(in)hospitable atmospheres

(in) hospitable

a

t m

o s p h e r e s

exploring the public space of Moerwijk-West as an outsider

Alicia Rottke Fitzpatrick

contents

1 introduction

2 atmospheres in public space

3 sense of inhospitality

3.1 the fence

3.2 the fences: through time

4 mapping: but where can I be?

5 symbols of hospitality

5.1 The bench

5.2 The bench: a hunt in Moerwijk-West

6 conclusion

7 bibliography

8 image references

9 appendix: dictionary definitions

1 introduction

This research explores MoerwijkWest, a post war neighbourhood in the south-west region of The Hague. It explores how an outsider can navigate the neighbourhood, by understanding where and how the outsider can temporarily occupy a space. An outsider can be defined as anyone who is on the periphery and who does not belong to a particular group 1. The position of the outsider is a common experience in a neighbourhood like this, due to the vast array of cultures and nationalities inhabiting the same space.

In the initial phases of this research I felt extremely lost, finding it difficult to find something in Moerwijk-West to connect to. As an outsider, I felt isolated from the daily goings-on in this neighbourhood and had an inkling that everything and everyone had its own bubble or place, and it was difficult to infiltrate if I wasn’t a part of one of them. My primary experience of the neighbourhood was shadowed with a sense of alienation and control, but I found it difficult to put my finger on what the source

of this atmosphere was. I can not ignore the fact that I entered this neighbourhood with a level of prejudice, which could have initially played a role in this atmosphere whether I wanted to or not. I had heard stories of crime, violence, and poverty that riddled Moerwijk-West 2 + 3 , and I experienced the prominent presence of the local municipality actively combating these adversities with the aim to redevelop, rebuild and rebrand the neighbourhood. 4

With this in mind, I dive into philosopher Gernot Böhme 5 and ethnologist Orvar Löfgren 6 writings on atmospheres as a shared experience in public space, in order to understand how atmospheres are made. Based on their insight I explore my inklings and intuitions by walking through Moerwijk-West, documenting and examining the spacial manifestations of how I felt by focusing particularly on fences and benches as producers of contrasting atmospheres.

Thus, this research asks;

1 “Outsider.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https:// www.merriam-webster.com/ dictionary/outsider. Accessed 10 May. 2023.

2 “Dodelijke Steekpartij in Den Haag.” Omroep West, 1 Feb. 2023, www.omroepwest. nl/nieuws/4680376/dodelijkesteekpartij-in-den-haag.

3 Lingen, Ivar. “Tientallen Criminele Netwerken in Drugs- En Mensenhandel Actief in Den Haag.” Omroep West, 26 Jan. 2023, www.omroepwest.nl/ nieuws/3977520/tientallencriminele-netwerken-indrugs-en-mensenhandel-actief-in-den-haag.

4 Kabinet Investeert in Verbetering Van Leefbaarheid Den Haag Zuidwest.” Den Haag FM, 4 July 2022, www. denhaagfm.nl/dhfm/4600354/ kabinet-investeert-in-verbetering-van-leefbaarheid-den-haag-zuidwest.

5 Böhme, Gernot. The Aesthetics of Atmospheres. Chapter 3: The art of the stage set as a paradigm for an aesthetics of atmospheres, 1st ed. Taylor and Francis, 2016. Accessed 1 May 2023.

6 Löfgren, Orvar. “Chapter 3: Sharing an Atmosphere: Spaces in Urban Common.” Urban Commons: Rethinking the City, edited by Christian Borch and Martin Kornberger, Routledge, Abingdon, Oxfordshire, 2016. (pg. 68 - 89)

“WHAT ROLE DO SPATIAL ELEMENTS SUCH AS FENCES AND BENCHES PLAY IN CHARACTERISING PUBLIC SPACE TO OUTSIDERS IN MOERWIJK-WEST?”

7 Böhme, Gernot. The Aesthetics of Atmospheres. Chapter 3: The art of the stage set as a paradigm for an aesthetics of atmospheres, 1st ed. Taylor and Francis, 2016. Accessed 1 May 2023.

8 ibid

9 ibid

10 ibid

11 “Orvar Löfgren.” Orvar Löfgren Lund University, www.lunduniversity.lu.se/ lucat/user/b534e70489ab782d56615a05fe2269d1. Accessed 10 May 2023.

