Sensory Urbanism Proceedings 2008 January 8Th & 9Th, 2008 University

Sensory Urbanism Proceedings 2008 January 8th & 9th, 2008 University of Strathclyde, Glasgow

Edited by Ray Lucas Gordon Mair

The Flâneur Press, 2008

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1 Sensory Urbanism Proceedings 2008

Due to time constraints on the research team, it has proven impossible to fully edit each paper. As such, the papers presented in this book are printed much as they were given to us, with some formatting work completed. We apologise for any small typographic and grammatical errors, and hope that the spirit of the paper remains true.

The responsibility for the copyright of papers and illustrations lies with each author. Each author holds the copyright of their paper.

I would like to express my sincere thanks for your patience whilst the proceedings have been in production.

Once again, many thanks are due to all of our authors, who have produced such a fascinating selection of papers. It was a joy to read them all again.

Dr Ray Lucas, December 2008

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2 Sensory Urbanism Proceedings 2008

CONTENTS PAGE

CitySpinning: Frameworks for a Collective Reinterpretation of the 5 Ambient Possibilities of Public Spaces, Prayas Abhinav & Yashas Shetty

My Kind of Town 20 Robert Brown

Drawing out Experience; Between Media & Place 28 Vincent Canizaro

Ambience Formers in Built Environment 38 Grégoire Chelkoff

Sensible Forms 47 Andrew Conio

Approaching Urban Space Through Drawing 55 Helena Elias & Maria Constança Vasconcelos

“Blacktop: A story of the washing of a schoolyard” 65 Suzanne Ewing

Transit Spaces 72 Wael Fahmi

A Proposed Structure for a Programme of Urban Soundscape Re- 83 search Mike Fedeski

City Identity and Presence 94 Marie Frier, Nanna Gram Thomassen, and Anna Marie Fisker

Haptics and Vision in Architecture 102 Jasmien Herssens and Ann Heylighen

Design and communication in a multi-sensory environment 113 Peter Howell and Julia Ionides

Awakening the Blinded Sensation 120 Hsieh, MIn-Feng

Aural Wallpaper and Music of the City 128 Harvey Ward Turner & Laura Lewis

3 Sensory Urbanism Proceedings 2008

CONTENTS PAGE

Designing a Notation for the Senses 137 Ray Lucas

The Play’s the Thing 149 Geoff Matthews

Factor Analysis of the Pedestrian Number in a Downtown Area Us- 158 ing Visibility Indicators Akira Ohta, Rim Meziani, Yuta Sugiura and Toshiyuki Kaneda

Pictorial Fictions 165 Mizrahi, Malca

Adjacency, Permeability & Inter-Visibility 172 Akkelies van Nes

Night City and “Schizophrenia” 180 Julien Richard

Beyond the Visual 186 Robert Rogerson & Gareth Rice

Aerial (Brass) & Object Scores 194 Kirsty Stansield

Stockholm, Slowly, Still 199 Naomi Stead

Nothing More than Feelings 209 Quentin Stevens

Materials in Architectural Design 217 Lisa Wastiels & Ine Wouters

Sensory Experiences of Home 224 Anna Wieczorek & Magali Paris

4 CitySpinning: Frameworks for a Collective Reinterpretation of the Ambi- ent Possibilities of Public Spaces Prayas Abhinav and Yashas Shetty CEMA, Srishti School of Art, Design and Technology, Ban- galore

1. Abstract 2. Indian Cities in Boom-

The paper examines CitySpinning, a pub- time lic art project initiated by Prayas Abhinav, a Bangalore and Mumbai are two cities in Postgraduate student at the Center for Exper- Southern and Western India. Each of them imental Media Arts in Bangalore. City Spin- has their own “boom story” to tell. Each ning is a series of interventions that incorpo- contributes an increasing percent of the rates unused and vacant spaces around the gross national income. city of Bangalore. The project re-interprets these spaces with references borrowed from With this economic success there is al- the free software movement and the creative most a universal interest in businesses, in- commons movement, making these spaces dividuals, and families to be a part of this more conigurable while not imposing any story,leading to heavy investments in real restrictions or transactions on individuals estate and migration of labour. This has cre- wishing to negotiate with these spaces. ated pressure of varied intensities on the city planners to make more of the city available The technology for letting individuals con- for commercial development,enhance ur- igure such spaces has become more acces- ban infrastructure from the perspective of sible with cheaper environmental sensors, the key economic stakeholders/drivers such access to physical computing environments as the big investors and big employment such as the Arduino boards, mobile and data providers. However, there are also numer- communication services and web-based ous agitations contesting this drive in these social networks for making ad hoc crews/ cities. teams/interest groups. These tools enable collective communities interested in cus- The most vocal of these agitations might tomizing an urban space to come together be the ones in Mumbai. The civic authori- and share the legal, conceptual and net- ties want to clear Dharavi, which is the larg- working tools needed to remix a space. The est informal settlement (or slum) in Asia and use of multiple sensors and the ability of the auction it off to commercial developers. Al- collective to control the sensory ambiance though some kind of rehabilitation plan has of space can help in creating more engaging been put in place, there are bigger questions experiences for individuals. here. Questions about the identity, rights and

5 Prayas Abhinav and Yashas Shetty stakes of different communities on the land The interest in the late 90s of builders to on which they live. Bordering the airport, it build malls all across India led to a boom is a city within acity. Numerous researchers, in the retail industry, multiplexes and fast journalists, photographers have spent time food, a large number of malls exist to day there trying to understand the lux on the in Mumbai,Bangalore, Ahmedabad and ground. many of them enjoy a lot of walk-ins. But this boom has gone unchecked, with many In Bangalore with the IT industry driving malls coming up on the same street leading most of the growth, high-value jobs and to an over-capacity and a need to convert global interest in the city, a powerful lobby many of these nearly-completed and under- has taken shape. This lobby has pressurized construction malls to commercial buildings the government numerous times to look af- offering ofice-space instead of retail-space. ter its interests. These demands have mostly Other glitches were witnessed in the rapid been for stable business infrastructure, like rise and subsequent disappearance of bowl- lyovers, roads, electricity, WiMax which ing alleys and pool tables in many Indian helps them increase their business eficien- cities in the 90s. cy. They have largely been successful in getting speciic commitments from the govern- If there is an ongoing conversation between ment. The government is too conscious of the users of cities (that is the citizens) and hurting its image of being India’s leading IT the planners, builders and architects, such outsourcing hub amid the competitive bids expensive glitches might be avoided. In this from Pune, Hyderabad, Chennai and Delhi. paper I will explore different dimensions of this possibility. In contrast let us look at the garment ex- port industry in Bangalore. It employs a much higher [igures] number of people but contributes substantially less to the city’s 3. Public-spaces gross turnover and so obviously doesn’t have clout to demand anything for itself or “Cities were invented to facilitate exchange its workers. Manyof the workers in the in- – the exchange of ideas, friendships, mate- dustry live in one of the 700 slums around rial goods and skills. How good a city is at Bangalore. Slums marked as ‘shadow areas’ facilitating exchange determines its health – in government plans. Shadow areas are de- economic,social, cultural and environmen- ined on the basis of water supply level and tal. Public space forms a vital conduit in this the number of teachers for the area. (The exchange process, providing platforms for Two Bangalores, Menon, 2005) everyday interaction and information lows – the basis and content for the public life of The way these cities are shaping and the cities.” (People Make Places: Growing The way the governments are Public Life of Cities, Demos, 2005)

taking decisions about the trajectories they Before cars changed the meaning of lo- should take are not transparent. They ac- cation and distance in cities,public spaces commodate the needs of only some groups like plazas, parks and playing grounds were of people residing in these cities. The voices about people from different ethnic and class and opinions of a vast majority are not even backgrounds meeting and exchanging ideas, registered. expressing world-views, forming groups and enriching themselves in other ways. One of This “one-sided deafness” creates some- the attractions of living in a big metropo- times amusing urban glitches. For example:

6 City Spinning lis was the possibility of this socialization. cities where the project is exhibited are (Safdie & Kohn 1997, pp 12-13) (Intellectual shown using robotically controlled projec- Property: The Attack on Public Space in Cy- tors. However,the portraits only appear in- berspace, Besser, 2001) side the projected shadows of local passers- by [...]” (McQuire, 2005) Scott McQuire writes in The Politics of Public Space in The Media City: Scott McQuire suggests that Lozano- henner’s work involves strangers to suspend [...] the rise of the suburbs was positioned habits and try to igure out the interface and as the nemesis to the public space of the interplay of the project through experimen- modern city. [...] Daniel Dayan and Elihu tation. He uses this work as an example to Katz (1992) deined the ‘media event’ large- describe the ways in which social inter-min- ly in terms of the privatization of the public gling and interaction is beginning to happen sphere: events once experienced collective- again in public spaces in the “media-city” ly in public space were increasingly con- and predicts that such projects “could be- sumed by greater numbers of people who come important tools for rethinking the sub- watched from the privacy of their individual mission of urban space to commodity spec- homes. (The Politics of Public Space in The tacle and surveillance, and for forging new Media City, McQuire, 2005) ways of engaging with others in public.”

So, across the last half of the 20th century Ashok Sukumaran, an architect and artist with the rise of suburbs and the commuting however argues that Lozanohenner’s later culture we have seen public spaces fall out works and increasingly also of many other of favour of planners and others who have artists inluenced by it “could be described had a say in shaping the city. And people [...] as the connection of any seem to have no time to just hang out in parks, plazas etc. There has been a trend to input/sensing device to an arbitrary output think in terms of productivity and function- format.” He says that “audiences just begin alism. to expect one or the other form of benign media to appear, in response to their pres- In the urban layout the erstwhile role of ence” and the works fail to actually deal public spaces is now played by private- with the “publics” in meaningful ways. ly owned “pseudo-public-spaces” like (Venice Biennale Part II: On Rafael Lozano- malls,multiplexes and fast food outlets. These Hemmer’s Work, Sukumaran, 2007) privately owned shared spaces have been able to exert controls which public spaces With physical computing and code-based had great dificulty in exerting. Controls art dominating a lot of the buzz around on free speech, political action(distributing public space interventions, media art and lealets, doing demonstrations), appearance interactive art in the last few years, artists (dress code), language (everything being in are increasingly asking questioning the en- English) ilter our undesirable and unwanted thusiastic use of computing and its effects elements and create a “sanitized” environ- and are now seeking more human, involv- ment. The “rights of admission are reserved.” ing and rooted ways of using tools like ardu- (Besser, 2001) inoboards, wiring, picocricket and the vast range of possibilities which electronics and In BODY MOVIES, an art project by Rafael computing offers. Lozano-hemmer “transforms public space with [...] interactive projections. Thousands Numerous artists such as The Space Hi- of photoportraits taken on the streets of the jackers, Reclaim The Streets,kraut, Wochen-

7 Prayas Abhinav and Yashas Shetty klauser, Bed By Night, Krzysztof Wodiczko, tions of the terrain and the encounters they MichaelRakowitz, Ashok Sukumaran use ind there.” (Deinitions, The Situationist In- interesting “public” approaches. I will de- ternational, 1958) scribe some works by these artists later in the paper. They were interested in the “speciic effects of the geographical environment (whether consciously organized or not) on the emotions and behaviour of individuals.” Broadly 4. Dreaming Up Spaces this process was called “psychogeography” by the SI. The Situationist International (SI) was a group of artists,ilmmakers, writers and oth- In Another City for Another Life, Constant ers active mostly in Paris from 195x-197x. describe the city as they imagined it. They have inluenced the way artists, archi- “[We] envisage covered cities in which tects, writers and othersimagine and narrate the layout of roads and separate buildings their cities. Words like psychogeography, will be replaced by a continuous spatial derive,detourement, unitary urbanism have construction elevated above the ground, become a part of the vocabulary used to talk including clusters of dwellings as well as of cities. public spaces [...]. Since all trafic, in the The approach called unitary urbanism pro- functional sense of the term, will pass on the posed a “combined use of arts and techniques ground level below or on overhead terraces, as means contributing to the construction of streets can be eliminated. The multitude of a uniied milieu in dynamic relation with different traversable spaces of which the city experiments in behaviour.”(Deinitions, The is composed will form a complex and vast Situationist International, 1958) social space.” (In Another City For Another Life, Constant, 1961) They held the position that contemporary city-planning has made people blind to “a Some urban interventions by artists and living critique of this manipulation of cit- others, which re-imagine cities in radical ies and their inhabitants, a critique fuelled and sensitive ways are described below. by all the tensions of everyday life. A liv- The Space Hijackers: The Space Hijack- ing critique means setting up bases for an ers (TSH) describe themselves as anarchists, experimental life where people can come “[...] we oppose the hierarchy that is put together to create their own lives on terrains upon us by Architects, Planners and own- equipped to their ends.” (Basic Program of ers of space. Through the events that we the Bureau of Unitary Urbanism, Kotanyi hold and the objects that we produce we and Vaneigem, 1961) are attempting to corrupt the culture of ar- For them being sensitive to spaces, listening chitecture, and destroy the hierarchies that to what the city had to say was very impor- exist.”(Website, The Space Hijackers) tant. They practised a form of walking / wan- Some of their notable projects have been: dering around the city called a “derive.” Circle Line Party: “On the 10th March “In a derive one or more persons during 1999, the Space Hijackers held our irst ma- a certain period drop their relations, their jor event. This involved the Hijacking of a work and leisure activities, and all their oth- London Underground Circle Line Train, for er usual motives for movement and action, the purpose of turning it into a moving dis- and let themselves be drawn by the attrac- 8 City Spinning co.” the media to pressurize the city council in supporting the long-term costs of the proj- “ [...] Around 150 people attended the ect (like salaries of doctors etc.) and so were event, not including the passengers who able to see their intervention evolve into a happened to be on, or get on the train. All of stable programme which the homeless in whom were given free Vodka, Tequila, and the area could beneit from. Sweets.” Ashok Sukumaran: An architect and artist “The point of the event was to completely living in Mumbai. Some of his projects: disrupt the way in which the train works in terms of codes of conduct. We aimed to de- Glow Positioning System: “A 1200-foot stroy any ring of lights encircles the General Post Of- ice intersection in Fort, Mumbai. [...] Our previous ideas as to how to operate within lights travel between buildings, across roads a train, and what a train is used for. By hav- and onto trees and lampposts, forming an ing a party we wanted to corrupt peoples image-scape that is starkly visible at night. future experience of the Circle Line, as the A hand-crank mounted on the pavement memory of the party will recur each time provides a way for the audience to “scroll” they use the train.” (Website, The Space Hi- this landscape. It allows the physical length jackers, 1999) of the view to become a chronological one- to be viewed at a speed determined by the Guerilla Benching: “Where have all our user. The ring responds to panoramic desire, public benches gone?”Disturbed about the age-old search for an image to immerse the Camden council removing most of the ourselves in.” (Website, Sukumaran, 2005) benches from the area and converting the bus-stops in the area to non-seating shades, “There are many ways to “locate” oneself TSH installed two benches in the area. within the city. [...][one] way is to move Public benches are used often by children, within the streets themselves; to awaken the the elderly and the homeless and TSH be- more proximate senses, to touch the city it- lieves that “The basic plan [behind remov- self. In Glow Positioning System, a different ing the benches] seems to be to move on kind of travel takes place. This is an interior undesirables and homeless people away as voyage, a circular tourism... of a place many they don’t it in with the aesthetics of the of us know.” (Website, Sukumaran, 2005) area.”(Website, The Space Hijackers, 2006) Two Poles: Small bulbs strung to lines Wochenklauser: The group of artists de- connected two light-poles between two scribes its practise as “develop[ing] concrete bus-stands on Carter Road (a locality in proposals aimed at small, but nevertheless Bandra,Mumbai). At both ends of the line effective improvements to socio-political of lights there was a pole-mounted switch, deiciencies.” (Website,Wochenklauser) pressing which triggered a line of lights emerging from the pole. Children and adults One of their projects: chose to lash these “pixel” length signals from one pole to the other. After a point the Medical care for homeless people: Being children igured out a way of blocking the aware of the problem that the homeless in other pole from lashing a signal The project Vienna (Austria) didn’t have any reliable became a dynamic and playful medium for access to primary health care, the group inter-personal expression. pooled donations lots of small sponsors for setting up a mobile medical van. They used “a small work, which deals explicitly, and

9 Prayas Abhinav and Yashas Shetty perhaps literally with ideas of distance, in- “Proverbially the problems are pushed to a sulation and the act of refusal, o rblockage.” side and whenever possible removed entire- (Website, Sukumaran, 2007) ly. the focus of the interest is on the city as a product.” (A Material That Never Comes To Rest, Haydn,2006) 5. Autonomy, Anonymity and City-dwellers end up being mere specta- tors of the “spectacle,” with no say in how Public Spaces their city shapes. Their participation is either not considered their right, not considered 5.1 Participation in the Urban priority enough, or worst it is assumed that they are not qualiied to contribute to the Dialogue and the Autonomy dialogue. Individuals conscious of this ex- of PublicAction clusion express themselves through grafiti and others forms of “urban improvement.” The municipality plans the content and nature of public spaces, with inputs drawn The possibility of questioning programmes from administrative departments, archi- – that is, to open up new, different and bet- tecture irms or ssponsors. This process inter ones – characterizes the democratic city. volves numerous behavioural assumptions Temporality contains the essence of democ- about what people do in cities, where they racy. (Haydn,2006) go, what they prefer and what they want. The artist is not a special kind of man, “At their best, public spaces act like a self- but every man is a special kind of art- organising public service; just as hospitals ist (Transformation of Nature in Art, A. and schools provide a shared resource to K.Coomaraswamy, 1934) improve people’s quality of life, public spaces form a shared spatial resource from There have been many changes in the world which experiences and value are created around us in the last ten years. Changes in in ways that are not possible in our private the way information, opinions and knowl- lives alone.” (People Make Places:Growing edge is published, accessed and distributed The Public Life of Cities, Demos, 2005) in society.

