THE OPEN-CONCEPT interior has demonstrated remarkable staying power. The plan that typically combines entryway, kitchen, living and dining room into one “great room” has dominated home design for decades. Why? For families, it facilitates a benign surveillance state with the kitchen island as parental command center. For young couples, the loft-like atmosphere conveys a whiff of midcentury Bohemianism. For competitive cooks, it offers a stage. Real-estate agents love how it photographs. (How “airy!”) Developers embraced it because it’s cheaper. TV execs boost it because market research showed dudes tune in for demolition….
