Abitacolo, Bruno Munari

Abitacolo is a modular bed designed by the Italian designer Bruno Munari in 1971. He developed an idea that satisfies a maximum functionality – not only practical but also psychology, economic and spatial – in the minimum space.

This idea was translated to a unique transformable and customizable structure that includes all the useful services, namely a bed, a bookcase, a table and various containers of objects.

Being modular, the assembly does not impose a rigid form but adapts to the needs of those who use it. Abitacolo was also designed to optimize distribution costs, so it can be assembled and disassembled very easily, and transported with little effort. As Munari himself said “The minimum provides the maximum”.

The structure exists out of steel rods joined together by the electric welding technique. The rods are then painted with an epoxy resin powder which guarantee an anticorrosive resistance and an exceptional hardness.

Abitacolo looks like a simple and linear bed but it gives the child a space inside the parent’s house. The peripheral space of the four vertical structures, delimits a large central space occupied by the two horizontal structures which can be moved from the bottom to the top, every twenty centimeters, with the possibility of varying the intended use. The lower structure can be used as a bed or desk, while the upper one can be used as a shelf for objects. The four vertical structures are used for other modular elements like baskets, or shelves and serve as an access ladder to the upper floor.

References: 

• P. Fossati, Il Design in Italia 1+945-1972, Einaudi, Torino, 1972 
• B. Munari, Adulti e Bambini in Zone Inesplorate, testo di M. Meneguzzo, Corraini Editore, 1994
• B. Munari, Maggior Spazio Abitabile a Minor Costo, Millelire Stampa Alternativa, Lissone, 1996
• B. Munari, Arte come mestiere, Laterza, Bari, 1966

Authors: 

Oljer Cardenas, Victor Fernandes de Almeida Moreira, Louise Pacaut, Adriaan Vandaele.