A post-pandemic world
Kyiv-based studio Sergey Makhno Architects have envisioned a subterranean concrete home built for enduring a post-pandemic world. Instead of creating a typically austere bunker, the studio envisioned a cosy hideout where someone would like to live “even when there is no apocalypse”.
Aptly named the Plan B House is a concept pictured in a clearing of trees in the Ukrainian forest. A helipad would allow occupants to land and take shelter and live a full life for a long time underground. Plan B residents can preserve their values and hobbies. The above-ground portion would comprise two intersecting volumes made from concrete – a material specifically selected for its ability to speak of reliability, but also be aesthetically attractive.
A spiral staircase would lead down to the subterranean part of the home that the studio imagines as a series of circular layers. The first layer, which would sit 15 metres below ground, hosts a series of living spaces designed to comfortably accommodate two or three families. This would include a spacious lounge anchored by a pair of huge curving partition walls.
One wall would be lined with full-height bookshelves to form a library, while the other encloses a huge cushioned sofa – this area would double-up as a home cinema. At the centre of the lounge would be a cylindrical lightwell, backlit to appear as if the sun is shining down from the outdoors and planted with a faux tree. A panel of imitation greenery would also serve as the backdrop to the home’s communal dining area.
The studio also decided to include a professional-grade kitchen complete with steel cabinetry and prep counters – just in case the imagined inhabitants pick up cooking as a hobby while waiting for the outside world to recover.
A garden room would be dedicated to growing fresh vegetables and fruit, as well as a medical room, a planted room for walking pets and a disinfection pod.
To keep fit, the inhabitants could head to the home gym. It would include an ultra-minimal meditation room and a pool, illuminated with green-hued lights to make users feel like they’re in a grotto or the ocean instead of “a soulless sports pool”. This entire layer of Underground House Plan B would be surrounded by an “evacuation ring” that can be accessed from almost every room, should there ever be the need to escape the property.
