33038155
AC2.2 THEORY
Should we adopt a more Phenomenological approach to Architectural design and thinking?
Gaven Webb
AC 2.2 Theory - 33038155
Should we adopt a more Phenomenological approach to Architectural design and thinking? The world today has changed significantly from that of our forbearers , a change that has been predominantly brought about by the advancements in technology. Counter point to this is that our understanding and appreciation of architecture, and indeed the wider world has predominantly been interpreted through only a fraction of our abilities; our visual responses, known as ocularcentrism. This has placed vision as the most important aspect of our being since the time of the classical thinkers including Plato and Aristotle. Yet is this the best, or indeed the only way of understanding Architecture and the world around us. The answer, at least to the latter part is no; many Architects and Designers have begun to understand the importance of the body as a whole, acknowledging the fact that the world we live in is not insistently visual. Our interpretations and understandings do, to a certain extent, initially come from a visual stimulation. From a modern understanding and appreciation of Art and Architecture the vast majority of us merely glance at our surroundings, taking in what we see yes, but taking it as a snap shot of life, another image that passes before our consciousness. When we look around us, we are inundated with images; some which display beauty, others which offend. On so many levels we still tend to 'judge a book by its cover' particularly in the western world, where the realm of the celebrity, Hollywood and Vogue dominate. We look at these images and garner our ideas and opinions on this initial ocular interpretation. The same can be said for Architecture; we see buildings such as The Shard in London, and are admire it's looks, for beauty or ugliness; or the Burg al Khalifa for its height. Yet even this is not really seeing. Le Corbusier was rather vocal on the topic "I am and I remain an impenitent visual - everything is in the visual" (quoted in Crosset, 1987, p.115). This idea of 'Visual Architecture' and experiencing through 'the mind's eye' has been the case with the majority of architectural theory and criticisms until recently; that is the notion of Form.
Figure 1 - Burg al Khalifa
Figure 2 - The Shard by Renzo Piano
AC 2.2 Theory - 33038155
Should we adopt a more Phenomenological approach to Architectural design and thinking? When examining a building in this manor we attempt to step outside ourselves, to the 'Mind's Eye' viewing from a disembodied form, in an effort to remove all semblance of self out of the analytical process; a process which would then be devoid of humanity rendering it somewhat redundant method. Yet how is it that we can view Architecture and the world in such a one dimensional manner? When we walk through the fields, hills, villages, towns and cities that make up our world we use the vast array of senses and emotions that we are born with. When we walk down a street, catching the scent of perfume once worn by a lover, are we not reminded of them? Of the place we met, the moments shared? This memory is part of our everyday lives, yet we have become more focused on our visual reactions. The same can be said for the smell of home; an abstract concept that we form one of closest attachments to; a smell that for everyone can be different, or share common themes. This idea of an ocularcentric outlook has lead to the development of seemingly beautiful buildings, yet it can be said that "many of the architectural projects of the past 20 years, celebrated by the international architectural press, express both narcissism and nihilism" (Pallasmaa, 2005, p.22). The idea that architects of today are more concerned with their own self promotion (or that of their employers) for vanity's sake, as opposed to the joy of creation, or that of the mass produced, generic building that from certain aspects is truly wonderful, but which is in reality a step toward the robotic and systemic structures that one would associate with Lang's Metropolis dystopia. Stepping away from the idea of a purely visual understanding and interpretation of Art, Architecture and the world that we live in, it is possible to reveal what can lay behind their inception. When we begin to examine our surroundings as a series of individual objects each one unique in its composition, and its position in time and space we begin to explore the realms of phenomenology. Phenomenology begins to look at a buildings materials and all of its sensory properties. By exploring each object in a place with all of our understanding we begin