12 Löfgren, Orvar. “Chapter

3: Sharing an Atmosphere: Spaces in Urban Common.”

Urban Commons: Rethinking the City, edited by Christian Borch and Martin Kornberger, Routledge, Abingdon, Oxfordshire, 2016. (pg. 68 - 85)

13 ibid

14 ibid

2 atmospheres in public space

This research is largely guided by my own feelings, experiences and intuition of the public spaces in Moerwijk-West. The atmosphere of the space. Personally, I define the atmosphere of a space as the thing in the air that subtly changes your mood, your body and how your react based on certain characteristics of a space.

Philosopher Gernot Böhme, who has extensively written about atmospheres and architecture defines atmospheres as the emotional tinge of a space 7. An atmosphere is described as a character of itself. This could be “tense, light-hearted or serious, oppressive or uplifting, cold or warm” 8 or in the case of my research, inhospitable or hospitable. He states that atmospheres is not a thing in itself, rather it is “something between things and the

perceiving subjects. The making of atmospheres is therefore confined to setting the conditions in which the atmosphere appears. We refer to these conditions as generators.”

9 Böhme further explains that by analysing the particular generators of an atmosphere in the urban context, there is a possibility to bring about atmospheres of different characters once identified.

10

Orvar Löfgren, a Swedish ethnologist 11 also explores atmospheres in urban contexts. Löfgren emphasis the importance of understanding atmospheres in the public space as they allow people to asses a situation or space. They send out subtle cues, dictating how a space will be used 12. It is in the shared atmospheres in a space that have the ability to “dissolve boundaries not only between people but between the body and the material surroundings.” 13 I believe that a shared atmosphere has the ability to bring heterogeneous groups, insiders and outsiders together in a shared experience. Löfgren, like Böhme highlights an important predicament of atmospheres in the public space, stating “the linking of affect and atmosphere has to do with the fact that an atmosphere is often felt and registered in the body, before it is consciously noted or reflected over.”

14 Unless the origin of a particular atmosphere is identified, it can be easily overlooked as atmospheres are undeniably invisible, merely something felt.

Fig 1 : People playing. Fun and exciting atmosphere Fig 2 : People queuing. Nervous, anticipatory atmosphere

Fig 3 People mourning. Somber and still atmosphere Fig 4 : People watching. Awe and bewonderment atmosphere

sense of inhospitality

3.1 the fence

In my search of finding a research direction, I began to walk. Meandering up and down the “the strict pattern of roads” 15 around Dudoks housing blocks, searching for a connection to the neighbourhood. Trying to push away my preconceived notions of the space, I searched for spaces I could enter, to find people to talk to.

But I soon became struck by a clear pattern—the overwhelming number of fences, gates, and other physical barriers that kept me from

what felt like the majority of the neighbourhood’s open spaces. The majority of them worked as active physical boundaries, while others just gave the illusion of control and enclosure. Regardless of their appearance, their cumulative and prominent presence as I walked the streets of Moerwijk-West echoed and affirmed my feelings of inhospitable and alienation within the space as an outsider, a physical manifestation of how I felt; unable to get in anywhere.

15 Voerman, Lara. “Uitbreidingen Moerwijk En Morgenstond.” Expansions Moerwijk and Morgenstond 1947-1949 / WM Dudok, 5 Apr. 2022, www.dudokarchitectuurcentrum.nl/werken-dudok/ uitbreidingen-moerwijk-en-morgenstond/.

3.2 the fence : through time

I wondered whether this prominent presence of fencing and enclosure has been a recent development in the neighborhood. Perhaps they were put in place to increase safety and security when the 1950’s utopian neighborhood shifted to a trouble ridden neighborhood. Or I wondered if they were part of the original design, whether they evolved through time to become taller, heavier, and more aggressive creating this inhospitable atmosphere. 16 However to my surprise, while diving into archive photographs and drawing this did not appear to be the case.

16 I understand that the fences were designed as a safety mechanism for ‘insiders’, those who live within the housing blocks and that they do still function in this way. This should not be disregarded, but in the case of this research I am questing the effects of cumulative presence from the perspective of an outsider.