Although the importance of the nature of We live in an age called “the age of the a city’s public spaces in the life of citizens creative amateur” by many. Unlike the is commonly accepted and acknowledged, .com boom (1999 -9999) the present Inter- there is no effort for public engagement on net boom (also called web 2.0) is fuelled by the part of the municipalities. user-generated content. Much of this content is licensed under an open-content li- “Town-planners and architects still tend to cense (from the creative commons family of think in terms of the four functions of the city licenses) and is freely usable and modiiable as deined by Le Corbusier in 1933: living, by anyone under conditions deined by the working, trafic and recreation. This over- author. simpliication relects opportunism rather than insight into and appreciation of what Free Culture a book by Lawrence Les- people actually want today, with the result sig (Stanford University Law Professor and that the city is rapidly becoming obsolete.” founder of the Creative Commons project) (New Urbanism, Constant, 1966) gave thrust and momentum to the remix or mash up culture, a practise of creating works

10 City Spinning based on multiple existing works to draw tween the relationships between these two new meanings and new contexts or state- players, due to the failure of existing rela- ments. Building upon existing work is an tionships to come up with successful prod- established traditional (as described in Free ucts. Culture) which modern copyright laws have tried to impede. Using one of the Creative The .com boom (1995-2000), a phe- Commons licenses, creators can be explicit nomenon which saw the rapid rise and about the freedoms they allow their uses/authen subsequent fall of the value of Inter- dience on their work so that unintentionally net companies is often seen in the light of all the restrictions of the copyright law are the relationship between “moderators” (or not assumed to apply to their work. This has producers)and “users” which existed at the been seen to create vibrant platforms of us- time. Internet consumers were looked at as er-created content on the web, notable plat- passive consumers of content largely pro- forms are Jamendo, Flickr, Wikipedia etc. duced by professionals hired by companies. As highlighted above, besides constraining In the early days of the Internet, the po- the growth of individual projects, this led tential growth of cyberspace was thought to only marginal contributions of any kind to be impeded by the huge cost of creating from the users. So besides content, even the content. With the vindication of that con- applications and the software was designed cern in recent years it has been understood with numerous assumptions about the tech- that there are numerous motivations for nological capacity, time and the perceptions people to create and share their creations. of users. No effort was made to get users And commercial or professional gain is not to communicate what features or design- the only motivation. Socialization, inding elements they preferred. So, the irst boom an audience, bonding, the cathartic / heal- saw the failure of Internet businesses on the ing power of telling stories, belonging and count of having sparse content, unfamiliar numerous other motivations drive people to and dificult-to-use interfaces, bandwidth- share their work on the web, under open or intensive technologies (remember the time closed licenses. was before broadband was as popular as it is today) and lack of features which were a With the rise in prominence and the pop- priority for the users. ularization of such networks,a dynamic bottoms-up ield condition is at play in our In the present model of the city and the way lives. Cities being hubs and nodes for the it takes shape, the relationship between the low of capital, labour and material goods “moderators” and the “users” can be seen to as well as information and cultural goods, be in a similar lux. We have seen the expen- this new ield conditions leads to the pos- sive glitches which the “one-sided deafness” sibility of looking at the city as an “informa- in this relationship is producing. In this re- tion space,” as another node in the global lationship again the user, that is the citizen networks which facilitate the low of signs or the city-dweller here, is again seen as a and symbols. passive participant with noting substantial to contribute to the process of the shaping As an “information space,” it be- of the city. In a democracy, voting is thought comes interesting to draw some paral- to be the ultimate act of participation for the lels between the relations between the citizens, but it is anything but that. Voting “moderators”(municipalities and the plan- in any kind of elections or referendum be- ners) and the “users.” The Internet and the comes a game of polarization and coercion software world saw a partial opening-up be- by the majority, and not a process of accom-

11 Prayas Abhinav and Yashas Shetty modation, response and discussion. Zone, Hakim Bey, 1991)

Lately in what is sometimes called the These spontaneous expressions of claims “web 2.0” the Internet has the emergence of could also be looked at from the perspec- “the permanent beta,” or the ininitely iterative of what Hakim Bey (pseudonym of Peter tive software development model in which Lamborn Wilson) user feedback, feature-request,user submis- sion of bugs and user analytics is the ma- describes as the Temporary Autonomous jor thrust. The “permanent beta” allows de- Zone (TAZ). He describes how throughout velopment teams to be continually open to history individuals and groups have been user demands and requests and preferences able to withdraw from the world of struc- by changing their development paradigm. tures, hierarchies and control. From pirate Some have called this new paradigm as “ag- utopias to parties to insurgencies to spaces ile” or “extreme programming” as opposed on the Internet Hakim Bey gives out numer- the the “waterfall development” model. In ous examples and pointers in the essay. The the latter the value of the project is analysed tactic of the TAZ is differentiated as there is only at the end of the a series of rigid steps a potential to experience it in the here and whereas in the former it is a more dynamic now as opposed to the revolution with a and continual process. promise of the “utopia” in the future.

This paper looks at the possibility of some- “[...] life is presented as an immense accu- thing akin to the “iterative city,” a city con- mulation of spectacles. Everything that was tinually responsive to the collective dynamic directly lived has receded into a representa- of the needs, demands, requests and prefer- tion.” (Chapter 1, The Society of the Spec- ences of its users. tacle, GuyDebord, 1967)

Artists and activists do temporary interven- This world of spectacle and representation tions of all kinds (some are described in this can understand/see only entities deined in paper). Some of these interventions are done terms of the spectacle. All else is invisible. with permission and by invitation and some So a TAZ can be really invisible to the State are done either way without any kind of per- as there are no points of intersection and ex- mission. These small, spontaneous actions ist for varied periods. (Bey, 1991) are free expressions of temporary claims over public spaces. These temporary claims The tactic of the TAZ is a process of seek- and their expressions demonstrate different“ ing “cracks and vacancies” in the suppos- concepts for the use of the city.” edly omnipresent, omnipotent State with its many mechanisms for surveillance and con- The imagined temporary spaces create so- trol of experience. cial knowledge and offer opportunities for active participation, rather than temporary “We are looking for “spaces” (geographic, spaces for an event-based leisure society. social, cultural,imaginal) with potential to (Haydn, 2006) lower as autonomous zones--and we are looking for times in which these spaces are These interventions also bring “utopian sit- relatively open,either through neglect on uations” into the realm of the tangible real- the part of the State or because they have ity even though for a limited time. somehow escaped notice by the mapmak- ers, or for whatever reason. Psychotopology “[...] the TAZ is in some sense a tactic of is the art of dowsing for potential TAZs.” disappearance.” (Temporary Autonomous (Bey, 1991)

12 City Spinning

The tactic of the TAZ has been interpreted never meet any of the strangers around us and cited by many including The Cacopho- ever again. One could easily “get lost in the ny Society and many in the early 1990s rave crowd”. This is true at least for unfamiliar or culture. The Cacophony Society (a loose alien neighbourhoods. But with surveillance collective of artists,pranksters, performers) by video cameras and I-card now being very organized trips to “the zone” called “trip common even in Indian cities,that anonym- to the zone” or “zone trip” or “ield trips to ity is being lost and is being replaced by a the fringe.” In 1990 it popularized and gave perpetual self-consciousness which is not birth to (as zone trip # 4) the annual festival very helpful for free self-expression or inter- form of a human efigy burning event held mingling with other people. at the Baker Beach (SF,USA) from 1986-89. This festival became famous as The Burning What many have attempt to do is attempt Man festival and the zone became known to take on an avatar or an alias and use it as as The Black Rock City. The Black Rock City much as possible. But this approach creates is a temporary city which comes up across a schizophrenic rift in the juggling game of the six-day festival every year and follows managing multiple identities: one on the ID, the philosophy of “leave no trace,”[glossary] another which is assumed, another which and attempts to establish and demonstrate one carries over etc, a space forfree-expression, sharing and self- reliance. (Wikipedia and The Burning Man In the “paranoid city” anonymity is auto- website) matically associated with danger, shadiness and illicitness. Experiencing autonomy of The festival has supported and popular- whatever measure without anonymity or ized an art form that is, “immediately avail- pseudonymity poses dificulties for many able to large numbers of people.” Art that people. is“ collaborative and it breaks down barriers between audience and art work. It’s based upon participation — it’s radically interactive —and it contemplates the facts of life.” Larry Harvey’s (the founder of the Burning Man festival) comments also strongly reso- 6. Collective Reinterpretation nate with what Scott McQuire has observed of the Ambient Possibilities of and proposed earlier about art in public spaces of the “media city.” PublicSpaces 6.1 Earlier Projects 5.2 Anonymity and Public In 2006 I worked on a short ilm called, “A Place To Stay.” The ilm tried to map the kids Spaces of temporary sleeping places the homeless in Mumbai are able to work out. I found it “Public space protects us from an excess of hard to believe that everyone slept on the intimacy. [it] is a space of great anonymity.” street, or on the railway station, I was sure (Haydn, 2006) that there existed lots of safe but secret en- There was a common perception that we claves that homeless people would be us- can get away with any action,behaviour ing. The idea wasn’t to get to know of the in public, because no one recognizes us spaces and then or knows us and most probably we will

13 Prayas Abhinav and Yashas Shetty

reveal them but just to understand how public garden or the neighbourhood coffee in dense and strictly-regimented cities like shop from their mobile phone or computer. Mumbai people still seek out spaces they When people start carrying more of their need. lives into the outdoors, they will deinitely want to conigure outdoors to their taste and Not everyone uses cities the way they are preference. At that point a kind of collective planned to be used and the organic growth chemistry will need to be evolve as there of cities provides important insights into the will be multiple demands from individual needs of the people using them and living in spaces. them. The dynamism of cities emerges from the fact that there so many concurrent fac- City-based chapters of the CitySpinning da- tors at play that individuals often feel so tabase would allow a space for speculation small an insigniicant that they are able to and dreaming about how different neigh- be spontaneous and be as they choose. bourhoods should shape. Interventions are called spins at CitySpinning. The city is a process. (Castells, 1996) “Cities are like urban laboratories – they solve their own problems of growth.” The Creative City In The Third Millennium, Peter 6.2 CitySpinning Hall, 2005.

Temporary uses can be understood as the demand [of the city]itself. (Haydn, 2006) 6.3 Ongoing Spins CitySpinning is an effort to synthesize an open decentralized network for sharing Though I don’t have a crew yet, I have start- ideas about how public spaces around us ed to work on some spins across the last few could be used. It would be an open database months. The crew I am trying to put together of proposals for different urban regions. The would have a mix of people with interests in network would offer legal and networking wood-work, gardening,electronics, physical tools to crews to start collaboratively work computing, activism etc. The spins in-prog- on the proposals they ind interesting. ress are:

The database of proposals would be like Common Food (CF): CF is an effort to seed a massive Central VersioningS ystem (CVS) a community of urban farmers. I plan to use of the source-code of the city. Available for public spaces, unused spaces, street-side compiling and executing by any crew which spaces, gardens of volunteers, spaces under feels excited by it. lyovers and bridges to grow easy-to-cook and nutritive vegetables. The project will “Somebody inds the problem, and some- have a map-based web-interface which anybody else understands it. ”Linus Trovoids. one can navigate to understand the range (As quoted in The Cathedral and the Bazaar, and location of the crop and to add or log Raymond, 2000) some now plantation effort. The idea is to compile maps of regular and stable crops With Wii and mobile Internet access be- in print form and work with organizations coming more and more common in the out- to make the maps available to the range of doors, a kind of merger of indoors and out- migrant and temporary labour force and the doors in happening. People sit and blog or homeless in Bangalore (initially). The objec- run their businesses from the comfort of the

14 City Spinning tive is to create a social and communal safe- enough? ty-net of food in cities so that in our modern cities of abundance and afluence, starva- 6.4 Process tion and malnutrition won’t be as common as they are now. Also the “circle of concern” The web-site of the CitySpinning effort will which will evolve as a result of this commu- have a map for each chapter which can be nity will make cities less cold,unwelcoming tagged with proposals and add images, text and apathetic. etc. to their proposal to convey it more clearly and interest crews in taking them up. Know Me, Know My News: A set of bul- letin-boards around the city with the day’s Crews are diversely skilled teams with newspaper in English and Kannada pinned a wide-range of interestsincluding (but to it and a cross-translation of the headlines not limited to) art, politics, anarchy, on a sheet of paper under them. If individu- urbanism,architecture, interactivity, events, als wish to edit or add translations they can social networks). the crews takeup different do so. The objective behind this is to pro- proposals tagged on the site guided by the mote cross-cultural understanding. English dynamicinterests of the team and stage in- papers usually represent the National media terventions or spins. and the regional language papers (Kannada papers) represent the local media. Both have a different take on things happening in the city and their relative importance. 7. Conclusion

Look At The Stars: Telescopes placed on The contemporary city is in a lux. People small platforms around the city, open for living in cities today are being presented people to use for stargazing or moon watch- with an overwhelming number of choices, ing. To people who can’t pursue their inter- which seem to offer them freedom, auton- est in Astronomy by joining clubs and as- omy and self-reliance but end up making sociations, will this be of some interest? Or them mere consumers. Creating engaging is this media-saturated environment, will it situations which are simple, fun and social- come across as a mundane diversion? ly productive for them and at the same time get them involved in a mesh of wide-ranging The Muddy-hands Survey: An unused plot concerns is a worthwhile pursuit. of land in Yelahanka, Bangalore, which has degraded to become a garbage dump is the As city-dwellers. being in a situations where site for this work. An object (a bag of choco- we feel responsible,empowered, playful lates, a mobile phone, a pair of jeans) and a and concerned toward our city would be weighing machine are kept besides the plot. welcome and quite a relief from the current A board with instructional information is al- status of the individual as a disenfranchised, ready put up there. Anyone who can col- passive observer of the spectacle which the lect garbage from the plot which weighs as state chooses to churn out. much as the object placed on the weighing machine gets to keep the object. If a particular object doesn’t excite people enough to get their hands dirty for it, it will be replaced by another one. It will work as a survey to igure out what people are prepared to get their hands muddy for. What is an incentive

15 Prayas Abhinav and Yashas Shetty

References Debord, G. (1958). Theses on Cultural Revolution . Internationale Situationniste, Arlt, P. (2006). Urban Planning and Interim One(1). Use. In F. Haydn & R.Temel (Eds.), Tempo- Debord, G. (1959). Situationist Theses on rary Urban Spaces, Concepts for the Use of Trafic. Internationale Situationniste, 2(3). CitySpaces (pp. 39-46). Brikhauser. Debord, G. (1967). The Society of the Spec- Benkler, Y. (2007). The Wealth of Networks: tacle. In Deinition: Tactical Media. Re- How Social Production Transforms Markets trieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ and Freedom. Yale University Press. Tactical_mediaDemos. (2005). People Make Besser, H. (2001). Intellectual Property: The Places: Growing The Public Life of Cities. Attack on Public Spacein Cyberspace. Pro- Retrieved from http://www.demos.co.uk cessed World, 2(001), 19-27. Retrieved from http://www.gseis.ucla.edu/~howard/Papers/ Derschmidt, F. Permanent Breakfast (Art pw-public-spaces.html Project). Retrieved from http://www.perma- nentbreakfast.org Bey, H. (1991). The Temporary Autonomous Zone. Autonomedia. Godsell, S. (2004). Bus Shelter House (Art Project). Retrieved from http://www.sean- Bloom, B., Collo-Julin, S., & Fischer, M. godsell.com/ (1998). Temporary Services(Art Project). Re- trieved from http://www.temporaryservices. Hall, P. (2005). The Creative City In The Third org Millennium. In J.Verwijnen & P. Lehtovuori (Eds.), Creative Cities, Cultural Industries, Boardman, D. ORAMA Project (Art Project). Urban Development and the Information Retrieved from http://www.hz-journal.org/ Society (pp. 3659). University Of Art and n7/boardman.html Design Helsinki (UIAH). Bora, A., & Kumar, R. The ‘I FIX’ Initiative. Harvey, L. Burning Man (Festival / Tempero- Retrieved from http://pothole.pbwiki.com/ ry Autonomous Zone). Castells, M. (1996). The Information Age, Economy, Society and Culture. Oxford: Haydn, F. (2006). A Material That Never Blackwell. Comes to Rest. In F. Haydn &

Chadios, K. The urban coffee shop. Mas- R. Temel (Eds.), Temporary Urban Spaces, sachusetts Institute of Technology, Mas- Concepts for the Use of City Spaces (pp. 67- ter Of Science In Architecture Studies. 76). Brikhauser. Retrieved fromhttp://dspace.mit.edu/ handle/1721.1/33031 Heinemann, M. (2005). A Culture of Ap- propriation: Strategies of Temporary Reuse Constant. (1959). Another City for Another in East Germany. Massachusetts Institute of Life. Internationale Situationniste, Two(3). Technology, Department of Architecture.

