Order, Repetition & Stability in Architecture

The following is excerpted from Michael E’s latest book, “Function First – and other Architectural Insights”. The book is scheduled for release in Dec. 2009

From the chapter, “Order, Repetition & Stability in Architecture”:

“….So why is all this important? Because architects can learn from both advertisers and psychologists. We can learn how the mind works and how an emotional state can be generated from an environment, or vice versa. As an example, it is a scientific fact that the human mind seeks out order, repetition and stability. When the brain receives input from ones senses that deviate from the expected norm, it creates a chemical imbalance. This imbalance generates a state of anxiety. Sometimes the anxiety is interpreted in a positive way, and sometimes in a negative way. A roller-coaster ride is either exhilarating or terrifying, depending on how your brain registers the data.
The Grand Canyon Skywalk is an excellent example of the psychological effects architecture can have on the human mind. This u-shaped, glass floor bridge extends out 65 feet from the edge of the canyon rim. The 4000 ft. drop to the canyon floor below is so un-nerving that a section of the floor had to be frosted so that people wouldn’t freak out. It’s definately not for everyone. And unless you had nerves of steel, you wouldn’t want to build a house this way.
This same state of anxiety is created in many subtle ways in architecture. If a building has non-regular openings or projections, long cantilevered overhangs, contains a mish-mash of angles or if it simply has an abstract appearance, it will have a psychological effect on the buildings occupants. From inside they may or may not observe these elements, but by the time they get inside, they will have already been subjected to its negative influence. And they probably won’t even know they have been influenced. They will just be in a bad mood for some reason. They might say things like, “gee, I woke up in such a good mood. I don’t know what happened.” As a result, productivity goes down. Of course, it’s possible that they could be snapped out of this state by other influences. As long as those influences represent order, repetition & stability, they would have the opposite effect, and calm the person down.
Warm colors create a stable environment and will calm people down. As will natural, indirect sunlight. Soft textures and acoustics will also help. A building must give a sense of security. So it would be wise to have strong looking, elements to ground the spaces. Displaying artwork in a repetitious manner is a great way to stabilize disorder. It comforts the mind. As do potted plants. They give the mind a sense of grounding even in high rise structures. Of course, all these things would have even more positive influence on a person if the structure didn’t put them in a bad mood before they walked into the building.
Architects must consider all aspects of how a building’s design will affect the occupants of that building. When we put our own ambition to create a masterpiece above that of the people who will actually use our creations, we do disservice to them and subsequently, to our profession. We should take lessons from psychologists and advertisers to create spaces that amplify man’s best qualities and emotions, and remove as many negative effects of life as possible.”

… your comments are appreciated. Thank you, Michael E.

People who read this post also read:

Posted by Michael E. on Mar 30 2009. Filed under News Briefs. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry