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ARCHITECTURE AND EXPERIENCE
- Architecture is experienced with the body. Sight alone is not sufficient to fully grasp it; other senses are also important. Each person experiences a building differently. After all, we are of different heights, and Le Corbusier may have been mistaken, since we do not know anyone who measures 1.829 meters tall. Each of us has a different weight, a different rhythm of steps and even a different body temperature. Some hear better, others worse, and acoustics can sometimes be the most important factor in experiencing art. The greenery that accompanies architecture tempts us to pause and contemplate, confusing our senses. Scents begin to emerge. Sometimes we recall the smell of our grandfather’s basement. There was nothing of interest to architects there, yet such a memory remains forever, and one day it will return in the process of designing a new building.
- Architecture does not exist contemporaneously. Time transforms it, or at least changes the way we perceive it. As we walk past or through a building, its successive sequences reveal themselves to us. The user does not so much look at a building as move through it. Passages emerge, and tension can be built and gradually intensified or released. It seems that the layout of a building should form a labyrinth. Working with the plan and cross-section, the architect maps out potential paths of movement and, along with them, scenarios of perception. A person experiences it along a trajectory mapped out (or more often drawn) by the architect. One may discern a metaphor of the labyrinth in such design. Yet this does not imply chaos, but rather a structure of choices and the discovery of unexpected novelty by the user. A good labyrinth does not lead one astray; it guides through tension and orientation, sustains curiosity, and ultimately reveals the exit. Architecture should intrigue us, rather than provide simple answers.
- Multisensory perception is important. In contemporary architecture, the viewer’s sense of sight alone is overrated. Other stimuli come into play; our nervous system craves more and more. We are constantly bombarded with advertising content. Yet we do not protest; we want even more. Architecture can function in a similar way; it generates sounds, either quiet or loud. Emerging reverberations may irritate or delight. Silence may be followed by noise; we live among people. We want to touch, to examine materials, and to explore their texture. To experience it under different lighting conditions, or perhaps in the dark. Each time of day brings new sensations to the user.
- What matters most are the emotions that architecture evokes. It is one of those things that stir the mind deeply. They usually arise suddenly, yet remain fleeting. At times, we feel calmness or unease, focus or distraction, grandeur or intimacy. If architecture evokes nothing or is neutral (which is sometimes desirable), it may mean that it is simply lifeless.
- Architecture is meaning and memory. Our experience is not “pure.” We carry memories, afterimages, and familiar shapes in our minds. Sometimes they are blurred, and sometimes they are quite vivid. Memory functions not only as an archive but also as an interpretative mechanism. Fragmentary, blurred, and sometimes distorted afterimages of space influence the way we understand the form, function, and atmosphere of buildings. The same space can be perceived differently by different users. For some, it becomes a place of belonging; for others, it remains foreign or illegible. At times, we get the “Bilbao effect,” at others, hot-dog stands.
- True architecture is philosophy. True architecture does not confine itself to solving functional problems or to an aesthetic play of forms. It must address questions about existence, meaning, and the way of inhabiting the world. In this sense, it is a philosophical practice that gives material form to ideas that usually remain in the realm of abstraction. Architecture should establish relationships between the individual and the community, the private and the public, the permanent and the ephemeral. A design is not neutral; it must embody an implicit vision of humanity and society. True architecture requires thought and reflection. Its author should be capable of critically reflecting on their own design premise. They become a mediator between idea and reality. Their work will remain with society for years to come, and only future generations of users will determine whether it was merely a building or true architecture.