Constant. (1966). New Urbanism. Provo, Hijackers, T. S. (1999). The Space Hijackers (9). (Artist Group). Retrieved from http://www. spacehijackers.org Coomaraswamy, A. K. (1934). Transforma- tion of Nature in Art. International, T. S. (1958). Deinitions. Inter-

16 City Spinning nationale Situationniste, (1). dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/39182

JeannÃ©e, P., & Others. (1993). Wochen- Parfyme (Artist Collective). (2000). Retrieved Klausur (Art Project). Retrieved from http:// from http://parfyme.dk www.wochenklausur.at/projekte/menu_ en.htm Pogoreutz, M. (2006). Urban Intelligence. In F. Haydn & R. Temel(Eds.), Temporary Kohoutek, R., & Kamleithner, C. (2006). Urban Spaces, Concepts for the Use of City Temporary Uses, Deregulation and Urbani- Spaces(pp. 75-80). Brikhauser. ty . In F. Haydn & R. Temel (Eds.), Temporary Urban Spaces,Concepts for the Use of City Ray, C., & Others. (2002). Conlux Festival Spaces (pp. 25-38). Brikhauser. (Psychogeography).

Kotanyi, A., & Vaneigem, R. (1961). Raymond, E. (2000). The Cathedral and the Programme Ã©lÃ©mentaire du Bazaar. Bureaud?Urbanisme Unitaire. Internation- ale Situationniste, (6). Reclaim The Streets! (Art Project). Retrieved fromhttp://rt.gn.apc.org Kowalkowski, J., Myers, T., Thomas, M., & Zerkel, M. (1996). LuckyPierre (Art Collec- Schuda, S., Schmeiser, F., & Koger, P. (2004). tive). Retrieved from http://www.luckypi- Kein Geld (ArtProject). Retrieved from http:// erre.org www.keingeld.at

Krasny, E. (2006). Spaces for Action and Sukumaran, A. (2007). Venice Biennale Part for Laughing Too. In New Editor 0 & R. Te- II: On Rafael Lozano Hemmer’s Work. 0ut. mel (Eds.), Temporary Urban Spaces, Con- in. Retrieved from http://0ut.in/news.php cepts for the Use of City Spaces (pp. 81-96). Temel, R. (2006). The Temporary in The City. Brikhauser. In F. Haydn & R. Temel(Eds.), Temporary Ur- Lage, C. (2004). Kraut (Art Project). Re- ban Spaces, Concepts for the Use of City trieved from Spaces(pp. 55-66). Brikhauser. http://anschlaege.de/krautLin, C. (2005). The Yes Men (Artist Group). (1999). Re- Temporary Shelter for the Homeless. Massa- trieved from http://www.theyesmen.org/ chusettsInstitute of Technology, Department Tobier, N. (1994). Everyday Places (Art Proj- of Mechanical Engineering. ect). Retrieved from http://www.everyday- McQuire, S. (2006). The Politics of Public places.com Space In The Media City. First Monday, (Spe- Townsend, A. M. Wired / unwired : the ur- cial Issue #4). Retrieved fromhttp://irstmon- ban geography of digital networks. Massa- day.org/issues/special11_2/mcquire/index. chusetts Institute of Technology, Department html of Urban Studies and Planning. Retrieved Menon, P. (2005). The Two Bangalores. from Frontline, Volume 22(Issue 22). http://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/30041 Murthy, R. S. (2005). Street media : ambient Verwijnen, J. (2005). The Creative City’s messages in an urban space. Massachusetts New Field Condition: Can Urban Innova- Institute of Technology, Comparative Me- tion and Creativity Overcome Beurocracy dia Studies Program. Retrieved fromhttp:// 17 Prayas Abhinav and Yashas Shetty and Technocracy?In J. Verwijnen & P. Leh- tovuori (Eds.), (pp. 12-35). University OfArt and Design Helsinki (UIAH).

Wodiczko, K. Homeless Vehicles (Art Proj- ect). Retrieved from http://web.mit.edu/vap/ people/faculty/faculty_wodiczko.html

Biographies

Prayas Abhinav is post-graduate student at the Centre for Experimental Media Arts (CEMA) at Srishti School of Art, Design and Technology, Bangalore. He has been a ilm- maker (documentaries, shorts), communications consultant, a web strategist, copy- writer, photographer, painter and publisher. He has worked with organizations like Ox- fam, Centre for Media Studies, CHETNA and Darpana Academy. He helped in the launch of the Creative Commons India project in January 2007. He was a Sarai fellow in 2005 and a part of the design business incubator at NID in 2004. Much of his work is docu- mented at http://prayas.in.

Yashas Shetty is a member of the faculty at the Center for Experimental Media Arts(CEMA) at Srishti School of Art, Design and Technology. His work focuses on the intersections of Art, Science and Technology. Main Text FrameMain Text FrameMain Text FrameMain Text Frame

18 City Spinning

19 My Kind of Town: a study in (re)presenting the city Robert Brown School of Architecture and Design, University of Plymouth

Introduction They also had to produce a physical representation which relected this discussion. Site representations propose working hy- potheses for comprehending and testing The project’s intention was to prompt stu- working deinitions of urban site…Site rep- dents to frame questions about their own resentation is not a matter of getting a real- attitudes towards the idea of the city as a ity right as much as a matter of construct- structure and a lived environment. The proj- ing forms of knowledge that can cope with ect’s intention also was to test the means by multiple realities. In this sense, site draw- which we represent these considerations. It ings, models, and discourses are never setting this agenda, the project recognised mere second-order re-descriptions of some (and implicitly tested) Kahn’s delineation pre-existing condition as much as they are of site representation; i.e., there is no au- evidence of thought in formation, a thought thoritative deinition or depiction of site, but about what the urban site might be. (Kahn rather that any such representation is less a 2005, 288-289) inalised description and more a process of making sense of the site. Implicit in this ar- In My Kind of Town, a recent project run gument is that the representation of site by at the University of Plymouth, postgraduate architects is constructed; accordingly, stu- architecture students were asked to explore dents were encouraged to explore and test the construct of the city, considering how it how they deined and depicted site, experi- is structured (i.e., the elements which deine menting with multiple interpretations and the city physically and how we map it men- possible techniques for its representation. tally) and how it is inhabited (i.e., the nature of the life which takes place in it and that This paper will examine the outcomes of we associate with it). Students began by se- this project, irstly by reviewing several stu- lecting a town or city which they knew well. dents’ work and exploring the meanings and Drawing upon the example of the article My implications their work raised singularly. It Kind of Town that appears as a standard fea- will then take a more broadened view to ture in Architecture Today magazine, they consider what their work revealed in terms generated a written text articulating what it of a shared understanding of place, the pos- was they liked about the town/city in terms sibilities for its representation and how their of inhabitation, the structure of the town/ interpretation of place is informed by prior city, and the relationship between the two. experience. It will then briely discuss the

20 Robert Brown questions their work raised. haptic qualities. Both text and model tan- talise, making explicit our innate desire to engage with the world through touch. Ra- chael’s model hints at the nature of what she Measured Responses found in Dubrovnik; a number of jewel-like pieces are contained within a box perforated The ritually polished marble-paved squares with small openings, their tactile qualities glide you through the heart of this small prompting an urge to caress them. Yet this town…Narrow steep cobbled streets feed container limits what we can see and pro- off the linear main promenade drawing you hibits us from completing the picture; only into a maze of rich vibrant lanes…High by opening the box and touching the pieces overhead the tall streets are decorated with directly can we know them intimately. washing hung up out of the timber louvered windows, small gardens squeezed onto aged Rachael’s representation evokes Pallasmaa’s window sills and fragile iron balconies… discussion of engaging with the ‘eyes of our Dubrovnik is a far more intricate town than skin’ (Pallasmaa 2000). Such engagement it irst appears, compiling both physical and is presented as more heightened and sen- metaphorical layers of history, culture, ma- suous than mere sight, affording a ‘…sense terials, authenticity, intimacy and density… of interiority and tactile intimacy.’ (Ibid, 80) Pallasmaa further suggests that ‘…haptic and multi-sensory architecture makes the experience of time healing and pleasurable. Dubrovnik: Rachael Browne This architecture does not struggle against time, it concretizes the course of time and makes it acceptable. It seeks to accommodate rather than impress…’ (ibid) Rachael’s discussion of the fragility of elements, of the patina acquired through age and inhabitation, recognises change and age as things to be celebrated for giving richness to a place, and not merely as obstacles in a vain attempt to create a timeless architecture.

…the thick smell of lavender which illed the humid air, interspersed with scents of pine, even simply feeling of warm air rushing through the open window of a car and across my skin…We would enter the centre through an stone arched gateway which leads along a cobbled street past stalls selling melons and olives, subtly illing the air with familiar scents and carefully adapting the grey/brown stone into subtle fruity blends…Every week the “Place aux Herbes” is illed with tiers of market stalls selling an- In her representation of Dubrovnik, Ra- tiques, artwork and herbs, which pack the chael relishes in the richness of the place, air with pleasurable but delicate musky and not only in its visual sense but equally in its herbal scents, which appear to have em-

21 My Kind of Town bedded themselves within the walls of the city frowns on such narrow logic, instead surrounding buildings tinting the walls with it presents choice, the structure rejects the hints of colour…the familiarity of the subtle single path, always twisting and turning… smells, ine changes in colour and varying So much happens here; so much that is scales, provide the visitor with knowledge reminiscent of a liquid state. Everything of place. This faintly and unintentionally has a low; if you pause, the energy of the maps the town, which at irst glance ap- city passes you by in waves. Currents ebb pears to be a fusion of unidentiiable spaces, and tides ascend and recede in ways which formed from the negative of one solid mass. are highly relective of the seasonal changes Yet subconsciously it deines itself clearly, which here carry so much value. providing knowledge and awareness of location through a journey of understanding and belonging. Tokyo – Jim Morris

Uzes: Nick Lambert

Nick’s discussion of Uzes in France also recalls Pallasmaa’s arguments for a multi- sensory architecture, considering the sense of smell and even taste as they combine with both the visual and the tactile. Nick’s text encourages us to make closer physical contact, offering up a sensual experience that sight alone cannot offer. He echoes Pal- lasmaa’s arguments about the strength of smell to trigger our memory and imagination (1994, 32) and that ‘…certain colours as well as delicate details evoke oral sensations.’ (ibid, 37)

In his model a series of carved pieces of wood of varying colours are set within a frame. Each piece has its own hardness, texture and scent, inherently derived from the different woods used, with the roundness Jim’s model presents a seemingly ininite of the edges suggesting that they have been number of needle-thin vertical elements set rubbed over time by others before us. Nick’s upon a plane; there is no immediately ap- model encourages us to make closer physi- parent relationship between these vertices, cal contact; it asks us to look with our eyes, but rather only loose clusters that may or but also entices our memories and imagina- may not be groupings. They have a nebulous tion through touch, smell and even the sug- quality – one’s eye cannot easily focus onto gestion of taste. one, but rather drifts between them looking for something to latch onto. Yet the more The city is a lood of humanity. It splashes that one wanders visually, the more one is upon the topography like the ripples of a engaged by this sense of movement. lake…There is no A to B in this place. The

22 Robert Brown

Jim’s text is equally elusive; it hints, it en- lect, but as a fundamental and trustworthy tices, without explicitly deining the place part of what it means to be human.’ (Tanaka in the concrete terms that we might expect. and Tanaka 1998, 187) Jim’s text and mod- It creates a place not through deining its el communicates not only something of physical structure, but rather through the his own personal experience of Tokyo, but emotional and physical feelings of move- equally reveals local sensibilities towards ment and initial instability felt in the place. place while challenging us to reconsider our own existing attitudes. Inherent in Jim’s discussion is the sense of proprioception – that is, a sense of one’s sur- An intimate respect for the delicacy of land- roundings in relation to one’s own body. Our scape and the local people’s contingent rela- movements and spatial location, whether tionship to place has enriched their culture front or back, up or down, position us, af- with a sense of identity and citizenship, re- fording us an awareness of the three-dimen- spect and responsibility that is miraculously sional space exterior to our body. Our body still alive and vibrant…The physical discon- thus becomes charged as we physically and nection of the cityscape from the cultivated psychologically take possession of the envi- surrounding landscape reinforces the strong ronment. The valuing of the body, and the cultural deinitions and distinctions of the emotional-psychological experience of the local people to these spaces. Nature is not three-dimensional world this engenders, is manifest as symbols of countryside used in reminiscent of Bloomer and Moore’s discus- parks to make the cityscape more bearable, sion of the body and spatial perception: or as a timeless painting of countryside, but is understood innately in seasonality, food The heart of the distinction we are making and its cultivation. Landscape is instinctive- between the “feeling” of space developed ly linked to the people’s place and identity. by the whole body and the objective space described through mathematical and graphic measurement is that objective space does not require the existence of a centreplace. Italian hill towns – Richard Body spatiality, by contrast, refers to an internal world which is not only distinct from Bower and within an external world, but which is centred around “landmarks” and bodily Richard’s discussion explores a symbi- memories that relect a lifetime of events en- otic relationship between landscape and countered outside the psychic body bound- settlement and the way that the inhabitants ary.(1977, 45) identify with their environment, expressed and celebrated daily through rituals of the It is itting that Jim’s representation of To- growing, gathering, selling, preparation kyo evokes a discussion of body awareness; and eating of food. His text reminds us of though in the West we are more preoccu- Norberg-Schulz’ discourse on the phenom- pied with visual engagement, in Asia there enology of place, which argues that place has long been a valuing of learning through should not be understood only in terms of the body. While we privilege the eyes and the settlement itself, but concurrently with intellectual judgements based on this sense, landscape. (Norberg-Schulz 1980, 11) Rich- in Asia, philosophical tradition gives em- ard’s discussion recalls Norberg-Schulz’s phasis to the body and feeling. Indeed, the (ibid, 19) emphasis on man understand- human body is not understood as something ing his place in the world not only through that ‘…distorts the judgement of the intel- orienting himself but also more critically through identifying with his environment, to 23 My Kind of Town know not only where he is but also how he down, metaphorically feeding into a centre is. as gathering place, where again vertical elements (the same ones coming through from Richard’s discussion is also reminiscent of the other side) have seemingly collected. Girardet’s concerns over the abandonment These vertical elements are moveable, al- of traditional ways of life and the adopting lowing a direct relationship between the two of (universal) urban culture. In applaud- sides – pushing in or pulling out the dowels ing the direct and visceral relationship the on one side correspondingly lengthens or inhabitants of these places have with their shortens the same dowel on the other side. milieu, he argues against the disconnected metabolic relationship cities today have Richard’s work recognises the reciprocity with the environment that supports them, inherent in the environment. It is also a re- and instead for an indigenous culture ‘…de- minder of the need for balance; as we move ined by sustainable adaptation to their lo- ever towards an increasingly urbanised cal environment.’ (Giradet 2000, 17) world, do we continue with the out-of-balanced consumption-oriented model into Richard’s model is relective of the land- which our urban centres are increasingly scape - settlement relationship he advocates, evolving, or do we consider models that are in which he sets up a dialectic between two based on a more benign symbiotic relation- sides of his model. One side seems a literal ship between mankind and nature? representation of an Italian hill town, with contours stepping up to a cluster of vertical dowels in contrast to the surrounding horizontal lines. The other side presents some- Shared Themes thing of a reverse, with contours stepping Viewed collectively, the work represented here (along with their colleagues’ work not shown) raised a number of shared themes. This is despite the purposefully open-ended- ness of the project, which was intended to prompt work of a discursive nature and thus expose a number of attitudes towards the city and ways of representing it. What sur- faced however, perhaps not unsurprisingly given some common experiences and values between them (e.g., they had all chosen to study at Plymouth because of its particular ethos), were some very consistent and challenging attitudes which resonated across individual discussions. These included a challenging of more conventional models of urbanism, a movement away from more traditional techniques of representation, and a valuing of memory and prior experience.

‘Weak Urbanism’

24 Robert Brown

Through their text and models (and the dis- of representation that date back over several course these recall), the students positioned hundred years. While these conventions are an alternative to more conventional para- useful as tools for study and communication, digms of an object-oriented architecture. they are suspect in their inherent emphasis In stark contrast to a visually-biased per- upon architecture as visual art object; draw- spective, the students moved beyond such ing techniques (e.g., plan) typically utilised a mono-dimensionality to consider and to represent architecture convey this inher- discuss place through a broader sensory en- ent bias. (Bloomer and Moore 1977, 18) gagement. Their discussion is not panoptic, iconic, overly-formalised or overly-abstract- In contrast, the students’ work relies not so ed as one might expect from much current much on a literal representation, but rather architectural rhetoric, but rather multi-sen- their meaning is communicated more sub- sual, personal, and more intimate. liminally, through the suggested, the im- plied and/or the evoked. Their work beneits In positing this, the students’ discussion from not trying to recreate an actual city or echoes Dovey (1993) and others’ arguments speciic place in its formal structure, but for ‘lived space’ over ‘geometric space’. This instead through evincing something of its discussion is also relective of what has been emotional and tactile experience, notably proffered as ‘weak urbanism’. In referring to through prompting us to engage with their this Pallasmaa (2000, 82) contends that the work not just visually but instead multi-sen- urban design principles which have tended sually. Through their writing and physical to predominate are based on strong strate- representation, they do not state explicitly gies and form, which reinforce the primacy and thus limit our engagement; rather they of the eye. In opposition, weak urbanism refer and allude to, triggering our memory gives rise to ‘…the haptic townscape of inti- and imagination, transporting us to a place macy and participation.’ (ibid) In their own and time in our experience. Moreover, their work the students privilege the irst-hand ex- representations challenge us to engage with perience of the inhabitant accreted through senses other than just the visual, notably the time and interaction, over the distant and haptic. They encourage us to break down abstracted conceptions of the designer or the metaphorical wall that exists between a planner. While they value the iconic land- drawing and us, which limits us from devel- mark and highly-structured order immedi- oping a greater understanding of the experi- ately perceived, they value even more cities ence of what that drawing is depicting. which open up a greater sense of themselves only through exploration and discovery of the hidden and fragmented.