Fig 8: Communal garden between Rotgansstraat (out of view) and Van Baerlestraat (right in background). Roemer Visscherstraat on the left, 1951

Fig 9: Melis Stokelaan, 1952

Fig 7: Constriction drawing of the original fencing around the inner courtyards around the Anslostraat and Pieter Langendijkstraat, Den Haag. 1949.

Fig 5: Roemer Visscherstraat, construction to close off the gardens, 1951

Fig 6: Pieter Langendijkstraat, Den Haag, circa. 1956.

From the very beginning of this neighbourhood these fences were not only intentionally placed, closing off much of what feels like the open space in the neighbourhood but also originally designed in such an overpowering dominating way. During the creation of this neighbourhood in the 1950s, the sense of community was strong, and the enclosures created a sense of trust in the shared space 17 but in decades that followed the sense of community splintered. It makes me wonder whether this prevalence of large, harsh, fencing and enclosure played a role in this. If their presence paved the way to normalising a sense of inhospitality and enclosure towards the outsider.

Fig 13: Anslostraat, rear, circa 1951

17 Deelen, Tilly. “Jeugd in Jong Moerwijk.” Jeugd in Moerwijk, www.haagseherinneringen.nl/pagina/795/ jeugd_in_moerwijk. Accessed 18 May 2023.

Fig 14: Van Baerlestraatstraat, seen towards the Pieter Langendijkstraat, circa 1990.

Fig 10: Communal garden between Tesselschadelaan (left) and Rotgansstraat. Seen from the Hoogvlietstraat to the Roemer Visscherstraat, 1950

Fig 12: Communal garden Rotgansstraat, 1951

Fig 11: Rotgansstraat (right), rear of houses, seen from Hoogvlietstraat to Roemer Visscherstraat, 1951

18 “Migratie.” Buurt Moerwijk-West (Gemeente Den Haag) in Cijfers En Grafieken (Bijgewerkt 2023!) 10 May 2023, allecijfers.nl/buurt/moerwijk-west-den-haag/#migratie.

19 “Woningkenmerken.”

Buurt Moerwijk-West (Gemeente Den Haag) in Cijfers En Grafieken (Bijgewerkt 2023!) 10 May 2023, allecijfers.nl/buurt/moerwijk-west-den-haag/#woningkenmerken.

20 In Nollis’s map of ancient Rome, he depicted the urban fabric with voids (white space), and masses (black space). The voids represented the public realm, whereas the masses private space.

source: moore544. “Nolli Map.” Exploring Architecture and Landscape Architecture, ohiostate.pressbooks.pub/exploringarchitectureandlandscape/chapter/nolli-map/. Accessed 10 May 2023.

21 Global Public Space Toolkit From Global Principles to Local Policies and Practice. United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat), 2016. (pg. 4)

4 but where can I be?

Mowerwijk-West today differs greatly from the close-knit, spirited and optimistic neighbourhood it was in the beginning. Today, in Moerwijk-West 79% of the population comes from an migration background, originating from all corners of the world 18. 72% of the housing in the neighbourhood is social housing 19 in which there is a constant flux of residents moving in and out as a result of building renovations, or being priced out of their homes. This combination of cultural differences, along with neighbours changing means that the position of the ‘outsider’ increases and becomes a common experience between cultural cliques. This is important to examine, as an outsider in the neighbourhood, I felt extremely locked out of the space as a result of the inhospitable atmosphere the excess of fences created.

In order to understand where exactly an outsider, like myself had permission to occupy, I took inspiration from Giambattista Nolli’s 20 map making method , I illustrated the balance between the buildings, enclosed spaces, and public space in Moerwijk-West. I was surprised at how much public space (the voids) truly exists in Moerwijk-West as while initially walking these public spaces did not give off a hospitable, welcoming atmosphere. So much to the point that I did not register them as spaces I, as an outsider could occupy, causing me to almost completely overlook them.

These voids, or white spaces, the open public spaces in the map are imperative spaces in any neighbourhood, but I believe in particularly in a somewhat segregated neighbourhood like this. The UN-Habitat declares that public spaces are “multi-functional areas for social interaction, economic exchange and cultural expression among a wide diversity of people. It is for urban planning to establish and organise these public spaces, and for urban design to facilitate and encourage their use, in the process enhancing a sense of identity and belonging.” 21 Because these are the common shared spaces that everyone, regardless of age, background, or status, should have the ability to temporarily occupy. It is in these public spaces that social bubbles have the ability to organically break, as encounters occur.

