Architecture is the experience of the environment through vision and user perception. It’s all about the perspective of seeing any built and open environments. Architecture can create any thought into reality through the vision of design. It is a study of how to see the surrounding environment or world in a meaningful way. Anything observed or experienced through the lenses of architectural vision gives the unique and permanent experience of that specific environment. Architecture provides a perspective on how we see our society, spaces, culture, and environment. It’s not just about buildings but how architecture shapes our daily lives.
Architecture Vision and Experiences
It is a design approach that creates interaction between the user and spaces. Art and structure mean design and technology make massive 3D forms and create specific patterns on land that provide specific movement for user circulation. Architecture is not only the design of forms or buildings or structures, but it is also responsible for the user’s mental as well as physical health. It’s related to the planning factor, which includes any small or large-scale project as well as site planning design. Any architectural planning gives a specific perspective to see and engage user senses to feel that specific project experience. All these experiences perceived by users impact mental and physical health. For example, suppose someone stays in a very small area with a height-volume structure and someone stays in a large area with a volume structure. In that case, both structure and forms provide very different approaches to feeling experience inside that structure. That is the beauty of architecture and designs, which does not give users a specific type of experience because each building or structure has its own identity through its form, shape, volume, aesthetics, interior, etc. factors. These all factors are design factors that are very important to develop any perspective for any spatial environment.
These are all examples of spaces most frequently used by people according to activity uses. So, people can experience that space according to the volume of spaces and also according to how the spaces are designed with shape, area, etc. factors. According to the form and volume of space, the user occupies his living inside that space. Architecture strongly depends on volume and form factors.
Impact of Architecture on Our Lives and Lifestyles
Architecture holds significant influence over thoughts and emotions, impacting daily lives. Architecture is an important communication medium to understand any space or spatial environment. It’s representative of community, culture, lifestyle, and history. Architecture has a monumental impact on society, the environment, and culture, ultimately impacting us psychologically. Architecture is not only about design or aesthetics. It’s a relationship, a journey between spaces and people; all types of small and big spaces guide the user with specific movement and circulation patterns inside as well as outside the space according to its design and planning. Each architectural planning has its language to speak about the architecture of design.
A perspective by Architect’s Vision and Architect’s Role
As renowned Architect Zaha Hadid says, “Don’t think that architecture is only about shelter, it should be able to excite you, calm you, and make you think”. Also, Famous Architect Frank Gehry stated that “Architecture should speak of its time and place, but yearn for timeless.” These quotes also understand that architecture is not only about design, but line, shape, form, and volume-height these all parameters are very important and basic factors of architecture, which give perspective, develop any thought about any projector about any design. Because all types of buildings, and structures are only made by considering all parameters. Perspective is what? The vision can develop with the help of these basic fundamental factors. Architects are designers who can design these various types of spaces, and build with their thought process. Environment and create new innovative structures as the identity of their vision. Some architects give a world vision of specific, symmetric, typical shapes, forms structures, design, and project planning vision, I.e. typical square, rectangular geometric vision they used in their structures. Some architects have a different vision of seeing the world in an inorganic, asymmetric way, they design asymmetric, organic designs, and they do not prefer rigid geometric patterns in their design, structure, or project planning. So, it depends from vision to vision. Architects are the most important medium to build a strong, unique and long-lasting environment, which can be representative of a strong future.
Above all figures show different styles, different thought processes, and different perspectives behind design. In 4th fig. The architect used flute style geometrical and non-rigid form of structure. There is a large volume with wave roofing to the structure. In the 5th structure, there is a linear pattern followed, and simple and minimal factors are used. Also, it’s a simple rectangular geometric form structure that gives a simple vision. In the 6th structure, there is massiveness and a large volume dome used so users can feel different experiences inside the large volume dome structure as compared to both fig. structures. All 3 figures have strong Architecture.
Geometry, Spaces, Structures, and Human Relation
Architecture is the language of spaces. Architecture is a type of study that involves every aspect of geometry. Geometry is very important in establishing a relationship between the user and space. Geometry is a factor that defines space use, and function. Forms function and geometry help establish space and user relations. Architectural elements like symmetry and volume always guide humans with various perspectives. For example, any symmetrical structure guides the human eye with balance and steady geometry, while an asymmetrical structure guides the human eye with imbalance and unsteady geometry. So, every surrounding, whether built or natural landscape zones, carries these basic factors. There are various geometric shapes and forms like square, rectangular, triangle, octagonal, etc., so each geometric pattern establishes a different relation with human presence using that geometric space. For example, squish geometry space gives a very acceptable form shape by people because it’s very commonly used and because squares and all sides are equal with equal shapes. Also, there is an equal stop junction at the sides of a square or rectangle. It’s a very symmetrical geometry. In the case of circular geometric space, there is no stop for vision inside the space because the circle is continuing movement, so it has a different movement pattern compared to squarish geometry. In the case of the triangle, there are pointed factors involved. A triangle gives a point concentration vision at the upper side inside any triangular space with high volume. Thus, all these geometric shapes define structure and space with volume and also establish human scale and human relation with that geometry space within as well as outside the spaces.