Memory and Experience Representation A inal consideration raised by the stu- The students’ work suggests possibilities dents’ work is the proposition that through for a broader sensory representation of spa- there may be multiple realities of place, our tial experience. In the ways that they have engagement with it is conditioned a priori. developed to represent their understand- Echoing Tuan’s (1974, 31) argument that we ing of place, they are implicitly recognis- interpret environments through prior expe- ing shortcomings of our received conven- rience, their work extends and articulates tions of communication – inherited means themes already revealed through previous

25 My Kind of Town work, and/or draws upon their personal ex- dents in this project raise some interesting perience. Whether in Rachael’s longstand- possibilities about urbanism and multimod- ing interest in materiality and collage, Nick’s al experience. Central to the students’ work agrarian upbringing, Jim’s engagement with is what it suggests about how they experi- spatial awareness, or Richard’s on-going ence, relate to and interpret the city. In con- work with landscape, each relects that they trast to the contention that a visual emphasis have brought with them their existing con- typically guides the planning and represen- cerns, beliefs and values. Their work sug- tation of urban space, their work speaks of gests our a priori attitudes and experiences a multi-sensory engagement grounded in a inform how and with what we choose to en- sense of inhabitation, and relects a much gage when encountering a place, and how broader construct of the city than is depict- we interpret the meaning of that place. ed in much current rhetoric. Yet it also raises further questions. The role of memory in this is crucial; throughout our lives we engage with new The construct of weak urbanism prompts places and new experiences. With each images of a more humane townscape, fos- encounter, and through attrition over time, tered around interaction between both in- we discard some as no longer meaningful habitants and between people and place, or signiicant, while others we (re)synthe- enabled by a more intimate and sensual sise into our developing world view. These environment. Yet what validity does a mod- memories become a frame of reference by el which cites the medieval townscape as which we engage with the world. No mat- reference point have in the post-industrial ter how tantalising the notion of an innocent landscape of our cities in present-day Eu- eye, enabling us to encounter the world rope, much less in other parts of the world? anew free of the baggage we have brought How does such a pattern, developed in re- with us from prior experience, we need to sponse to very different cultural, economic recognise the role of memory in the experi- and social needs, begin to be adapted to ence of place. As Downing posits: 21st Century aspirations? How does it facilitate the massive shifts of people on a daily Each individual memory evolves and helps basis that many would argue are intrinsic to select perceptual phenomena to add to the contemporary life? arsenal of knowledge and meaning built over time through idiosyncratic experience The development of more multimodal and human will. A person is not simply a ta- forms of representation would be a much- bula rasa, as past conceptualizations of our welcomed development to supplement the relationship to the world suggested. As non- techniques we have inherited. Yet even a self impinges upon self, the self makes de- cursory glance at what is being produced cisions, values some experiences over oth- in practice and architectural education evi- ers, reconstructs experience, and produces dences architecture’s visual bias. The devel- a “will” that acts upon the non-self world in opment of computer-based graphics that has a creative and ongoing interaction. (2000, enabled the production of very sophisticat- 14) ed images, not to mention the allure of virtual reality-based experience of space, only further reinforce this, posing a challenge for experimentation with and development of Concluding Thoughts more multi-sensory forms of representation.

The shared themes revealed by the stu- These are questions that cannot be an-

26 Robert Brown swered within the context of this paper. In- 27-37). Architecture and Urbanism Special deed, this paper and the work underlying it Issue. are merely some early steps forward; and as future work strives to address these ques- Pallasmaa, J. (2000) Hapticity and time – tions, it will reveal even further questions Notes on fragile architecture. Architectural to be pursued. The seeming evasiveness of Review, May, 78 – 84. this pursuit is however not quixotic; to infer from Kahn (2005), the working, testing and Pallasmaa, J. (2005) The eyes of the skin – discourse involved are in essence aimed not architecture and the senses. Chicester: Wi- at producing a singular reality, but rather are ley Academy. intended to enable thought in formation. Tanaka, S. and Tanaka, S. (1998) The tea ceremony. Tokyo: Kodansha.

Tuan, Y.-F. (1974) Topophilia – A study of References environmental perception, attitudes, and values. Englewood Cliffs: Prentice-Hall. Bloomer, K. and Moore, C. (1977) Body, Memory and Architecture. New Haven: Yale Varnelis, Kazys (1998) The Education of University Press. the Innocent Eye. Journal of Architectural Education. May 51 / 4, 212 – 223. Dovey, K. (1993) Putting geometry in its place: Toward a phenomenology of the design process. In D. Seamon (ed.), Dwelling, seeing and designing – Toward a phenom- Biography enological ecology (pp. 247-269). Albany: State University of New York Press. Robert Brown is a senior lecturer at the School of Architecture and Design, Univer- Downing, F. (2000) Remembrance and the sity of Plymouth. He has spent much of his design of place. College Station: Texas A & professional life working somewhere else; M University Press. i.e., as a transplanted American working on Girardet, H. (2000) Greening urban soci- housing and urban regeneration projects in ety. In W. Fox (ed.), Ethics and the built envi- London’s East End, and on community de- ronment (pp. 15 – 30). London: Routledge. velopment programmes in Africa and India. These experiences have greatly informed Kahn, A. (2005) Deining urban sites. In C. his teaching praxis and research, and are Burns and A. Kahn (eds.), Site matters (pp. relected in his interests in participatory de- 280-296). New York: Routledge. sign, architectural pedagogy and cultural and social constructs of architecture. Norberg-Schulz, C. (1980) Genius Loci – Towards a phenomenology of Architecture. New York: Rizzoli International Publica- tions.

Pallasmaa, J. (1994) An architecture of the seven senses. In S. Holl, J. Pallasmaa and A. Perez-Gomez (eds.), Questions of perception – Phenomenology of architecture (pp.

27 Drawing out Experience; Between Media & Place Vincent Canizaro University of Texas at San Antonio

Introduction point of view – one that privileges the sense of inhabitation and experience over other For architects concerned with ethics and aspects of a building’s existence such as its not merely with aesthetic novelty, who seek physical form or tectonic qualities. the realization of places where a fuller, more compassionate human life might take place, In the context of the design process a vari- that these mediating artifacts and tools be ety of media are employed to give presence appropriate is paramount. - Alberto Perez- to a phenomenon that is not entirely physi- Gomez and Louis Pelletier cal. Place and experience are phenomena that are dificult, if not impossible, to “represent” in the traditional sense of depicting the appearance of a thing. For, how does one This paper considers the role of representa- represent an “impalpable territory,” “social tion in the practice of architectural design. activities,” or the meaning of an environ- More speciically it examines the commu- ment for those that might live there? Further nicative relationship between architectural how does a designer gets an adequate sense design media and the phenomenon of place. of inhabitation through drawings, models, These two concepts occupy an uneasy part- and digital iles. The presented physical- nership when one considers the following. ity must be capable of being interpreted as First, drawings, models, and digital iles are if experienced. If not, then something else in their most obvious capacity, representa- must be occurring to enhance this sense. tions, depictions, or settings that give a vir- This paper is my attempt to bring some de- tual presence to material form. These media gree of clariication to this rich communi- tend to represent primarily the physicality cative relationship by presenting six factors of things. In contrast, the phenomenon of that have emerged within my doctoral study, place is something that is both physical and entitled Drawing Place: An Inquiry Into The non-physical, material and of the mind. In Relationship Between Architectural Design the words of the geographer Edward Relph, Media And The Conceptualization Of Place, places are “impalpable territories of social that appear to favor the communicative con- activities and meanings projected into entire ceptualization of place. assemblages of buildings and spaces.” In architecture, to talk of “place” is to consider a building or environment from a particular

28 Vincent Canizaro

1. Memorable Reference large, and even the constant reiteration of experiences in everyday spaces such as liv- Remembered place experiences have a ing rooms and ofices serve to build a de- signiicant effect on both the inspiration of signers storehouse of inhabitation.(3). By place-based design as well as upon the de- having visited and felt the spatial awe of a signer’s ability to judge and conceptualize great cathedral, a designer gains a degree of imagined or designed places.(1) bodily, tactile, and sensory experience that may in turn allow them to read a drawing The irst of these factors rests within these of that space in plan-projection. Through comments made by participants in my study: experiences embedded within our memory “the key to understanding places is our past designers develop an empathetic connectiv- place experiences;” “memorable imagery is ity described as central to place concepts. basic to architectural design;” and “experi- (4) Moreover, by having visited and drawn ences are key to one’s ability to make places.” any place my respondents and others have Each are indicative of the widespread senti- suggested that this ability was enhanced. ment that memory is key to place-making. It (5) It is important, however, as one respon- appeared in two forms: those “touchstone” dent pointed out, documentation of place memories that singularly guided one’s de- go beyond the picturesque perspectives she sign practice; and the more ubiquitous ev- termed “post-card-ology.” In its place she eryday and travel experiences that formed suggested “arrays of diagrammatic drawings the bulk of an architect’s place memory. In of these works of architecture. Only in this both cases, such memories serve as points way can you get at place qualities.” of reference to understand, interpret, and project (through design) place concepts. Lastly, this factor also suggests a subtle critique of the practice of studying archi- Some noteworthy examples are child- tecture and environments through pictures hood remembrances of sheets drying in the and books. If as suggested, that architectural wind and sun, and a transitional space (a conceptualization relies fundamentally on a space that mediates between the interior of background of direct experience, then me- a building and the exterior) from a summer diated knowledge derived from text and im- resort. Each framed a lifelong interest that ages about places is incomplete at best. Fur- is carried out in practice. A strong and sus- ther, it also suggests that such knowledge, tained interest in the sun and wind as forces while seemingly valuable for the generation of place-making, in the former, and special of ideas may have nothing in common with attention to such spaces in all of her work the direct experience of those mediated with the latter. Every respondent reported a places about which one is learning. similar seminal place memory that guides the general focus of their work. Elsewhere these have been discussed elsewhere as “ar- chetypes,” “referents,” “references” to de- 2. Intending Place scribe how they function for these designers.(2) Both purposeful and implicit intention to be concerned with place concepts makes However, it is the everyday place memo- a difference in the designer’s ability to de- ries and remembrances that provide the velop a place-based design. richest well for design in terms of place. Simple memories about how a place felt, It should not come as a surprise that the the sensation of walking under something intentionality of the designer igures almost

29 Drawing out Experience; Between Media & Place as prominently in these indings.(6) The un- which is the desire. A concern for people can derlying suggestion is that both a designer’s only come from the recognition that people purposeful intent and non-purposive inten- are the most important element.” With both tional stance effect the course and outcome there is reference to something more funda- of the design process. Intentions guide the mental than intending and speaks of an in- process and serve as a way of maintaining tentional stance directed towards a concern consistency throughout the place-focused for design as something to be inhabited not processes that are the subject of this inqui- only looked at. Those who made the stron- ry. gest claim for intentionality felt that place was more than a desire but rather was an From interviews, it was clearly recognized assumption. that to intend in the deliberate sense was beneicial. One respondent summarizes this view this way: “…place intentions are good because as architects we have to intend a 3. Skill and Comfort kind of place. The intend part is important for us as designers. Ideas move us along but Both a certain degree of skill and comfort are not the prime motivator, place intentions with the use of any medium by the designer are.” For this respondent and others, design can have a profound effect on how that de- in terms of place was felt to be something signer engages place concepts in design. the designer needs to be motivated for and have a desire to do. – “your energy needs to Designers who gain skill in the use of a be into it.” Another commented that a de- medium or whom are comfortable with its signer needs “to have ideas about how one use are able to deal more effectively with is to live in the world and how your work place concepts. Ease of use serves to con- contributes to a renewed vision and desire nect to the work at hand. The more skilled to live a particular way by your client. It is and comfortable I am with a tool, such as a about order, site, context, culture, materials tennis racquet, the more engaged I am ca- and the heightening of emotions in that par- pable of being in the game. The irst time I ticular place.” picked up a tennis racket a swing was dificult and thus the game was impenetrable. Place intentionality is also linked impor- Learning how to hold the racket, to keep my tantly to “memorable reference” through its eye on the ball, to move my feet, adjust my role in establishing one’s more basic inten- weight, and swing the racket while keep- tional stance. Many comments pointed to- ing the face open to the ball opened up the wards how having a poetic imagination and/ game through opening my ability to play. or assumption to design in terms of “people Walter Ong refers to this pattern of growth in places” made more difference than the with a tool as the increasing “interiorization selected medium. In reference to the most of the technology.”(7) Through this process, powerful computer she can imagine, one he claims new options of expression and stated that, “having the right machine is not understanding arise. the key to place-making - having a poetic imagination is - the poetic imagination that With drawing, modeling, digital design, is born out of memorable experience.” Simi- and design-build, if one does not have what larly another, while discussing that one’s in- one respondent referred to as “transparency,” tent can mitigate the effects of media, states they will fail to gain a sense of inhabitation. “the most important factor in the making of Or “without the skill the designer is unable places is a combination of things foremost of to draw out their ideas in order to work with

30 Vincent Canizaro them.” Any designer who can neither see More direct to the question of place, the im- what a medium is showing or manipulate portance of multiple media was speciically the medium is effectively blind. This effect is discussed: “Drawing place requires many visible at two levels. On one, the designers different types of media”; “Through a broad are hampered through a general dificulty drawing process, by using a lot of different of reading through an image. At the other, media is how I come to know the quality of they are also precluded from dealing with the place.” As to the potential dificulty in the more specialized focus on place – the dealing with multiple and mixed media one ability to read the medium empathetically respondent commented that “you ind ways and gain a sense of what it might feel like to to sum it all up.” be within what is being imaged. Sagely one respondent stated, “I think your design will More complex are the ways in which this be only as good as your mastery of the me- mixing and combining of media were car- dia you use to represent the ideas. So, learn ried out in practice. I was able to construct them all, but master only a few.” three categories of increasing complexity. The suggestion is that the multi-faceted phenomenon of place is most effectively dealt with by multi-faceted means.(10) 4. Multiple Means

The use of multiple forms of media and the mixing of different media result in a more 4a Multi-media Practices multivalent sense of an emerging design, and is therefore suited to the multivalent Perhaps the most obvious, multi-media character of place. practice is the combination of different forms within the same medium such as Perhaps the most prominent pattern to drawing. A multi-media practice of drawing emerge in the course of this study was the would use plans, sections, and elevations in necessity of using more than one medium design. The Beaux-Arts analytique and the in order to adequately develop a sense of process of collage are also examples of this place in the design setting. The basic notion practice by combining projection systems is that by mixing and/or employing multiple and ways of depicting things within a 2-D media, the inadequacies of each singular graphical format. Most common among the medium are foiled by their combination responses regarding the conceptualization with others. To mix media here, means to of place was the use of plans and sections, combine something into some sort of hybrid in conjunction with perspectives. which was rarely discussed. More common was a concurrent use of different forms of a David Leatherbarrow has made much of media or otherwise, different styles of me- what he calls the process of “alternation” diation. With both what has been called that commonly takes place with multi-me- “resourceful patching” was the modus ope- dia practice.(11) This is often a dialectical randi to the practices.(8) Those interviewed process in which multiple drawings are con- stated that they work with any and all me- sulted in order to ascertain a more complete dia as a matter of course as is captured in understanding. The perspective “allows vi- this comment: “I am pretty happy to work sion to roam around within it, as if the view with whatever is out there… There’s a ton of were enclosed by the space... The develop- media out there and I use most of it.” Oth- ment of a design always involves some alter- ers saw it as a part of “a balanced practice.” nation between these types....”(12) Andrea

31 Drawing out Experience; Between Media & Place Kahn makes a similar point in reference 4c Multi-disciplinary Prac- to the design drawing of Carlo Scarpa explaining that through his mastery and com- tices fortable use of multiple views within the two-dimensional drawing surface, Scarpa Here I refer to the inclusion primarily of “lived” in the three-dimensional space of text, both verbal and written, and physi- the drawing.(13) And in reference to those cal presence or what I prefer to call “non- two-dimensional drawings she states that drawings.”(15) Both are normal parts of with “orthographic drawing, two plus two everyday design, but their impact and im- equals three [dimensions].”(14) portance is seldom acknowledged in terms of the signiicance of their contribution. They igured prominently in searches for ways to better conceptualize place. When the respondents were queried as to what helped 4b Mixed-media Practices them get a clearer idea of their place, most Mixed-media practice consists of using replied the difference could be accounted by media forms together; forms that differ from the use of text and the ability to have physi- one another, but are part of the common cal presence on site as the “media.” Each repertoire such as the use of two and three- had slightly distinct variations; one wrote dimensional drawings, physical scale mod- stories as another wrote descriptive words els, and digital iles. The structure of use is that captured the spirit of the place. Teamed the same as above, in that the various forms together with drawings and models, these are employed interactively such that each non-drawings seemed to increase these de- gives a partial view which together expands signers’ access. the conceptual vision of the designer. Much like mixed-media practice above, As a form of practice, mixed-media can this practice also has implications for the cre- yield more fruitful yet previously untried ation of new media. Such a practice as Rene combinations of media. My own attempt Davids’ use of storyboards as design media was to unite the mediation of design-build or Christopher Alexander’s Pattern Language with scale modeling in the design studio. could both serve as a case in point.(16) She The students were asked to create a realistic has proposed and used the combination of model of the site. We then followed the pro- plans, perspectives, and a script in order to cedure of design-build in model form, al- introduce a narrative into the design consid- ternating between drawings and modeling. eration. She states, “[t]he narrative implicit in Many of those who participated reported to the storyboard encouraged students to think me a dual advantage of the practice. They about people’s movements in space in ways reported learning a sense of construction which suggested inhabitation as opposed to that accompanies design-build, and more merely using human igures to decorate a importantly reported feeling a deep con- space.” In much the same way, The Pattern nection to their surrogate “site” that affected Language captures behavioral incidents that their conceptualization of the design as a the use of are intended increase one sense place. of inhabitation. As to the inclusion of direct physical presence as a form of mediation, these respondents referred to both site visitation and the use of built surrogates as examples of this