to generate a more grandiose perception of our surroundings. A place where our hearing alerts our eyes to a hitherto unknown entity, such as the bird nesting in a gutter, that would otherwise have been overlooked because the way something looked. Our eyes can open us up to new experiences, the potentials of the horizon, and tease and invite our other senses in to awakening. How we can see the texture of a stone buildings and know how it would feel to touch it, and when we touch it we can understand how it could taste. Similarly the 'feel' of a place can be expressed with the addition and removal of light and shadow, a place where we feel comfortable to walk and savour all that is around us. Too much artificial light and we can feel over exposed, naked even; where we ourselves feel transparent. Too much
AC 2.2 Theory - 33038155
Should we adopt a more Phenomenological approach to Architectural design and thinking? shadow and we can feel fearful; shadows are where our imaginations can run wild, there the unknown can exist. Yet just the right amount of light and shadow excites us, and creates an intimate feeling; Where the majesty of the world can be freely seen; yet we can live in hope of what could dwell in that shadow. For today's world of technology we have all but abandoned our other senses and methods of investigation. We trust the images that pass before us and can see and 'experience' the wider world from our own homes. The internet has created an entire new world at our fingertips, but it is a visual, audio world, a world in which we suffer a limited investigation and interpretation, showing us only a fragment of what is. When we walk toward the steps of St Paul's in London, those of us that have been before are aware of how they will feel, and the memories that we associate with that 'place'. We see the texture of the stone and the cool tactile feel of it; as we look up we are drawn toward the building by its visual stimulation, the feelings we had when we first entered, the people that were with us, and the taste of the air; the freshly blown out candle. Figure 1 - St Paul's Steps As technology advances we will be better able to understand our place within the world, and with these advances we might better be able to create Art and Architecture that reawakens us to our other senses and experiences. Pallasmaa (2005) perhaps expressed it best:
"Buildings and towns enable us to structure, understand and remember the shapeless flow of reality and, ultimately, to recognise and remember who we are. Architecture enables us to understand the dialects of permanence and change, to settle ourselves in the world , and to place ourselves in the continuum of culture and time." If we choose to live our lives purely looking at our surroundings, ignoring what our other senses tell us we would miss a great deal; without the rest of ourselves we would not be able to view the art work, the building or enjoy the view across the lake. We respond to the world around us with our entire being, allowing our senses, and subconscious to interpret and analysis data that our eyes alone could not do; yet conversely without our eyes we would be deprived the visual stimulation for many of these aspects, some of which are our most basic human responses. If we fail to design for all our senses, we fail to deliver the full potential of our buildings, and could even miss the intentions of our designs. The passion of architecture is all encompassing, so we should bring forward all of our humanity to express our designs in an all encompassing manor.
AC 2.2 Theory - 33038155
Should we adopt a more Phenomenological approach to Architectural design and thinking? Bibilography: Pallasmaa, J. 2005, The Eyes of the Skin: Architecture and the Senses, WileyAcademy, Chichester Leach, N., 1997, Rethinking Architecture: Reader in Cultural Theory, Routledge, New York Zumthor, P., 2010, Thinking Architecture, Birkhauser, Berlin
Websites: http://www.aber.ac.uk/media/Modules/MC10220/visper01.html - Accessed 30/04/2012 http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/phenomenology/ - Accessed 30/04/2012 http://www.phenomenologyonline.com/ - Accessed 30/04/2012 http://aks0101.wordpress.com/2008/11/06/understanding-phenomenology/ - Accessed 30/04/2012 http://www.arch.columbia.edu/workpage/work/courses/history-/-theory/phenomenologyarchitecture-places-and-lifeworlds-beyond-inten - Accessed 30/04/2012
Images: Figure 1 - http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jn2U5mxsh4s/TyaIKX4-nVI/AAAAAAAAEn4/rUGMjthJXs/s1600/Burj-Khalifa_3.jpg
Figure 2 - http://inhabitat.com/files/the-shard-by-renzo-piano-15.jpg Figure 3 - http://www.londonpass.com/images_lib/1165602858_StPauls2.jpg