In Image 7, a skyscraper building is one of the world’s tallest buildings. This shows the linear, straight one-line geometry with a very large height, which gives very small feelings to humans who stand in front of this structure; this skyscraper concept belongs to the scale factor of design. Scale decides the relation of humans with this very large height structure. Skyscrapers generally emphasize structure in the surrounding environment because of their large height scale. So, this type of structure is important in any urban and modern city or regional environment. In Fig. 8, there is a pyramidal, triangular structure. This pyramid geometric structure is a unique and attractive geometry or geometric form because one upper pointed portion of the pyramid is a concentric point for the human eye; it is a very catchy element in a pyramid that decides the scale of geometric structural form. Also, pyramid or triangular geometric walls are learned at the downside, so this pyramid wall also has a different communication language than rectangular straight walls. In Fig. 9, famous architectural monumental structures have strong symmetry. These monuments are very balanced and have rigid geometry features. Symmetry and symmetry structures are elementary to understand because, in a symmetrical structure, all sides are equal in scale, shape, volume, and form. Compared to this, asymmetric structures do not have equal quality; they are uneven in all design factors. Thus, according to geometry, symmetry, asymmetry, shapes, forms, and scale are very important factors in establishing relationships with humans.
Architecture and Context
Have you ever been able to observe a building or a space in isolation with a stronger context? Architecture and context have a strong relationship with each other. Sometimes, architectural structures, buildings, or spaces have a strong context background, which is more emphasized than that structure. Most of the memory of spaces is created in someone’s mind because of the strong and unique context and background of that specific space or structure. Have you ever noticed it? Yes, Architecture and context strongly coordinate with each other.
The images consist not only of a building in isolation unless it’s an iconic monument that gives the place identity but can be thought of as strong natural as well as contours, an uneven site in which the building is located. In Fig. 10, one house is located at a very high contour site, a hilly region. So, it has a solid natural land context, a background which is more important while designing a house also, land context is more communicative and guides a house structure used according to the existing land situation because the house structure is designed with consideration of the contour land situation. In Fig. 11, there is a house in the snow region, so snow and other natural elements like trees, hills, etc, are more dominant and emphasize themselves. According to snow, and cold climatic conditions, the house is built with high, sloping roofs with triangular geometry. Also, there is only a ground story structure with specific geometry because of snow and cold regions. In Fig. 12, there is an opera house structure in water, so here is the type context because there is no land surface for constructing any structure. This type of sustainable structure gives the user a boat or cruise feeling. While inside this structure, the user can feel the water world lifestyle. Thus, all these factors give us a very contextual experience with spaces. Context is decided and guides the specific livingness and lifestyle with that specific region’s climatic condition and context. Thus, architecture has a strong relation with context.
Conclusion
In conclusion, architecture is a solid medium to express emotion and provide experiences through specific lifestyles with design. From many instances in the past, we have often heard architects talk about how architecture is much more than a building- be it Pritzker prize-winning architect BV Doshi who mentioned, “Architecture is not the design, but a way of creating moods, situations, images, and stories” or Geoffrey Bawa who stated, “Architecture cannot be explained, it can only be experienced” or John Ruskin who states: “We seek two things of our buildings. We want them to shelter us. And we want them to speak to us – of whatever we find important and need to be reminded of.” Why did all architects state this type of quote about architecture? Because of its correct vision to see architecture, it correctly develops a perspective about architecture. Yes, Architecture is not only building buildings and structures; in fact, it’s an expressive medium that takes the place of a designer’s thought into reality. Its vision of thought, its perspective to build and maintain a strong culture around us. “Architecture holds the identity of the past with history, development with the present, and innovation with future”. Architecture guides us, mesmerizes us, and reminds us of our need to observe our environment. Overall, the world directly or indirectly depends upon architecture and architectural vision and perspective to build strong and safe environments worldwide. Architecture is reflection geometry, form, and volume. These factors are pillars of any architectural structure. Architecture is a solid medium to reflect culture, lifestyle, and environment, which creates a lifestyle. It’s a journey of experiences that create memories of that space and create emotion.
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