32 Vincent Canizaro form. Site visitation was described as the as an outsider. What is key is that the medi- best way to get and maintain “a grip on the um is the agent which “draws” out that em- sensory experience of that place.” This par- pathetic sense.(20) The strategies outlined ticular respondent continued by saying, “It below exemplify this search for those quali- is important to get a feel of the wind, a sense ties which engage the sense of inhabitation of how the place smells, the views, and the and empathetic insideness and thereby the sounds that are there if you want to design in conceptualization of place. terms of the place.” Exemplifying this practice, she stated that designers should always bring both their models and drawing to the site to work on and reinterpret them there. 5a. The Human Figure as The other primary variation on this theme was the power of visiting surrogates in order Guide: Motion and Inhabita- to understand the feeling of one’s own de- tion sign as inhabited. These were described as similar but different environments that more The human igure is not an uncommon ele- powerfully convey the sense of a place, its ment of inclusion in architectural media but ambiance, that is dificult to represent. it is certainly underutilized. It has been used in a variety of ways and has always played an important role in the development of design ideas. Its inclusion seems to igure 5. Innovation and Empathy largely in all “representative” forms of media and is implicitly important in the prac- Through adaptation, augmentation, and tice of design/build through the designer- innovative use, any medium can be made builder’s own physical presence on site. The more engaging and therefore conducive to variety of employment of the human igure design in terms of place. extends from their use as indicators of dimension and depth, akin to a ruler, to aid in Also important necessary to adapt and/or getting a sense of inhabitation.(21) For those otherwise work with a media in personal surveyed the human igure acts as a sort of ways in order to enhance their conceptu- empathetic “ambassador” who participates alization of place. Common to all of these in the space of the drawing or model for the idiosyncratic strategies is an attempt to en- designer. By drawing, building, or rendering gender a feeling of inhabitation and thereby these human igures, which are thought to design according to that heightened sense. “illustrate the effect of architecture in every- (18) Phrases such as “feeling through the day life,” the designer gets a more complete media,” “living in the drawing,” going “into sense of the possible lived inhabitation.(22) the spaces in my drawings,” and “being able to understand the building as if I were there, and “running simulations in my mind about the place, about how it would be used” are 5b Recognizable and Mean- all examples of what these strategies were aimed at achieving. ingful Phenomena

Edward Relph’s notion of “empathetic in- The second of these strategies is the utiliza- sideness” is helpful here.(19) It refers to the tion of familiar or recognizable phenomena sense of taking in a place in such a way as in the designers medium of choice. The de- you understand it both as an inhabitant and pictions of objects, such as a familiar piece

33 Drawing out Experience; Between Media & Place of furniture or artwork can act in a similar concepts could be dealt with through that fashion to igures by both communicating a medium more effectively than with others. sense of scale and allowing the designer to insert themselves into the depicted environ- One respondent suggested that the effec- ment. tiveness was accomplished because place concepts involve an inherent experiential aspect that is often not conveyed through overly determinate media. This is a senti- 5c Realism and Materiality ment echoed by many theorists on media. Alberto Perez-Gomez, Kimberly Dovey, and Realistic depiction also accomplished Susanne Langer have each unequivocally a sense of immersion within the designed stated that the senses of place requires a sort place. Here, however, through the inclusion of imaginative freedom – one that is as open of realistic and phenomenally rich materials as poetry is to suggest more than is directly and objects the designer is somewhat more stated.(23) Their speciic example is the use free to deal with the represented thing and of drawings based on descriptive geometry. not the representation itself. Thus, the focus For them, such media describes what they is on a minimizing of distortion which en- depict in an overly deinite and mechani- ables a more unencumbered presentation cal manner, which would be akin to reading of an environments materiality and phe- poetry only as so many words. Both these nomenal presence. By not distracting the theorists and my respondents suggest that designer through an overly “graphical” im- the multivalency and complexity of place age, the promise of empathetic insideness is concepts require a medium capable of two achieved through transparency. things: One, being open enough to allow exploration, and two, being ambiguously structured enough to present place concepts in their incompleteness. Goldschmidt 6. Freedom and Ambiguity has shown that sketching makes possible to the open-structured dialectical process of Media and styles of mediation that are felt design.(24) to be more openly structured and which foster ambiguity in their communicative inter- Design Processes which were similarly action with the designer are important to a “deinite” and overly structured were displace-focused design process. cussed as impediments to the conceptualization of place. In one particularly powerful The character or quality in a medium also example, a respondent told of an important enhanced the place-focused process – that step in his own method. When asked about feeling being one of openness and freedom. any speciic processes he felt were condu- By freedom they referred to the sense that a cive to place he responded: medium allows a great deal of idea exploration. “The situation that is conducive to If I were to break it up.... when I visit the place-making is freedom to draw a lot, and site I do it alone. I ask not to be disturbed to use a lot of trace,” was one respondent’s . And when it is possible, I do this without way of summing up the issue. For another, it knowledge of the program and the issues I was a freedom that comes from inexactness, am being asked to solve... It is good because “wherein I can feel free to make mistakes.” A I am able to analyze the site without the spe- few others felt that if a media could generate ciics of the problem inluencing me...In this a sense of ambiguity and openness, place way I get to know what the inluences that

34 Vincent Canizaro exist on the site are without the constraints Finally, the relationship rests on interpreta- of a program being brought to it. When one tion. In this, it rests with the abilities of the does look at a site without a program many architectural designer at work on a design. possibilities present themselves that would The tools, or “implicit media” they bring not with a program in hand. with them in the form of remembered places, intentions, and skills therefore matter the most in the end. If we logically work back up through the text, we will ind that irst off 7. Conclusion we need the architect to be interested in the conceptualization of place and concerned The relationship between the phenomenon with the inhabited aspect of buildings. Next, of place and architectural design media is one who is unconstrained in the use of a based primarily upon the achievement of medium and has the skill to “see” or “feel” a particular mode of engagement; one in through it. Lastly, one capable of interpret- which the designer is able to get beyond the ing place imagery, through written and vi- sense of working through simulations and sual clues, and the other sensory stimuli that come as close as possible to having a direct make it possible. experience. This type of engagement is facilitated in four interrelated ways. The irst is Distilling all of the indings down to their through the involvement of body’s sensory essence yields three distinctly salient and input, thus getting beyond a sole depen- informative points about the relationship dence on the visual system for the assess- between media and place. They are: ment of a design. The second is through the forging of a connection between the design- 1. The phenomenon of place is not directly er and the physicality of a proposed place. represented by design media, it is therefore This can occur through a connection to the dealt with indirectly in architectural design. actual site of a design, through the convey- Thus, the relationship between media and ance of imagery that corresponds to physi- place is indirect. cal reality, through imagery that evokes an 2. Design media, despite the individual dif- embodied view, or through the approxima- ferences in effectiveness, are as a whole am- tion of physical form. The third is through biguous in favoring the conceptualization of any aspect of mediation that affords a sense place. Thus, the relationship between media of the spatiality and/or physical movement and place is variable. that might occur in the designed place. The fourth is through an aspect of mediation 3. Key to the conceptualization of place in which presents no impediments to any of architectural design is gaining a sense of in- the above aspects. It is characterized by the habitation of the emerging work. Thus, the promotion of possible ideas, the exploration relationship between media and place is de- of those ideas, and a general sense of open- ined by empathetic insideness. ness to broad and multiple forms of knowing.

What this mode of engagement allows, in its simplest sense, the designer to forge a sense of inhabitation. The above facets make it possible for a designer gain that sense of “empathetic insideness,” and to “live” in the depicted or mocked-up environment.

35 Drawing out Experience; Between Media & Place

Endnotes two.” 7. Walter Ong, “Writing is a Technology that Please note that for brevity I have not cited Restructures Thought,” in The Written Word: the many references made by and about re- Literacy in Transition, Wolfson College Lec- spondents. They remain in my iles. tures 1985, Gerd Baumann ed. (Oxford: 1. One of those interviewed for this work Clarendon Press, 1986), p. 32. considered this point to be so obvious that 8. I borrow this phrase from Kathryn Hen- it would be ridiculous to discuss it in the derson in her On Line and On Paper: Visual course of our interview. Representations, Visual Culture, and Com- 2. F. Downing’s “referents.” puter Graphics in Design Engineering (Cam- bridge, MA: MIT Press, 1999), p. 167. Her 3. Frances Downing has made this claim in implication is the same as mine, that both a number of places. See note above for ref- are inadequate for the task at hand. For the erences. Also. Marc Trieb in his “Place De- task at hand each provides a patch for the scription: Written; Rendered,” in the Journal other. of Architectural Education 36, No. 1 (Fall, 1982): 2., he discusses how memories of 9. Bruno Latour similarly speaks of a “the places condition how a designer under- cascade of images.” In his “Visualization stands what is in front of them, whether it is and Cognition: Thinking with Eyes and a drawing or real place. Hands,” Knowledge and Society: Studies in the Sociology of Culture Past and Pres- 4. A similar point is made by Dodds and ent 6 (JAI Press, 1986): 1-40., he argues that Frascari, “Miming a Manner of Building, pp. political and economic power are manifest 396-401. They show how physical experi- through the use of images that inluence ence can be translated into drawing through through multiplication. Images allow one an analysis of the work of Carlo Scarpa and to see something, and the multiplication of Valeriano Pastor. those images should therefore allow one to see more. An extension of Latour’s ideas is 5. Paul Laseau in his Graphic Thinking for discussed in Henderson, On Line and On Architects and Designers (New York, Van Paper, p. 74. Nostrand Reinhold, 1993); William D. Coo- per’s “Drawing, Touching and Moving,” 10. James Corner makes a similar point. Journal of Architectural Education 35, No. “Ideational immersivity” and “synaesthetic 3 (Spring, 1982): 9-13;.and this point serves imaging” are multiple media which “com- as the impetus for Norman Crowe and Paul municate a different sense allowing the Laseau’s Visual Notes for Architects and De- designer to attain “ideational immersivity.” signers (New York, Van Nostrand Reinhold, “Operational Eidetics: Forging New Land- 1984). scapes” in Harvard Design Magazine, Fall (1998), p. 26. 6. Richard B. Oliver, “Talk,” in Akin, Omar and E. Wienel, eds., Representation and Ar- 11. David Leatherbarrow, “Showing What chitecture. (Silver Spring, MD: Information Otherwise Hides Itself: On Architectural Dynamics, 1982), p. 220. States that: “there Representation,” Harvard Design Magazine remains a necessary relation between what (Fall, 1998): 50-55. one intends to build and how one expresses that in a drawing. There is an intimate and 12. Leatherbarrow, “Showing What Other- quite functional relationship between the wise Hides Itself,” p. 55. 36 Vincent Canizaro

13. Andrea Kahn, “Disclosure: Approaching tion in the drawn environment. Architecture,” Harvard Architectural Review 8 (1992): 3-21. 21. This dichotomy is laid out similarly in Alex T. Anderson’s “Scale and Inhabitation: 14. Kahn, “Disclosure: Approaching Archi- On the Human Figure in Architectural Rep- tecture,” p. 10. resentations,” in Proceedings of the 86th ACSA Annual Meeting (Washington DC: 15. The importance of words and text igured ACSA Press, 1997)p. 582. prominently in many of my respondents processes. James Corner in his “Operational 22. Davids, “Applications of a Film” p. Eidetics,” pp. 22-26. echoes what many 11.6. respondents stated. “Whereas most architectural and planning images use words(as 23. Alberto Perez-Gomez and Louis Pelle- labels, keys, names, etc.), the combination tier, “Architectural Representation Beyond of words and drawings is rarely developed Perspectivism,” Perspecta 11 (1992): 20-40; beyond its merely descriptive function.” p. Susanne K. Langer, Philosophy in a New 26. Key: A Study in the Symbolism of Reason, Rite, and Art, 2nd edition. (New York: The 16. Renee Davids, “Applications of a Film New American Library, 1951), pp. 86-87.; Making Technique in the Architectural De- Kimberly Dovey, “Putting Geometry in its sign Studio,” in the Proceedings of the 1998 Place: Toward a Phenomenology of the De- ACSA West Regional Meeting (Department sign Process,” Dwelling, Seeing, and De- of Architecture, University of California at signing (State University of New York Press, Berkeley), pp. 11.1-11.11. Also see: Chris- Albany, 1993), p. 251. topher Alexander, A Pattern Language (New York, Oxford University Press, 1977). 24. Gabriela Goldschmidt, “The Dialectics of Sketching,” Creativity Research Journal 4 17. Rene Davids, “Applications of a Film,” (1991): 123-143. p. 11.7.

18. Kathryn Henderson, On Line and On Paper, p. 84., refers to a similar strategy Biography within engineering drawing of representing “tacit knowledge, which is the representa- Dr. Vincent B. Canizaro isAssociate Profes- tion of something as experienced, lived, and sor & Graduate Advisor of Record at the known through bodily action. University of Texas, San Antonio’s College of Architecture 19. Edward Relph, Place and Placelessness (London: Pion, 1976), p. 54.

20. George Doddsand Marco Frascari. “Miming a Manner of Building: Drawing and Story in the Work of Valerino Pastor and Carlo Scarpa, “ in The 86th Annual Meeting & Technology Conference (Washington DC: ACSA Press, 1997), pp. 396-401.They refers to it as the mimetic capacity of the architect- drawer who “mimics” physical movement and therefore the human body’s participa-

37 Ambience Formers in Built Environment: An Experimentation with Sound and Motion Grégoire Chelkoff CRESSON, Ecole Nationale Supérieure D’Architecture de Grenoble.

The visual dimension of space tends to urban ambiences, we aim to articulate both erase other sensory dimensions (like sound physical dimensions (construction and en- for example) in our culture of design al- vironment) and the human one (sensitivity, though they are so important in everyday practice, cultures). life. To make more operative all the senses that architecture involves, our researches Many works have shown how architectural and experimentations investigate sensory spaces and social uses interact, but the role approaches of urban ambience in a phenom- of ambient factors is not really taken into ac- enal and ecological direction. This direction count, and it is often through the category of of research get back to the experience of ob- judgment (pleasant, unpleasant, bad, good, jects and spaces in usual conditions. etc.). Our approach does not aim at showing the effects of environment on judgments or In this paper, after a short “lashback” about behaviours. In order to inlect our projectual our laboratory, I will show an experimental thinking, we try to understand the modali- research, which have particularly explored ties by which the reciprocity between man the relationships between sound and mo- and environment is experienced in different tion. architectural situations.

