Touching Architecture Affective Atmospheres And Embodied Encounters
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Touching Architecture
This book is about perception, emotion, and affect in architecture: how and why we feel the way that we do and the ways in which our surroundings and bodies contribute to this. Our experience of architecture is an embodied one, with all our senses acting in concert as we move through time and space. The book picks up where much of the critique of architectural aestheticism at the end of the twentieth century left off: illustrating the limitations and potential consequences of attending to architecture as the visually biased practice which has steadily become the status quo within both industry and education. It draws upon interdisciplinary research to elucidate the reasons why this is counter-productive to the creation of meaningful places and to articulate the embodied richness of our touching encounters. A "felt-phenomenology" is introduced as a more-than visual alternative capable of sustaining our physical, emotional, and psychological well-being. By recognising the reciprocal and participatory relationship that exists between atmospheric affect and our (phenomenological) bodies, we begin to appreciate the manifold ways in which we touch, and are touched, by our built environment. As such, Touching Architecture will appeal to those with an interest in architectural history and theory as well as those interested in the topic of atmospheres, affect, and embodied perception.
Touching Architecture
Much has been written on the ocularcentrism or visual bias of western society and the effect it has upon our perceptual faculties.This is particularly evident within the architectural discourse where this prioritising of vision if often cited as instigating scenographic or retinal architecture: a superficial construction of images intended to be seen rather than immersive atmospheres to be felt. The recent rash of iconic structures and starchitectural spectacles that arose during the New Global Era (1992-2008) has done little to mitigate this. It has been argued that this rise in visuality is comorbid with a denigration of the somatic and non-visual senses, and in particular, our sense of touch. Consequently some thinkers have posited that a tactile or haptic approach may offer a more meaningful alternative. This proposition is the starting point of my thesis, as I ask (how) can a more-than visual architecture generate more touching experiences? Drawing upon the tactual phenomenologies of Husserl, Heidegger, and Merleau-Ponty I introduce the concept of haptic-visuality and synaesthetic perception to explain how vision (and our other senses) may be considered tactual. Moreover, I argue that our sensory perceptions are empathetically felt in, with, and through our felt/feeling bodies (Leib).This feeling is our attunement - a product of our own affective disposition and the atmosphere that is generated by the hermeneutical background of our current situation (historical, geographical, cultural, etc.) - and is quintessentially more-than visual. This has necessitated the development of a felt-phenomenology in order to articulate the embodied richness of our tactual encounters. Which is to say, how architecture makes us feel. It is my contention that, only by recognising the reciprocal and participatory relationship that exists between atmospheric affect and our phenomenological bodies, may we begin to appreciate the manifold ways in which we touch, and are touched, by our built environment.
People-Centered Architecture: Design Practice Education
Shinberg has done something truly impressive: He has created a practical framework for architectural thinking and design, grounded in the latest research on human perception and cognition. His ideas and insights offer a fresh perspective that have helped me clarify many aspects of my own approach to design. —Stefan Behling, Architect, Senior Executive Partner, Head of Studio, Foster+Partners, London This book is a must-read for architects and designers at any stage of their career. His inspiring and practical narrative makes even the most complex concepts accessible. Along the way, he offers aspiring and experienced professionals a fresh perspective to reignite their passion for architecture. —Andrea de Paiva, Architect, Urban Planner, and Author, Director of NeuroAU at the University of Brasilia Milton Shinberg is at the vanguard of architects convinced that the design of buildings for people to flourish should incorporate a deep understanding of human psychology and neuroscience. A very clearly written book, rich with reflections from the science of human emotions, embodiment, and aesthetics, People-Centered Architecture will greatly enhance architectural thinking, education, and practice. —Anjan Chatterjee, MD, FAAN, Professor of Neurology, Psychology, and Architecture, University of Pennsylvania A veteran architect’s pragmatic guide to re-energizing design thinking, architectural practice and architectural education, with pivotal insights from the human sciences and wisdom harvested from non-architects. People-Centered Architecture: Design Practice Education is a unique and probing exploration designed to help architects better serve everyone who uses what architects design. In this one-of-a-kind book, architect and educator Milton Shinberg presents game-changing approaches to enhance, reorient, and re-energize design thinking. Shinberg draws from decades of dialogue with architects, designers, clients, artists, scientists, teachers, and his own students. His prompts and provocations, written in a clear and accessible narrative style, are organized to help architects, who are humanists, come to know much more about humans. Wise design becomes easier. In one concise volume, People-Centered Architecture: Design Practice Education delivers a vibrant framework for architectural practice, for students and teachers of architecture, and for clients and stakeholders. Through this book, each will see their project partners more clearly, more empathetically, and in ways that foster richer, better brainstorming and more productive collaboration. The “coalition of the curious,” people intrigued by architecture and architects, will get a peak behind the curtain.