Nolli-style map of Moerwijk-West. Fences (orange), private (black), unoccupiable space: semi private + streets (dotted), public space (white).

sense of hospitality

4.1 the bench

In order to gain a better understanding to why I initially overlooked the open open public space, I walked again. This time mapping what I find to be the epitome of hospitable symbols in public space—the bench. A simple object that marks a space, that invites you to temporarily occupy, that invites you to take a moment to engage with the space. An object that is not mine, nor yours yet at the same time its for both us, for all.

The affordance that the simple bench can provide as a catalyst of gathering, meeting, exchanging is immense. Insider, outsider regardless. Ukrainian photographer, Jeka Kotenko’s series “On The Bench” 22 captures a selection of these diverse interactions and exchanges that a simple bench can provide.

22 Jobson, Christopher. “A Photographer Captures a Decade in the Life of a Single Ukrainian Park Bench.” Photography, 5 Feb. 2018, www.thisiscolossal. com/2018/02/on-the-benchyevgeniy-kotenko/.

‘On the Bench’ series by Jeka Kotenko’s

the bench: a hunt in moerwijk-west

On my hunt for the ‘symbol of hospitality in public space’ in Moerwijk-West, I was surprised by how little locations of public benches were in this quite densely populated neighbourhood, by only coming across 11. Although this number in my opinion is low, it is not nothing. Determined to understand why these benches did not open up the public space to me, I mapped each bench I founds location and direction.

Out of the 11 bench locations, three of them, benches no. 1, no. 5 and no. 11, were in programed public space, such as playgrounds and in a health centre. I find that benches in programed locations such as playgrounds were not open to outsiders, as it is inherently strange to spend time there unless you are an insider, for example with a child.

Bench no. 4 is located on a busy

transit location, facing the shops, which is nice but does nto invite much activity further then a quick stop. The remaining 7 locations all face towards the busy street, onlooking cars. In some cases like in benches no. 2, no. 3, no. 7, no. 8 and no. 9, the open space behind the bench is fenced off, and the bench sits again in a transit spot.

What I was left with was two locations, bench no. 6 and no.10. These benches were different in the fact that they are the only two positioned on the border of larger areas of public space, but facing away from open useable space.

The municipality of The Hague has a ‘Public Space Handbook’ (Handboek Openbare Ruimte (HOR), and when looking into the guidelines for public benches they state that in residential areas, the right type of bench should be placed in the right place. As “a standard bench provides a recognizable public space” .23 However in the context of bench no. 6 and no.10, even though at first glance the benches seem to indicate a recognizable public space, the specific direction it faces in fact dismisses this. These benches are not functioning symbols of hospitality as they do not connect to the public space behind them, in fact as they sit on the periphery they disregard the open public space entirely, closing if off by default.

23 Handboek Openbare Ruimte (HOR), 2013. https:// hor.denhaag.nl/ Original text in Dutch: “Pas in residentiegebieden de juiste type bank toe op de juiste plaats”

24 Böhme, Gernot. The Aesthetics of Atmospheres. Chapter 3: The art of the stage set as a paradigm for an aesthetics of atmospheres, 1st ed. Taylor and Francis, 2016. Accessed 1 May 2023.

25 Löfgren, Orvar. “Chapter 3: Sharing an Atmosphere: Spaces in Urban Common.” Urban Commons: Rethinking the City, edited by Christian Borch and Martin Kornberger, Routledge, Abingdon, Oxfordshire, 2016. (pg. 85)

26 Böhme, Gernot. The Aesthetics of Atmospheres. Chapter 12: Architecture: The atmosphere os a city, 1st ed. Taylor and Francis, 2016. Accessed 1 May 2023.

6 conclusion

As an outsider in Moerwijk-West, I can conclude that the open public space is a vital aspect in urban context. This is particularly true for multicultural, segregated neighbourhoods such as this, where this the only space where outsiders and insiders of heterogeneous groups can co-occupy.

For these public spaces to be seen and felt as welcoming, the spatial configuration must demonstrate a welcoming, accessible and hospitable atmosphere in order for them to not be overlooked. These emotional tinge’s 24 in public space are a shared experience which allow people to assess situations and spaces. These are important to examine as, according to Löfgren, shared atmospheres have the ability to “dissolve boundaries” bringing heterogeneous people together. 25 These atmospheres are are highly intangible, as they manifests itself as a feeling in the body and by nature is often neglected.

