upwardly-mobile urbanites still aspire for dream homes such as this.

This is why when planning homes, as a standard, designers try to fit in the usual amenities in a given space: living room, dining room, kitchen, toilet/s, bedroom/s, etc. No matter how small the area is, or how prohibitive the cost of land, space and construction, the average Filipino cannot seem to expunge all of these areas from his checklist. However, it is also true that the average Filipino cannot afford this very western wish list anymore.

The challenge is for builders to conceptualize a trend that really caters to the average Filipino. We must come up with an alternative concept in living areas that more would be able to afford. What would a decent, practical Filipino home be like? I believe that the size of a house does not make it decent or indecent.  Decency hinges on one’s way of living, how one utilizes space and resources. In fact, it is wastefulness that is indecent.

Last week, I experienced living in a Ryokan, a traditional Japanese inn, in Kyoto, the ancient capital of Japan. In a place where the size of any room is measured by the number of tatami mats fitted in it, with each mat measuring 3ft by 6 ft, the room was only 6 tatami mats large. In other words: less than 12 sqm. During the day, it was where our daily activities were done; and at night, it converted into a bedroom. In that room, there is an anteroom wherein you remove and put on your slippers (no shoes are allowed inside the ryokan), a closet wherein clothes and beddings are stored, and a raised, decorative alcove. The room itself is slightly elevated to keep dirt out. However, our ryokan room had one modern feature which was not common in traditional houses, a compact toilet facility. Although only roughly two square meters the toilet space includes a sink, a water closet, and a Japanese bathtub! The experience of living in an almost authentically Japanese setting was magnificent.

Some people may consider the Japanese tatami room quite bare, but it is the very simplicity and openness of the design that allows it a wonderful diversity of uses. The secret of creating versatile spaces lies not in the tatami, but in the mindset it encourages and signifies: cleanliness, orderliness, comfort, flexibility.

I am certain that the indigenous Filipino home style was similar to this one, although I have to concede that the cushiony Japanese mats are more comfortable to walk or sit on than our local banig. The low dining table is similar to our papag or dulang, which is about 14 inches off the ground, and wherein one sits on the floor to dine. The shoji screens or sliding doors that can be kept open to allow for more light and air are comparable in concept to our trussed up sawali windows.

Now, the Housing and Land Use Regulatory Board (HLURB) has set the minimum area for a condo development at 15sqm. If developers are serious about scaling down units to lower the selling cost, it may be time to detach oneself from the dictates of western culture and think about looking back to our very own. We could scale down the dimensions not just of rooms, but likewise of furniture. We could turn to lighter materials in our furnishings and minimize the architectural embellishment. But more basically, we need to re-think the layout of our homes. We must admit that there are rooms and areas we do not really need and can do without. We have to recognize which areas are necessary and most used and focus our design efforts on these. Maybe, then, we can discover the home style that suits the Filipino best. J