IMIAD | Gestern wird schön. Morgen auch.

Master's Thesis | Valerie Rehle | Summer Semester 2014

Gestern wird schön. Morgen auch. Yesterday will be nice. Tomorrow too.
A sensitization apparatus for designing living spaces for people with dementia.

This thesis is divided into two parts. The first and theoretical part deals with the question to what extent a conscious, spatial design can respond to the wishes and needs of old and demented people, so that an independent and self-determined life in the familiar living environment becomes possible for as long as possible. This part functions as a kind of handbook and is intended above all to sensitize designers to dementia. The second, conceptual part of the work tries to answer the question how to sensitize designers and interested people for the topic of dementia with an exhibition concept.

The aim of the work is to bring the topic of age and dementia into the interior design context, focusing on those affected. With the help of research, expert interviews and open observations, an apparatus ("compilation of aids") is to emerge from the theoretical part of the work, which gives an overview of the spatial needs of demented people. The work is based on approaches from social work, sociology and gerontology, because only through an interdisciplinary view of the topic of age and dementia, meaningful approaches to solutions can be generated, which improve the living spaces of old and demented people in the long term. In addition to the symptoms of the disease, so-called "special behaviors" are also considered. It is also examined to what extent dementia influences sensory and motor functions and conclusions are drawn as to how the resulting spatial requirements might look.

This work was supervised by Prof. Klaus Peter Goebel, Dr. Michaela Rotsch and Dipl.-Soz.-Päd., MSW Katja Schlüter.