Böhme states that atmospheres characters are established based on ‘generators’, in the case of my research and experience the fence—was a generator of a hostile atmosphere, and the bench— a generator of a hospitable atmosphere within the public space in Moerwijk-West. 26 As a spatial designer, it is my role to detect the spatial aspects that generate atmospheres in space so that the can be flipped from unwelcome and hostile, to welcoming and hospitable.

The relationship between a generator an an atmosphere can change over time, as seen in the documentation of the fences at their

origin and now. In the beginning, when the community was close knit and where everybody was an ‘insider’ the fences were a symbol of safety and trust. However, as the neighbourhood changed and the position of the outsider became more prevalent, I speculate that the atmosphere that the fence generates shifted. And that their present in the early 1950s’s may have paved the way for a sense of isolation and exclusion today.

Bringing it back to the benches in Moerwijk-West, where they have potential to be the catalyst in a diverse set of interactions and exchanges, as seen in Jeka Kotenko’s photo series. The two locations of benches that boarded open public space in MoerwijkWest, face towards the busy street. Their particular orientation not only often fails to acknowledge the open public space behind them, but also creates a unwelcoming atmosphere in the public space as you are pushed to the periphery. A slight change in direction could open up the public space and flip the atmosphere to hospitable. Once this invitation to make use of the public space if felt, by insiders or outsiders in a community, the opportunity for heterogeneous exchange follows.

There is an urgency to recognize the effects that atmospheres have on how people use space and interact with one another. Hospitable atmospheres can be enhanced with details in spatial configuration, so that social bubbles have the ability to organically break, creating opportunity for outsiders to become insiders.

bibliography

“Atmosphere.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https:// www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/atmosphere. Accessed 1 May. 2023.

Böhme, Gernot. The Aesthetics of Atmospheres. Chapter 3: The art of the stage set as a paradigm for an aesthetics of atmospheres, 1st ed. Taylor and Francis, 2016. Accessed 1 May 2023.

Deelen, Tilly. “Jeugd in Jong Moerwijk.” Jeugd in Moerwijk, www.haagseherinneringen.nl/pagina/795/jeugd_in_moerwijk. Accessed 18 May 2023.

“Dodelijke Steekpartij in Den Haag.” Omroep West, 1 Feb. 2023, www.omroepwest.nl/nieuws/4680376/dodelijke-steekpartij-in-den-haag.

Global Public Space Toolkit From Global Principles to Local Policies and Practice. United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat), 2016. (pg. 4)

Handboek Openbare Ruimte (HOR), 2013. https://hor.denhaag.nl/

“Hospitable.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https:// www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hospitable. Accessed 1 May. 2023.

“Hostility.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www. merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hostility. Accessed 1 May. 2023.

Jobson, Christopher. “A Photographer Captures a Decade in the Life of a Single Ukrainian Park Bench.” Photography, 5 Feb. 2018, www.thisiscolossal. com/2018/02/on-the-bench-yevgeniy-kotenko/.

“Kabinet Investeert in Verbetering Van Leefbaarheid Den Haag Zuidwest.” Den Haag FM, 4 July 2022, www.denhaagfm.nl/dhfm/4600354/kabinet-investeert-in-verbetering-van-leefbaarheid-den-haag-zuidwest.

Lingen, Ivar. “Tientallen Criminele Netwerken in Drugs- En Mensenhandel Actief in Den Haag.” Omroep West, 26 Jan. 2023, www.omroepwest.nl/nieuws/3977520/tientallen-criminele-netwerken-in-drugs-en-mensenhandel-actiefin-den-haag.

Löfgren, Orvar. “Chapter 3: Sharing an Atmosphere: Spaces in Urban Common.” Urban Commons: Rethinking the City, edited by Christian Borch and Martin Kornberger, Routledge, Abingdon, Oxfordshire, 2016. (pg. 68 - 89)

“Migratie.” Buurt Moerwijk-West (Gemeente Den Haag) in Cijfers En Grafieken (Bijgewerkt 2023!) , 10 May 2023, allecijfers.nl/buurt/moerwijk-west-den-haag/#migratie.

moore544. “Nolli Map.” Exploring Architecture and Landscape Architecture, ohiostate.pressbooks.pub/exploringarchitectureandlandscape/chapter/nolli-map/. Accessed 10 May 2023.