The cresson laboratory (cnrs mixed research unit 1563, created in 1979) focuses on the perceptible environment and archi- 1. Sonic Effects tectural and urban atmospheres (“ambiance” in French). Architects and urban plan- At the end of the seventies, the cresson lab- ners are designing and building spaces, but oratory initially focused on the sound space they create also “atmospheres” by which all in a qualitative way to describe our ordinary our senses are in interaction and in which experience. It must be said that it was rather social or individual uses take an active part. dificult to escape to the main thinking about From the beginning of our works, we ad- bad noise, the bad urban sound. It was just vocate a qualitative approach capable of like if the urban sound was without quality helping and possibly guiding the strategies and without any social use or signiication. and processes of architectural and urban How, in these conditions, could it be a part design in a sensitive way. Based on a plu- of our imagination of environment ? ridisciplinary approach to architectural and

38 Grégoire Chelkoff Investigating the sound space of everyday 2. Perception and Action life, the “sonic effect” is the irst pluridisciplinary tool that the cresson have developed. Several researches we have made between This analyzing tool allows us to describe the eighty’s and now, aimed at understand- ordinary perception and action in differing the ambient milieu in public spaces, es- ent urban or domestic situations. Some of pecially through the eye and the ear. It gives these sonic effects can be related to spatial more and more importance to the opportu- disposition and some not. The notion of ef- nities of perception and action that affords fect (Augoyard, 1995) refers to a perceptual an object and by which the user can feel process that results from circumstances; it is an appropriated environment : the way to the manifestation of a phenomenon, which BE in an environment is in part relected by comes with the existence of an object. the way you move and you act. After several surveys and analysis of urban public spaces For example, the following spectrogram and housing spaces, we draw the idea that shows what we have called a “cutting effect” an atmosphere is not only a given physical which is the result of the spatial disposition environment. It is a process based on the ac- and the position of sound sources. This ef- tive relationship we have when we experi- fect is felt while the passer-by is walking and ment the built environment and use all its crossing an angle between two buildings, potentialities. If architecture affords spaces the intensity of sound fall quickly. The qual- to be used, it modiies our phenomenal re- ity of listening is modiied: when the cut- lation to the world. How these interactions ting effect is perceived, all the links between between space, ambient phenomenon and sounds are disturbed, and the listener can uses could be taken into account in the de- be more attentive for a while. In imagina- sign process and renew it ? tion, this effect creates a virtual door, in that sense, it is a former of discontinuity in the Walking, sitting, talking, all our practices experience and it plays a role in the repre- of architectural space awake perceived sentation of space. ambient factors like sound, light and heat. While these factors are at the basis of our Other sonic effects have been described phenomenal relation to the world, they (about 40), some of them are dificult to link are meaningful for social or individual ac- directly to build forms (for example “rema- tive uses. Then more than “shapes” given to nence”, “sharawadji”, “crenel”) because be static, we experiment “former” that are they essentially depend on perceptual and changing and interacting with environment active processes, so, it is more dificult to while we are using it. An architectural shape use as criteria of design at very irst level. is not only a material device, it is a potential transformation of our sensitive relationships After the investigation of sound dimen- with environment and people. Our method sion, the laboratory broadened the scope of is then to explore the categories we use to its works to the many dimensions that are make architecture through the potential of perceptible in situ. Research addresses the sensitive transformation they involve. phenomena of light, heat, smell, touch and movement, always through an ecological Theses researches led to extrapolate what and phenomenal approach and on original I have called « formants » in French, (« for- pluridisciplinary methods at the crossroads mer » or « formative » in English). This idea between human and social sciences, archi- (notion) comes from phonology, it is a way tecture and engineering science. to link elements of morphology to plurisen- sory ordinary experience and action, i- e :

39 Ambience Formers in Built Environment: what is rather static in architecture (material, make the hearer’s immediate sonic milieu permanence of space) to what is dynamic drift. This scale of design induces working (sounds, light, motion) when we use a space on the proximity of walls and on the mini- or an object. For example an « angle » is a mal movements implying modiications in geometrical concept, a morphological ele- the relationship to the ambient milieu and ment : but how can it be felt through sound others. It incites us to imagine what one may or through gesture ? What makes it « ac- do with one’s sonic environment, or more tive » in our sensory experience and what globally, with one’s ambience. Some of our kind of use it could inlect ? The notion of researches - in housing, working places or former invites us to question what it means public spaces, and especially around trans- to think, in a sensitive way, for example, a portation system- had shown us that inhab- door, a corridor, a passage, and a courtyard itants are not only passive, they create theirs ? Of course this kind of question deals with own environment to improve the listening all sensitive potentials and the categories of of others, direct vocal communication or space. simply remain waiting, sitting or standing. That is why I explore a kinetic approach in This way of thinking could modify the cog- public spaces and study how forms offer op- nitive design attitude in a multisensory way portunities of uses relating to atmospheres. integrating the opportunities of action that It is in order to test spatial compounds and are suggested. So a new way of research potential of uses that we have build models have been improved to test sensory inten- at the scale of the moving an earring human tions in design and to evaluate an architec- body. tural device. After several works which aim to highlight the sensory characteristics of different urban structures, it was necessary to study to a micro morphology scale, that is 4. A Kinetic Approach to say to the scale of body motion and perception. These experiments can participate Space and sound are linked by motion. to the development of a “sensitive ecology” In the ordinary uses of space, we talk and of architectural devices. hear in motion. Moving uses are, for a few of them, linked to their sonic environment. Sometimes, it is intentional : we move to improve the listening of something, or we 3. An Experimental Approach: move to talk to somebody. This evidence strongly inluences our relection about the the Body Scale of Design sonic design of space. That’s why, we have In this perspective, we are interested in to take into account the dynamic relations working at the space scale of those ambi- which couple listening and acting in ordi- ent architectural compounds that involve a nary uses. These uses are based on the skills direct interaction with the human body. We of each inhabitant to act in different sonic think of ordinary urban objects such as doors, situations. This active dimension is quite places to sit or to wait, shelters. Around important to design spaces with sonic in- such minimal spaces, a whole array of mov- tentions. It is to be preferred to the passive ing modalities linked to the use of voice and conception of hearing in the sonic environ- hear are identiied : bypassing, sitting or ment, which is usually considered in order leaning modalities going through, crossing to understand how it is appreciated or how a sonic area, rotating. This array of actions, it is “identiied”. which come close to, the will of movement 40 Grégoire Chelkoff The experimentation we will now talk about 5. Experimentation of a Wall took place between April and may 2003 at the “grands ateliers de l’ile d’ Abeau”. These The “wall” we have build is a sort of ten workshops near Lyon and Grenoble offer meters long and three meters high “dou- equipment as well as space to built for ped- ble sided” wall. It’s thickness varies from agogical and research activities in architec- ive centimetres to 1,6 meter, one can pass ture. through or along it, on one side or the other. Placed along the existing building on a sort The main points of our method and the of platform, just as it would be on a side- conceptual tools we use to design experi- walk along a road or along a path, its two mental sonic spaces must be related. sides are designed differently. Along the building, wing-like devices are created, in Our precise goal was to model a device these wings, the sonic environment is am- that creates a situation in which a lot of pos- biguous. It combines the decrescendo of the sibilities of uses and ambience are offered. exterior environment and the interior sound More particularly, three categories were of the existing building. Open to the street, put through the test in different urban or ar- the second side is more concave, it hollows chitectural situations: «articulation», «limit out a niche in the wall and offers several situation» and «inclusion», that have been places to wait, standing or sitting, in cavities studied before in real urban contexts. Each or inside a minimal room. of them implies different amplitude of motion. Articulation depends on a displace- While digital and sophisticated tools are ment between two distinct sonic environ- being developed, our experimentations are ments. Limit situations imply the movement to a great extent hand-crafted (panels of of parts of the body like the head or the wood and screws). Another aspect of these upper body and also other displacements experimentations consists in sonorizing the making the sonic milieu drift quickly. Inclu- object in order to create a situation : to re- sion does not imply movement, as it is an contextualize it and arouse new potentiali- interpretative move: in a static posture one ties of uses and listening. It does not aim at mentally connects a space to another. All of simulating a context but rather at generating our qualitative program and our designed an imaginary scenario. In the present case, equipment aim at creating these kinds of sonic ambience is relative to an urban site situation in very small spaces. connected to several modes of transportation. In our idea, this kind of equipment could ind its place in different situations: to create a passage between a building and a street, or to offer a furniture in such places as underground public spaces, or big atria 6. Principles of design where the sonic environment is usually too In order to give a material form to this, our homogeneous with great reverberation and spatial language of design is based on op- ubiquity. This equipment could locally offer erative deformations such as print, deliting, possibilities to escape these effects. The pro- and fold. In our idea, each of them calls dif- totype is furthermore transposable to other ferent potentialities of uses and ambience, public contexts just like any public equip- for example : ment where one is to wait, sit, or phone, particularly in ambient transportation a situ- Print generates hollow in the solid and ation. gives affordances to sit in variable depth so

41 Ambience Formers in Built Environment: that listening to the soundscape or talking someone sounds different.

The little space between different layers of wall (deliting) offers limit situation depending on the angle and the distance of the ear, the oscillation of the head while one is walking according to the slits in the surface also rhythm the view.

Folds generate a continuity of the envelope, which offers surfaces of relection near the head and other surfaces to sit or to lean on.

All these intentions depend on a great proximity of the passer-by with the wall, which deines his space. Figure 1 & 2: Front side & ridge

A sonic regenerated context to create a usual situation

To explore more accurately these kinds of interactions between movement and sonic transformations, the experiment is also the way we can improve the element we have built. For this reason, an electroacoustic installation creates a sonic situation. It is composed of two parts. First, one line of sound is diffused in front of the element (3 sources approximately ten meters from the wall); it generates a global ambience with passages of trains, cars, tramways, etc. Second, sound (3 sources) is diffused at a low level inside the minimal room (we call it «inclusion»). This sonorization aims at reinforcing some of the sonic components or at encouraging a listening attitude (searching sound, going Figure 3 & 4: Wings side & Installation with Speak- ers toward it, or inversely, staying to listen or to talk, etc).

42 Grégoire Chelkoff

acts in the sonic structure created by the space and the diffused sounds. To learn more about it, we asked seventeen persons to experiment a ictional use.

First, they have to walk around the built element and explore it in order to know all its sides, each participant starts from the same point (what we called the “prow”). Most of people (that is to say 16 on 17) prefer to go by the side which is exposed to a greater level of sound, but the difference was not so high : during their experience, the kind of sound diffused by the speakers was an ambiance of a railway station, so the level was not so loud. We have not experimented this survey with pink sound, but it could be tried. Our goal was to understand how people move around the object and use its potentialities.

Second, 4 minutes after start, they have to Figure 5 answer a phone-call and were asked to read This schema (not at the right scale) shows us a text on the phone. In the meantime, the the place of the speaker. Dimensions are sonic environment is made to change and given in centimeters. Measurements in dB we suppose the reader tries to ind a place, (A) : 87 / 88 dB(A) one meter from the cen- or to take a particular position. tral speaker for a pink noise emitted to test This evaluation shows us interesting sorts acoustical performances. As it was predict- of adopted behaviours, which illustrate our able, there is 10 decibels loss behind the hypothesis: wooden “wall” in these conditions. At the beginning of their exploration, each one had The participants walk all around the built to make the choice to go by the exposed element, rather near the walls. When they side or by the other when he started from had this experience with another person, the “prow”. they speak to each other near the walls rather than away from them. It is very rare that they step back, they sometimes touch the walls and they seem to “listen” to it when 7. Fictional use in a virtual there is a void. As they have to choose be- situation tween the left side (wings side) and the front side, the great majority chooses the front On a methodological aspect and with re- side where sound is louder (but the view is gard to our hypothesis, experimentation al- open and there is more light). Sometimes lows us to directly evaluate uses in a testing they are looking for the origin of the sounds scenario with several persons (ordinary peo- they hear, especially in the “minimal room”. ple, acousticians, partially sighted persons). It shows they are aware of the changing sounds when they move. After the experi- This apparatus allows us to test how one ence (a short survey is leaded), they tell that 43 Ambience Formers in Built Environment: they felt the holes, the apertures in the ele- limit where sound increases. ment thanks to the sound when they passed in front of them.

The following pictures illustrate the different kinds of attitude that make interact form, environment and active uses:

Figure 9: A corner offers another form of inclusion in the room, the body is settled in this corner to speak on the phone.

Figure 6: Trying to sit body bent toward the outside. This kind of little moves illustrates the sensitivity to the limits of the sonic environment depending on the sitting depth.

Figure 10: This man stays inside the passage between the sides of the wall during all the phone conversation, the head is orientated perpendicularly to the sides

Trying to sit body bent toward the outside. This kind of little moves illustrates the sensitivity to the limits of the sonic environment Figure 7: Turning the back to the sound front and facing the wall, the speaker uses this position to depending on the sitting depth. talk : the body and the wall make a niche and the whole allows speaking. The irst sonic relections of Turning the back to the sound front and his voice on the wall give a return to it. During the facing the wall, the speaker uses this posi- whole reading, the speaker doesn’t move while the tion to talk : the body and the wall make a ambient sound increases. niche and the whole allows speaking. The irst sonic relections of his voice on the wall give a return to it. During the whole reading, the speaker doesn’t move while the ambient sound increases.

A void between two walls offers a position using the phone and speaking : the body and the head are between two walls. This position shows a particular way to form Figure 8: A void between two walls offers a position an envelope all around the head ; the posi- using the phone and speaking : the body and the tion is precise because it changes very fast head are between two walls. This position shows a particular way to form an envelope all around the if the head and the ears are too far from the head ; the position is precise because it changes limit where sound increases. very fast if the head and the ears are too far from the

44 Grégoire Chelkoff

A corner offers another form of inclusion in The emptyness between surface is to eval- the room, the body is settled in this corner uate with the body if one can pass through to speak on the phone. the empty space (affordance of passability) and if one can feel the thickness of the wall This man stays inside the passage between the sides of the wall during all the It can transform the sound which is audible phone conversation, the head is orientated when one approach to the void : when the perpendicularly to the sides void is a little one, as we know, only high frequency are deviated but it is an important All these attitudes show diversity but also part of information the kind of observation we can do to understand how this “micro architecture” affords Porosity in light and sonic environment are places to hear or to talk and how its sensi- interesting to iltrate events, ot make them tive structure is revealed. less present. In this idea we can notice « formers » of 8. Short conclusion the wall depth on several sensory aspects and scales : The results of this work which associates research and design bring some ideas to The distance from the variable depth of the develop a sensory approach of architecture wall seems to be felt through sound when that would be attentive to uses in a phenom- one is walking all along it at a short dis- enal and ecological way. tance As we have seen, this experiment doesn’t Moving the body in a solid when sitting and concern only the propagative laws of sound feel the sound change is a former of depth. in space, but the potential of action one can Get in shadow or in a less lighting ambi- get in ordinary local sonic environment. It ance to read the text. shows how an architectural form is incor- porated as a former through the variations Get a less noisy exposed place when all of the ambient lows that accompagny or- the body go inside (the minimal room). dinary uses. Of course it is necessary to do more experiments that could give a way to We can notice formers of continuity on explore an architecture that would not be several sensory aspects : only visual and that would be more attentive to the perceived qualities in use. On this Changing ambiant light modify the percep- point, we hope it highlights modestly some tion of continuity but others sensory formers of theoretical questions and could inlect can give it : the sensory design of space.

When one follow the material surface with the hand,

The proximity of folded surfaces relects sound close to the head with better irst re- lexions

Formers of porosity in ambiance are perceived at several scales :

45 Ambience Formers in Built Environment:

References

AUGOYARD J. F & TORGUE H. (Eds., Ou- vrage collectif CRESSON), A l’écoute de l’environnement - Répertoire des effets sonores, Marseille, Parenthèses, 1995. (traduit en anglais : Sonic experience : a guide to everyday sound, à paraître)

G. CHELKOFF and al. : Prototypes sonores architecturaux : catalogue raisonné et ex- périmentations constructives, Grenoble, cresson, Puca, rapport de recherche, 2003.

P. Amphoux, J.-P. Thibaud, G. Chelkoff (éds), Ambiances en débats, Editions A la Croisée, Grenoble, 2004

46 Sensible Forms Andrew Conio Department of Fine Arts, University of Wolverhampton

1. Introduction ularly those that hold him to be chaosthetic and in trawl to sensation: in favour of an in- Deleuzian concepts, ‘smooth spaces’, inite regression into a type of consummate ‘rhizomes’ and ‘nomads’ are proliferant in anarchy called schizoanalysis. This paper ‘leading edge’ architectural theory. In a re- will show that these terms are very widely cent broadcast of Architecture on Air, Pro- misunderstood, and also, that Deleuze is a fessor Steven Connor said ‘architecture is highly systemic thinker. dematerialising and deterritorializing and a frantic pace’. Steven is a well-known phe- For the last 20 years the subject, the self nomenologist, a theory that provides one of knowing, self authoring or responsible sub- the most subtle and open conceptualisation ject, has shown remarkable persistence in of the subject; it is a incredibly attractive the face of 30 or 40 years of post-modern and intuitive theory that has great explana- critiques. Critiques that have comprehen- tory force. I mean to show the convergen- sively divested the subject of it’s claims for ces and differences between phenomeno- intentionality and powers of signiication. logical and Deleuzian conceptualisations of And yet the originating subject persists, is sensation, and how these are both borne out taken to be the measure of value, or the ba- of and lead to radically different theories of sis upon which knowledge and social fab- the subject and the relationship between the rics are built. In fact, in culture in general, subject and it’s world. the subject is invested with quite magical almost spiritual powers to be the axis mundis Like everyone else I have been asked to of the world. present something that might be accessible to a non-specialist audience. This I will do, The implication of this paper is that there but I will assume that everyone here will is nothing innate, transcendental or ahistori- have a great deal of insight into at least one cal about this subject. The putative ‘subject’ of many of the long and deep debates into is a consequence of the logics of capital: a the nature of the subject: will have spent at system of exchange that is now commonly least all of their adult lives thinking about identiied for what it is, ‘Empire’, that re- what they believe they are! quires the instantiation of the subject as a series of points of (Foucauldian) insertion, In passing, this talk will attempt to correct and modes of functioning, within a system some misinterpretations of Deleuze, partic- of dependencies. The subject is the battle-

