Experiential architecture : the emotional evaluation of architecture

Abstract

Learning is always an arduous task because it is a process by which one has to 'unlearn' previous ideas to accept new ones. Knowledge is part of oneself and consequently, when this has to be renounced in favour of new (and hopefully better) ideas, one cannot but feel that a part of oneself is being lost. Only after discomfort is felt can one realise that the new self is richer and the transformation was undergone for the better. It is partly for this reason that the last five years have been, as yet, the most difficult of my life. I had to surrender all my preconceptions regarding architecture and accept new ones. This process soon gave me new pride because I could now understand and appreciate architecture better. I began to comprehend the messages being conveyed, see the relationships that exist between different forms, shapes and colours making up a composition. I could identify different styles and date works of architecture. However, this newly found satisfaction was suddenly upset by a number of distressing questions. Why did I have to learn to appreciate architecture? Are formal aspects of composition, stylistic awareness and historical issues essential for appreciation? Buildings are usually designed to be used by non-architects, so why should any message be communicated that is only understood by other architects? It was at this point that a new phase of my educational venture started. The question of architectural appreciation became the main theme of an investigation that consisted mostly of reading but also included an interest in what non-architects have to say about architecture. I was soon annoying friends and members of my family with questions about what they think about this or that architectural intervention. Due to my keen interest in computer graphics I was able to carry out a number of simple, informal experiments in which particular characteristics of digitized architectural images were altered. These were shown to a small number of subjects to determine any difference between their emotional response towards the original and modified versions.