“Orvar Löfgren.” Orvar Löfgren | Lund University, www.lunduniversity.lu.se/lucat/user/b534e70489ab782d56615a05fe2269d1. Accessed 10 May 2023.

Voerman, Lara. “Uitbreidingen Moerwijk En Morgenstond.” Expansions Moerwijk and Morgenstond 1947-1949 / WM Dudok, 5 Apr. 2022, www.dudokarchitectuurcentrum.nl/werken-dudok/uitbreidingen-moerwijk-en-morgenstond/.

“Woningkenmerken.” Buurt Moerwijk-West (Gemeente Den Haag) in Cijfers En Grafieken (Bijgewerkt 2023!) 10 May 2023, allecijfers.nl/buurt/moerwijk-west-den-haag/#woningkenmerken.

image references

Page: 4

Fig 1: Photograph by Andre Legaspi

Fig 2: Photograph vis dazeddigital.com

Fig 3: Photograph by Chelsea Lauren

Fig 4: Photograph by David Alan Harvey

Page: 5-8

Photographs by Alicia Rottke Fitzpatrick

Page: 9-12

Fig 5: Photograph from Haags Gemeente Archief

Fig 6: Photograph from Haagse Herinneringen: Tilly Deelen

Fig 7: Drawing from Inzage Bouwtekeningen den Haag

Fig 8: Photograph from Haags Gemeente Archief

Fig 9: Photograph from Haags Gemeente Archief

Fig 10: Photograph from Haags Gemeente Archief

Fig 11: Photograph from Haags Gemeente Archief

Fig 12: Photograph from Haags Gemeente Archief

Fig 13: Photograph from Haags Gemeente Archief

Fig 14: Photograph from Haags Gemeente Archief

Page: 14

Map outline by Mirco Azzopard with graphic adaptations by Alicia Rottke Fitzpatrick

Page: 15-16

Photographs by Jeka Kotenko. “On The Bench”

Page: 17-19

Photographs by Alicia Rottke Fitzpatrick

Page: 20

Map outline by Mirco Azzopard with graphic adaptations by Alicia Rottke Fitzpatrick

Page: 21-22

Drawings by Alicia Rottke Fitzpatrick

“Outsider.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www. merriam-webster.com/dictionary/outsider. Accessed 1 May. 2023.

1

appendix: dictionary definitions

outsider

noun

out·sid·er ˌaut-ˈsī-dər ˈaut-ˌsī-

: a person who does not belong to a particular group 27

2

insider noun

in·sid·er (ˌ)in-ˈsī-dər ˈin-ˌsī-

Synonyms of insider

: a person recognized or accepted as a member of a group, category, or organization

: a person who is in a position of power or has access to confidential information 28

a

atmosphere noun

At·mo·sphere

: a surrounding influence or environment

: the air of a locality

: an intriguing or singular tone, effect, or appeal 29

inhospitable adjective

in·hos·pi·ta·ble ˌin-(ˌ)hä-ˈspi-tə-bəl (ˌ)in-ˈhä-(ˌ)spi-

: not showing hospitality : not friendly or receptive

: providing no shelter or sustenance 30

27 “Outsider.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https:// www.merriam-webster.com/ dictionary/outsider. Accessed 1 May. 2023.

28 “Insider.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https:// www.merriam-webster.com/ dictionary/insider. Accessed 19 May. 2023.

hospitable adjective hos·pi·ta·ble hä-ˈspi-tə-bəl ˈhä-(ˌ)spi-

1

: given to generous and cordial reception of guests

a kind, hospitable people

b

: promising or suggesting generous and friendly welcome

c

: offering a pleasant or sustaining environment

2

: readily receptive : OPEN 31

29 “Atmosphere.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https:// www.merriam-webster. com/dictionary/atmosphere. Accessed 1 May. 2023.

30 “Inhospitable.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https:// www.merriam-webster.com/ dictionary/inhospitable. Accessed 18 May. 2023.

31 “Hospitable.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https:// www.merriam-webster. com/dictionary/hospitable. Accessed 1 May. 2023.