47 Andrew Conio ground of the new age of Empire. What is this ‘I’ or mind thinks of itself as separate so profoundly signiicant about the modern from the sensations or phenomena of the world’s conception of a subject arrogantly world, but of course is made up of exactly standing dominant over all that ‘he’ surveys, that same materials as the world. At what is the planetary climatic calamity soon to point does ‘thinking about’ become the overwhelm us. same as the thing that is thought about?! Until they are identical, thought is always Husserl was the founding igure of a phe- at some remove from the world, and its nomenology that in essence can be under- own lesh. stood as giving foundational status to the consciousness of the subject. In his late 3. Additionally, we cannot know the work he moved away from his concern whole as we cannot see beyond the lim- with a ‘transcendental ego’ and sought to ited horizon of knowledge. resolve the problem of Descartes cogito and the division of the world into knowing 5. A ‘self’ cannot stand inside and out- subject and perceived world. Husserl starts side of its own thought at the same time. by asserting that the world as matter needs to be bracketed out as unknowable to man 6 And, each time the self develops a and consciousness. The famous reduction. conceptualisation of itself this notion is The bracketed world of brute matter is al- disabused by the fallacies of its own sens- ways irredeemable an outside of thought es. and therefore remains outside of the scope 7. And, inally, there is always more to of consciousness. However, in his famous an object than its deinable properties. call to ‘things themselves’, Husserl posited You cannot overcome the ‘thingness’ of that the world can be understood in terms the world. of its appearance as phenomenon to man, can be studied to provide insights into the structures of consciousness and the inter- mingling of subject and object which was Various dimensions and derivations of lost in all dualistic philosophies. However, these misrecognitions and irreconcilabili- Husserl’s phenomenology retained a im- ties provide the loam for the theories of der- plausible theorisation of the presence of a acination and deferral of Heidegger, Lacan, subject who stood apart from this intermin- Blanchot, and Derrida. Whereas Heidegger gling, a subject of pure presence to itself, may mourn the loss of a primordial open- able to be both subject and object. This is ness to being, at least Lacan enjoins us to the incipient modern humanist subject. enjoy our oscillations between real, imaginary and symbolic orders, Whether theorised by Descartes or Husserl this self-knowing subject is a deeply prob- We turn now to Merleau Ponty and what lematic notion. makes Merleau Ponty such an interesting igure is his attempt to resolve these prob- 1. The irst question is how did this ‘per- lems with a degree of sophistication that is son’ or mind arise, could we conceive of able grasp hold of intangibles, give form to a starting point which is ahistorical (only paradoxes and retain a sense of the open perhaps in the manner of Blanchot) This is and the tangential. Beguilingly Merleau a mind that uses sensory faculties in order Ponty says: to have a view of the world! ‘there is no inner man, man is in the world, 2. The very obvious problem is that 48 Sensible Forms and only in the world does he know him- all; to overcome the various doubles; em- self’. pirical/transcendental, thought/unthought, lesh/thought. It is useful to look in detail at one particular point to ind a constitutative moment upon In sum; the example of seeing as Lux and which an argument can turn [1]. Merleau Lumen is a way of understanding Merleau Ponty makes a distinction between Lux and Ponty’s (and Bergson’s claim) that perception Lumin. Lux is light. Only the most tra- is active. But much more importantly is his duced and impoverished accounts of vi- more general proposition that the structural sion see seeing as merely the reception of dimension of perception is an aspect of the light hitting the back of the retina and being perceived, seeing is integral to the world it- translated by the mind into images. This is a self. realist epistemology of the ‘outside spectator’ somehow seeing what has already been The content of the thing, and the structure seen through structures that are wholly inde- of seeing exist in the same continuum – they pendent of his constitutive powers’ [2][3]. are part of the same order of signiication. A continuum, which he called natural per- Lux implies a world that is always ‘already ception. The idea of a presubjective natural there’ before relection beings - as an in- perception provides much of the attraction alienable presence endowed with the sta- of phenomenology to the unreconstructed tus of the empirically ‘known’ or knowable: ‘romantic’ school of art criticism in search somehow ‘out there’ somehow facing the of a being-in-the-world, which somehow in human being. Merleau Ponty explicitly crit- greater accord with our natural faculties and icised this approach ’to return to things in natures. themselves is to return to that world which precedes knowledge.[4] Something that is directly relevant to the theme of this conference; Merleau Ponty’s As well as lux we can look at lumin. ADD work amounted to a critique of representa- DETAIL Perception is not something that tion, because the natural order is a primor- happens once information is received but is dial order of signiication. Prior to empirical actually integral to seeing. Seeing involves and rational ways of signifying and compre- distance, space, air and geometry. As the hending the world is a repository of ‘an-ex- eye is physically structured as part of the act’, “sub-representational” knowledge. world (there is an horizon to see because we can see, there is igure and ground because Contrary to the most common and worst igure and ground precedes vision it) is ac- appropriations of Phenomenology this per- tually impossible to see without perception pectivalist dimension of all seeing does not and therefore the divisions of the gaze are lead to solipsism. Instead the ‘thing’ (the integral to seeing. thing that contains the perspective) creates a shared perception. Perceptual experience Also, it is a staple of phenomenology that founds a shared physical nature, an ecstatic seeing is not distinct from other senses, the intersubjective decentring of the subject. human is naturally synaesthetic.[5] Senses of smell and sight, hearing and touching are Being imbued in the life world the subject is only arbitrarily distinctive. able to conceive of itself as part of something larger than itself, a ‘coexistence of which ‘I’ The phenomenologist famously attempts to is not the unique constituent’. Therein lies understand the rules or structures of thought the root of Merleau Ponty’s Marxism. according to which thought is possible at

49 Andrew Conio If we extrapolate this porous, folded syn- 2. The Deleuzian retains aesthetic nature of seeing of to all sensate relations with the world we can posit a cir- much that is good in Merleau cular, polymorphous, interactional nature Ponty. of sense experience. “I Become in the sensation and something happens through the But reconcieves sensations as compounds other in the other. And, at the limit, it is the of affects and percepts. same body which is both subject and object, gives and receives the sensation, a unity of sensing and the sensed’. Affects. Deleuze reformats the concept of sensa- ‘Inside and outside are inseparable. The tion in a manner that extenuates the non- world is wholly inside and I am wholly out- humanness.. Firstly, crucially, affects must side myself.’ Merleau Ponty, xxxx:407 be distinguished from affections. Sensation Merleau Ponty’s work provides the philo- is the thing that happens, the felt, it is not sophical balustrade for a raft of theories something that emerges from within, It is dealing with tacit knowledge, and sensory the ‘light that causes our eye to linch, the intelligence and an embodied visceral re- sound that makes us start, the image of vio- lationship with the world. This is because lence which raises our body temperature’. lesh is the condition of possibility for and [8] Affects are the nonhuman becomings of the medium in which things become visible man. in the ‘carnal formula’ of the ‘lived body’. The key is that affect is pre-personal, when Flesh of the body and lesh of the world are we shudder at the tragedy that is presented exchanged as ideal correlates, ideal coinci- in the centre of Cow and Calf Divided, the dence6 it is a lesh ‘of the world’. This is Turner Prize winning artwork by Damian a lived body as preproceptor and a form of Hirst, that divine pity is still there for the seeing, seeing in the lesh, an enleshing of next person to experience. sight. This embodied seeing is the turning point of this talk. What Merleau Ponty has Affect is absolutely central to Deleuze’s done is transfer the sentient part of being work, affect is what human beings are and from the mind to the lesh. Something that do, waves of affect ripple though our bodies is impossible. Not because the lesh can- in systolic and dystolic rhythms; we become not think (it certainly can although its cogi- part of the world through affects, our rela- tations are durational and polymorphous – tionship with others are affectual. But, ‘af- Bergson says that consciousness in located fects do not arise from subjects but instead in matter rather than bodies) but because if pass through them.’ We are not subjects its thinking occupies the position of sover- standing there generating our own feelings, eignty over its domains we are back to Des- like a self enclosed, autogenerative monads cartes.[7] producing intensities. It is only though affects coming to us do we become what we are. For example, as elegantly phrased by Ronald Bogue, if you think of the colour red, ‘this virtual colour imposes my vision upon me as a condition of its own sovereign existence’.[9]

Deleuze’s most trenchant condemnation

50 Sensible Forms of capital is that Capital cauterises us, we are ‘Percepts are no longer perceptions; they subjugated by the repression of our natural are independent of a state of those who ex- desire to affect and be affected, the power of perience them. Affects are no longer feelings affect is the power to be deluged in the great or affections; they go beyond the strength of wash of mankind and life. those who undergo them. Sensations, percepts, and affects are beings whose validity lies in themselves{ and exceeds any lived. They could be said to exist in the absence of man because man, as he is caught in stone, 3. Percepts on the canvas, or by words, is himself a compound of percepts and affects. In the same way as affects need to be distinguished from affections, percepts should Out of these affects and percepts are formed be differentiated from perceptions. We have sensations and artworks are composites of already established that the eye has to per- affects and percepts formed into blocs of ceive in order to see. Deleuze removes per- sensation. This is the logic of sense. ception from the intentionality of the subject as it is not dependent upon an interior In this radical revision of the phenomeno- subjective vision. logical order of things Deleuze displaces the subject into the world which is why, whilst Percepts are the abstract forms through we earlier found that lesh was one of the which the world is understood, the dimen- most productive of Merleau Ponty’s terms, sions of relationships between different mo- for Deleuze it is a fundamental misconcep- dalities of thought and experience. A per- tion. cept is the making perceptible the forces that populate the world. Percepts need to Deleuze refuses to yield to the lure of a ‘nat- be understood irst and foremost as ‘inde- ural perception’ embodied and entwined in pendent of the state of those who undergo an expansive lesh of the world. The lived them[10]. body is a paltry thing in comparison with a more profound and almost unliveable When Cézanne paints hillsides, he is mak- power[13] of life . The massive, ubiquitous ing perceptible the forces of nature in land- multidimensional charge of life itself can be scape, when Bacon wrestles blood and sin- discovered only going beyond the organism ew from paint he is making perceptible the and open to the world itself. becoming-animal of man. When we think that we perceive a landscape and horizon, When Deleuze talks of new subjectivities depth and distance, igure and ground, and autopoiesis it is not only the subject but these percepts do not belong to us but pre- also the autopoiesis of world, of banks, cor- cedes us, they are impersonal perceptions poration, games, medias, cinema, airlines, into which we are thrown.[11] cultures, electronics: the autopoiesis of the machine.

In ‘”lesh’’ Merleau Ponty is guilty of a 4. Summary: Affects and Per- strange sensual piety’[14]. Flesh is too tender. Instead Deleuze posits the idea, possi- cepts. Sensation. [12] bly of direct interest to architects, of ‘house’, which allows a sense folded and coenacted I will provide a long quote from Deleuze to plans, sections and orientations. House cre- summarise this model, ates a sense of limitation and frames. Open-

51 Andrew Conio ings and passages. Filters and most impor- work was, I contend, a signiicant step for- tantly thresholds. ward from Husserl’s residual Descartian ves- tiges of a transcendental subject. However, Phenomenology does ultimately reinforce, in deed enhance a notion of the intentional 5. Summary subject because it’s subtly, indecidability, and porousness lends to that subject the Gilles Deleuze and Felix Guattari theorise forces of the world thus greatly expanding a subject that has an ‘exo-subjectivity’ that the subjects domain over the world [16]. is transindividual or transversal in place of phenomenological and psychoanalytical ‘a world forms itself around me and begins [15] accounts (that, as much as they might to exist for me’ [17] displace the consciousness into life and world) it is still to be found in the normalcy Codicil. Deleuze provides an account of of natural perception. individuation, because we are affective centres of experience, but humans are only one Both Merleau Ponty and Deleuze cast of things that are individuated. Deleuze aside all the divisions, the bipolar opposites says, what we are interest in ‘are modes of between subject and object, self and other, individuation beyond those of things, per- human inhuman, man and nature. But sons, or subjects; the individuation of a time the phenomenological subject grasps these of day, a region, a climate, a river, or a wind, luctuations out of the air and clings to them of an event [18]. Divested of the habits and shouting ‘this is me’ they re me’, giving itself seductions of subjectiication the individual a propriety identity in an attempt to make is able to give up the arrogance of thinking itself the Centre of it’s world. the world is an object in order to enter into the rhythms and low of life, undifferentiated For Deleuze, the organism is not what sus- instantiations of life and living. tains life but what imprisons it. Subjectii- cation stops the subject from diving into the Finally, I believe if you restore life to life, great wash of mankind and it causes block- we might just have a chance of no longer ages and impoverishment to this low. The being unworthy of nature [19] and seek to subject has to be evacuated, deterritorialised end the destruction of the planet and all and that which is claimed as its own, reterri- species including Mankind. torialised into the fabric of the world. Think instead of life in terms of ubiquitous mum- ‘Phenomenology grounds itself on the nor- mers or swarms, multiplies of multiplicities, malcy of natural perception; it gives natural unbridled intensities. Of de-and re-territo- perception a privilege which makes move- rialisation. Twisting, writhing, ininite and ment relative to ‘poses’. Bergson’s signii- dammadbly inite. Instead of a clamour for cance, on the other hand, for Deleuze, lies onanistic being or clearing might we instead precisely in his refusal to yield to the lure conceive of a thousand folds or a Thousand of natural perception. According to him, Plateaux. the starting point is a world of continuously changing movement-images – a world of This conference asked speakers to address matter in constant lux, with no anchorage the multimodal forms of representation in or assignable points of reference. In the an urban sensorium. I have selected those case of phenomenology, natural perception philosophers that deal most directly with and movement imply the notion of the sub- the question of sensation. Merleau Ponty’s ject. In the case of Bergson, movement is not subordinate to a subject which performs 52 Sensible Forms it or undergoes it. Where light diffuses it- 8 Clair Colebrook. Gilles Deleuze. Rout- self with a minimum of resistance or loss, ledge Critical thinkers. London. 2002. the eye is inside things. The lines of (f)light pg 38/9 do not yet appear to anybody, because (f) light has not yet been arrested or refracted. 9 Bogue, Ronald. Deleuze on Music We are dealing here with a ‘pre-human’ or painting and the Arts. Pg 164. ‘inhuman’ world having a privilege over the human-all-to-human world of phenomenol- 10 Deleuze Gilles. What Is Philosophy pg ogy, where consciousness is the search light 154; 164) summoning up things from their native ob- 11 ‘this virtual colour imposes my vision scurity. For Deleuze-Bergson, things are lu- on me as a continuation of its own sover- minous with nothing but themselves to light eign existence them. It is consciousness that constitutes the opaque blade without which light would go 12 on to diffuse itself forever’.[20] 13 Deleuze Gilles, Francis Bacon. Pg 32

14 Deleuze

End Notes 15

1 This discussion of lux and lumin follows 16 ‘I am the absolute sourse, my existence Martin Jay’s line of thought In Downcast does not stem from my antecedents, from Eyes: the denigration of vision in Twenti- my physical and social environment; in- eth-Century Thought. University of Cali- stead it moves out towards them and fornia press 1994 sustains them, for I alone bring into being for myself (and therefore into being in 2 the only sense that the word can have for me) the tradition which I elect to carry on, 3 or the horizon whose distance from me 4 Merleau Ponty, Maurice. (1962) Phe- would be abolished - since that distance nomenology of Perception. Routledge is not one of its properties - if I were not Kegan Paul. London and Henley. pg ix there to scan it with my gaze.”

5 There is no such thing as sight not inter- 17 Merleau Ponty, Maruarce. (1962) grated with the real. The real is distance, Phenomenologyof Perception. Routledge space, air, atmosphere, geomentry. Sight, Kegan Paul. London and Henley. pg ix in other words has to be intergrated with 18 Deleuze Gilles Negociations pg 26 the other senses in order for us to ‘make sense’ of our experience of the world. 19 St PIERRE Elizabeth, Adams. Deleu- zian concepts for Education: the subject 6 Undone. Educational Philosophy and 7 This line of argument is more fully Theory: Deleuze and Education. Vol 36 worked out in Steven Zepke’s Art and No 3. July 2004. Blackwell Publishing. Abstract machine: Ontology and Aesthet- P 291 ics in Deleuze and Guattari. Routledge 20 Constantin V. Boundas. Deleuze-Berg- 2006 son: an Ontology of the Virtual. Deleuze:

53 Andrew Conio

a Critical Reader. Ed. Paul Patton. Black- well. 1977 p 84.

Biography

Andrew Conio is Senior Lecturer in Fine Art at the University of Wolverhampton and a PhD student at Wimbledon College of Art. He has exhibited art works and ilms in Lon- don galleries and recently published work in the New Internationaller magazine. The ilm created together with Judy Price, Rein- ing Memory, was premiered at the Museum of London in 2005 and subsequently shown at a number of locations around London including the Whitechapel Gallery, Curzon Soho and London’s City Hall. It was selected as a critics’ choice by London’s Time Out magazine.

54 Approaching Urban Space Through Drawing: the garden and the neighbourhood Helena Elias & Maria Constança Vasconcelos CICANT, Lusófona University, Lisbon (Centro de Investigação em Comunicação Aplicada, Cultura e Novas Tecnologias – Centre for Investigation in Applied Communication, Culture and New Technologies), Lusófona University 1. Abstract theorized and experienced space in different ways and some the fruition of the ur- Encouraged to relect on art education ban space in quite revolutionary views. This programmes, particularly drawing for de- means to incite students to go beyond just signers, we tried to develop methodologies technical responses to design considering and strategies that enhance the potential of the importance of conceptual frameworks. drawing for the needs of future designers. By contacting directly through drawing with Through relexive practice this paper deals concrete places, students achieve not only with the approach taken for the 3th year of a richer understanding of places and ambi- drawing related to space and its relation- ences, but also reveal to be more prepared ship with man and human activities. Using for innovative interventions. project work methodology we argue that drawing can enlarge its capacity as a tool Key words: relective practice; drawing in for creativity, thinking, research, problem the “expanded ield”; sensorial experience, solving and self-expression. Using students’ creativity; place identity examples, we will describe two projects (a garden and a neighbourhood in Lisbon) in which, contents of drawing were integrated. The metaphor “escape and permanence” 2. Introduction (two sensorial attitudes to space) to illustrate garden paths, works as a catalyst for Facing great changes in society related to the project of the garden. The incorpora- the new technologies and globalization, tion of abstract ideas from other ields, ex- the Bologna process argues that education ercises creative thinking, enhances senso- should move to a paradigm shift that stresses rial awareness and encourages students to long life learning skills instead of acquisi- see things from different perspectives. The tion of traditional knowledge. According to project of the neighbourhood begins by ex- Norman (2001) the paradigm shift needed ploring through drawing qualities and the includes transformations in the educational character of the site. The second part deals process that range from: Instruction to con- with a reinterpretation of concepts from ar- struction (the reinforcing of making and do- tistic practices that relected urban experi- ing in a way related to personal interests and ence. Cubism, Dadaism, Surrealism, Futur- needs that make the learning experience ism, Situationism were chosen since they memorable); from linear to hypermedia; 55 Helena Elias & Maria Constança Vasconcelos from teacher centered to learning centered judgment, drawing can contribute to visual (empowering students to take responsibil- intelligence and perceptual awareness. It is ity of their learning process and outcomes); also portrayed as a powerful instrument of from absorbing material to learning to learn; creativity helping to stimulate the right side from teachers as transmitters to teachers as of the brain (perceptive, non verbal, intui- facilitators; from learning to school to learn- tive, interpretive) essential to creativity and ing for life (involving skills needed to relearn working in pair with the left side (verbal, lin- continuously). ear, sequential, logical). Garner (1989) concludes based on case studies that drawing Design occupies a very speciic position appears to facilitate creativity in the most in art education because it is an area that fundamental sense since it develops capaci- uses different modes of reasoning such as ties associated to imagination, intuition, vi- rational, scientiic, creative and subjective. sual and spatial thinking. It is much accept- Combining functional and beautiful, deed that it is especially during the phases of signers work for people producing objects, sketching that drawing has a central role in images and systems that should contribute creativity in design activities since “dense- to quality of life. When talking of designer ness” and “ambiguity” of freehand sketches skills needed nowadays, aspects such as cre- allow multiple interpretations and identii- ativity and innovation, intellectual and cre- cation of problems stimulating new design ative lexibility, constant relearning, critical alternatives. According to Do and Gross awareness and capacity of working in teams (1996) through the act of drawing and look- are enhanced. With these ideas in mind we ing designers ind visual analogies, remem- were encouraged to relect on art education ber relevant examples, discover new shapes programmes, especially drawing for design- in previously unrecognized geometric con- ers, trying to articulate needs of future de- igurations in their sketches. Drawing as a signers with the potential of drawing. tool for thinking, exploration of ideas and manipulation of information has an important role in the comprehension of ill deined problems (Garner 1989). Problems emerge 3. The role and contributions in pair with solutions in the design process of drawing through drawing (Lawson 1990).

