Mexico City–based architect Tatiana Bilbao considers domesticity from policy to livability. Models, drawings, and photographs illustrate Bilbao’s extensive research and proposals in response to how we live today, including a masterplan for San Francisco’s Hunters Point neighborhood. At the beginning of the design process, the architect and her firm Tatiana Bilbao Estudio take time to identify less visible external factors that influence and shape architecture, such as developer goals and civic regulations, as well as meeting with future inhabitants. This “outside in” approach is expansive, but yields greater understanding and accommodation for contemporary lifestyles.

From designing for multigenerational inhabitants to home workspaces, Tatiana Bilbao Estudio builds domestic flexibility into a range of projects, from single-family homes to multi-dwelling residential buildings. With consideration for the Hunters Point community, when designing a local power substation, Bilbao envisioned a surrounding masterplan, which proposes public gathering spaces, neighborhood amenities and services as well as increased residences. This proposal, featured in the exhibition, becomes an opportunity to consider a new vision for civic health and community empowerment.