There are in literature many references and relections about the importance of drawing in education through the develop- 4. Drawing, sensorial aware- ment of fundamental skills. Aspects related ness and application in pro- to the improvement of visual intelligence and literacy, to creativity, drawing as a tool grammes for thinking and problem solving, drawing as a mean of self-expression and com- Drawing is an activity requiring a multi- munication are commonly referred. Being sensorial approach independently of the an effective way of learning to see by the kind of drawing produced or even presented enhancement of perception, drawing has as a process. Although the result of a draw- always been considered an important tool ing comes to be, in most cases, expressed to better understand the world and giving visually, justifying the great dependence on it a personal meaning. Through the promo- sight, several authors have claimed that not tion of capacities of observation, analysis, only other sensorial dimensions are involved selection, comprehension, memory and in the act of drawing but that sight is not suf- 56 Approaching Urban Space Through Drawing: icient for exercising representation. you”.

According to Connor (2006: 9): “what our senses are, and the kind of existence we have through them depends on their use Some famous authors of drawing manuals and exercise.” We found this quote relevant (Edwards, 1970; Ching, 1998; Cooper, 2007) when teaching drawing and we encourage are also focused on the importance of senses students to develop their work having in while making observational drawing requir- mind that drawing is not only a matter of ing the coordination eye, hand and object. sight. Since all senses are more or less stim- Their notes on the role of senses are very ulated whether it is an observation drawing, helpful when teaching observation drawing a speculative, a gestural or abstract one, in class. However we must also take into ac- we believe that the awareness students can count that over the 20th century the drawing have in the involvement of their senses will panorama in terms of practice has changed. contribute to richer approaches. Moreover Many art practitioners went through sev- senses, intuition, feelings and imagination eral levels of relection which opened new are relevant for design research. We base ways of inquiring, speculating and interpret- our arguments in many authors and art ing the world much less constrained on the practitioners who have written about draw- dominance of visual appearance that relies ing practice or have elected drawing as a on sight and imitation. In such context we fundamental medium of expression. will focus on the approaches portrayed by art practitioners who, while developing al- Harol Speed in 1913 highlighted the im- ternatives to observational drawing, high- portance of the sense of touch for line draw- lighted their sensorial experiences. ing when representing an object since it incorporates the knowledge acquired by The avant-garde challenged the traditional the previous experiences with the sense of ways of doing and seeing drawing. Surreal- touch. ism used several drawing techniques to de- ceive the rational control of representation Nicolaides (1969) frames his approach to as the cadavre exquis and automatic draw- drawing in a kinaesthetic and tactile way ings. Max Ernst developed the frottage, con- arguing that all the senses take part on this sisting in transferring material textures on activity because we “see through the eyes” to the paper in order to create new visual rather than “with the eyes”. Nicolaides experiences avoiding the immediate identi- (1969: 5) points out in his manual: ication of the object. This would lead the viewer, trough a kinaesthetic process, to the “Learning to draw is really a matter of construction of new association and mean- learning to see – to see correctly - and that ings. means a good deal more than merely looking with the eye. The sort of “seeing” I mean Recently, as many authors refer (Kovats is an observation that utilizes as many of the 2005:15, Dexter 2005:8) drawing achieved ive senses as can reach through the eye at its own status within the contemporary art one time. Although you use your eyes, you practice. This approach to drawing had aldo not close up the other senses – rather, the ready been followed since the dematerial- reverse, because all the senses have a part in ization of the art work (Lippard 1997) and the sort of observation you are to make”(...) concepts of the expanded ield (Krauss “You see what you can discover through 1979). The blur of disciplines enhanced other senses – hearing, taste, touch, smell, drawing as a fair medium to be presented as and eyes alone they can sometimes mislead work and accepted as a way of recording an 57 Helena Elias & Maria Constança Vasconcelos action or an intellectual statement (Kovats to give drawing a purpose (Vasconcelos e 2005), enlarging the possibilities of what a Elias 2007). Drawing is considered as an act drawing might be (Dexter 2005). of making things, mainly a process with results. The speciicity of drawing for designers Framed by this context many artists elected is that they must design things that do not yet drawing as the principal medium of their exist. As Cooper (2007:) states: “Whereas the works. The attention given to “process” rath- work of a painter might legitimately remain er than “result” has brought many artists to focused on the reception and interpretation work with the performative aspect of draw- of sensation from the visual world, that of ing. By evidencing the process of their work the architect and designer must be directed artists have also exposed the practice of their squarely at the task of constructing some- sensorial experiences. Referents using per- thing that does not yet exist”. We consider ception of the senses as a starting point for techniques as tools at the service of ideas artistic work are common in contemporary and emotions one wants to express and not art. The Portuguese artist Helena Almeida ends by themselves. Good grammar is not presented a drawing index to enhance the enough to write a good story, more impor- relationship between body and the space tant is the interest and complexity of ideas of a drawing when she was actually draw- at stake. We argued elsewhere (Vasconcelos ing. Works of other artists like Robert Morris & Elias 2006) that drawing will beneit as an or Claude Heat highlighted senses such as “Expanded ield” (based on Rosalind Krauss touch or movement in the act of drawing. For (1979) concepts where the usual format is the Blind Time Drawing (1973), a work con- enlarged to encompass different “corporali- cerning process and product, Morris started ties” interacting with related areas in cross with a set of instructions while drawing with fertilization. We share with Molina (2002) the eyes closed or blindfolded. Claude Heat the vision that drawing does not stop in the based some of his works in the relationship means used but in the capacity of organiz- between touching/seeing and cognition. ing its data to create a meaning. Within this context we selected as broad objectives to As any other human activity drawing is dy- be tackled in the programme for the 3th year namic relecting conditions and costumes of drawing: of its own time. Each time has its own language. The question is to deine what is Develop creative capacities and imagina- drawing language now. Above all it seems tion – expand the ield of drawing to beneit to be an eclectic one, privileging diversity from other areas such as photography, cin- where classical barriers in speciic domains ema, video, literature, science (cross fertil- are being blurred, where low and high tech- ization) nology can coexist. As Molina (2002) refers the modern drawing articulates and uses Consider investigation as an attitude on the procedures from different realities. basis of fundamental choices. Explore a vast amount of ideas, concepts and techniques What could be the contribution of drawing which could support individual approaches as a discipline in this context? We argue that drawing can be used at the service of future Use the very base of the design process designers to develop sensorial perception, through project work applied to drawing. creativity, intuition, motivation to challenge Contact with reality. Foster critical thinking environment, relect on changes, create and and personal relection. Encourage develop- develop new visions. We consider the im- ment of individual personalities and styles portance of project work as a methodology with capacities to challenge the status quo

58 Approaching Urban Space Through Drawing:

garden. It is just given to students a site plan of a garden in its abstract generic forms they 5. Urban space trough draw- cannot recognize and where they should highlight a path to be represented. This path ing: Sense of place in a gar- should illustrate the metaphor “escape” and den and a neighbourhood “permanence”. Working as a catalyst for the project this metaphor depicts two opposite The purpose of the programme is to study poetical and sensorial attitudes to space. space and its relationship with man and hu- Concepts and key words used for Escape: man activities. Both product and graphic Blurred / confused / lost / labyrinth / tran- design involve a relevant spatial compo- sitory / unbalanced /dramatic/ ampliied nent, which should be developed and syn- senses / distorted space references / space thesized through the use of imagery. Spatial fragmentation / stress/ reaction by instinct. relationships and the qualities of different For Permanence: Focused / detailed/ zoom / spaces should be experienced in order to static / contemplative/ peaceful / balanced/ broaden comprehension of space and en- fruition / concentrated / quiet / frozen time. largement of design vocabulary. Urban The brief asked for a visual “dictionary”, a space, undoubtedly offers a great potential story board and the presentation of 10 draw- to achieve this. The direct contact with the ings A3 for the “escape” path and 10 more environment calls for the observation of for the ”permanence” one (ig 1 – 4). spatial relationships, qualities of different spaces and human activities which can be How is sensorial experience engaged in experienced at different levels of sensorial the process of creating a pictorial language perception. We will describe these projects, to represent “escape and permanence” as to using students’ examples in which, contents different attitudes of experiencing space? of drawing were integrated in order to get Research is required in several aspects such the most of its potential through the meth- as types of gardens, vegetation and construct- odology of project work. At the same time ed elements, atmospheres, sounds, smells, we will show how students, although devel- the way people use gardens. Investigation is oping and presenting their work mostly in also required for the representation of sensa- a visual manner, managed to use their sen- tions such as calm, peace versus movement, sorial experience highlighting that drawing anxiety, drama, corresponding to different needs multi-sensorial consciousness. visual languages. Slides with the history of gardens were presented to students as well as some parts of ilms. We choose extracts of Blow-up, Pleasant Ville, Blair Witch Project, 6. The Garden Run Lola Run, Tren de Sombras which could be associated to sensations of “escape and After a review in classes of concepts of permanence” expressed through different perspective and classical problems of rep- points of view (stable, dynamic, perspective resentation two different spaces were cho- effects, zoom effects, different plots, sensori- sen to work: a botanical garden and an old al awareness). The incorporation of abstract neighbourhood in downtown city of Lisbon. ideas from other ields such as cinema, liter- The project of the garden comprises three ature, photography among others, exercises phases using drawing in different ways. creative thinking, enhances sensorial aware- 1st phase - Representation through specu- ness and encourages students to see things lative drawing of a “path” in an idealized from different perspectives. As stated by

59 Helena Elias & Maria Constança Vasconcelos

Weeks (2005:14): “It is scientiically proven that multi/sense experiences are generally more memorable and more stimulating than single sense experiences”.

When asking students to search a visual grammar for these concepts we encouraged them to draw from memory a range of sensations based on their own sensorial experience. Students often reach back into their memories to ind inspiration as well as observing people behaviours, moods and experiencing themselves different situations. Memories might be materialized trough Fig 2: Student’s illustration of “permanence” and marks, textures and images recorded trough escape” paths in the garden (overlap of drawings in inkjet transparency ilm) rubbing, stamping or other techniques considered appropriate. Students explore a vast amount of ideas, concepts and techniques through experimentation, which could support individual approaches to “permanence and escape” to be stored in a visual atlas. Archives and projects of some artists are given as a reference for organizing their data collection. The story board is then made to understand physical spatiality in the imaginary garden and its transformation trough “escape and permanence”. By establishing Fig 3: Student’s illustration of “permanence” and connections between the information gath- escape” paths in the garden (vectorial drawing) ered and the paths drawn in the given map such as narrow paths, cross paths, students deine which permanence and escape pathways as well as transitory territories may suit their purposes.

Fig 4: Student’s illustration of a “permanence” path in the garden (ink on paper)

2nd phase - The same “path” used in speculative drawing will then be depicted in confrontation with the real garden, through Fig 1: Student’s illustration of an “escape” path in observational drawing, trying to be con- the garden (charcoal on paper) scious and register what is really there. Stu-

60 Approaching Urban Space Through Drawing: dents were asked to make a relection on to understand drawing as an expanded ield differences between speculative and obser- allowing multi sensorial experiences. The vational drawings. project presents two phases. The irst one is dedicated to understand and explore in 3rd phase - The last part of this work asks depth, through life drawing, qualities and students an intervention in the real garden, character of the site: architecture, activities, which qualities and characteristics they people and atmospheres. Some classes are know now so well. It is proposed to them reserved to sketch and draw on the place to use their designerly skills not only to ask with speciic exercises in order to enlarge questions and ind problems but also as drawing vocabulary such as: skyline draw- problem solvers in a real context. The inter- ings, representation through vertical lines, ventions could assume the form of propos- depict recession just using street signals and als of objects to improve any aspect of the urban elements, studies of colour, sketching garden or to promote its image, or specula- people in their activities and more inished tive visionary interventions relecting rela- drawings. tionship nature/man (projects for illustration of stories, sculptures, video, or site speciic The second stage begins with a theoretical installations). Key words for the exercise approach, where several art/cultural practic- are: touch, sound, sight, smell, kinaesthesia, es are reviewed, summarized and its main equilibrium, language, interpretation, mem- concepts debated. Cubism, Dadaism, Surre- ory and imagination. Students select specif- alism, Futurism, Situationism were chosen ic areas of the garden for their interventions since they have theorized, represented and and explore positively the attributes of the experienced the concept of space in dif- space. Senses play a fundamental part in ferent ways and some of them the fruition this phase whether the result takes the form of the urban space in quite revolutionary of a site speciic installation or the design of views. Careri (2002) framework considering any piece of equipment (Fig 5). walking as a critical tool and as an aesthetic practice was very useful. Based on Careri (2002) we presented concepts of the banal city of Dadaists, the unconscious and on- iric city of the Surrealists (in opposition to the hypertechnological utopias of Futurism), and the playful and nomadic city of the Situ- ationists. Students are then asked to portray the neighbourhood studied through the eyes Fig 5: Some students interventions in the garden: of one of these approaches (Fig. 6). The in- planning a tea place; an ecological puff; a jazz tention is to stick essentially to relevant con- event cepts and not only to aspects of representations. This corresponds again to the creative process of translation, to incorporate ideas, in this case from the world of art/cultural 7. The Neighbourhood experiences into their own work, transcending borderlines of disciplines. Knowledge This project deals with the old neighbour- on these relevant paradigms in the history hood of Santa Catarina in Lisbon city cen- of contemporary culture enlarges their per- tre. The idea was to foster an encompass- spectives and facilitates the appearance of ing knowledge of places through the use of new proposals and tendencies. To contex- sensorial awareness and encourage students tualize and re-contextualize those practices

61 Helena Elias & Maria Constança Vasconcelos through a relexive attitude represents new As future problem solvers students need to possible approaches to innovative propos- develop creative self expression, visual and als. This means to incite students to go be- sensorial intelligence to avoid a “design by yond just technical responses to design guidelines culture” centered on functional- and consider the importance of conceptual ity, but also feel that approaches taken must frameworks in their work. be rooted conceptually and not arbitrarily. By contacting directly with existing places In both exercises (garden and neighbour- and atmospheres, students achieve not only hood) they used conventional drawing tech- a richer understanding of places and ambi- niques (sketching, life-drawing) and mixed ence but also reveal to be more prepared for media (collage, analogical and digital draw- innovative interventions. ing, printing, painting, and 3D modeling).

References

BLAZWICK, I & GRAHAM, J. (2003) Ger- hard Richter, Atlas the Reader. London: Whitechapel

CASSIN J. (2004) Beyond the DDA. In A Sense of Place, Conference Report, 2004, June 30 – July 1, pp 17-20 Fig 6: The neighbourhood based on surrealist and situationist concepts CARERI, F. (2002) Walkscapes: Walking as an Aesthetic practice. Barcelona: Gustavo Gili

8. Conclusions CHING, D.K & JUROSZEK, S. P. (2001) Rep- resentação Gráica para Desenho e Projec- Design is an integrative activity which to. Barcelona: Gustavo Gili operates across a variety of different disciplines and areas. Drawing is just one dis- CONNOR, S. (2006) The Menagerie of the cipline in our design education curricula, Senses, In The Senses and Society 1, 2006 although relevant due to its very potential pp 9-26. to contribute to design thinking. The strategy we have followed tries to make a balance COOPER, Douglas (2007) (4th ed) Draw- between the traditional role of drawing (de- ing and Perceiving: Real-World Drawing for picted in manuals we still consider essen- Students of Architecture and Design. USA: tial for its operability) while opening other John Wiley & Sons possibilities by enlarging its ield, bringing the contribution of other areas, encourag- DEXTER, (2005). Introduction. In Vitamine ing the creative coexistence through experi- D: New Perspectives in Drawing. London: mentation of different techniques. This pro- Phaidon gramme questions drawing for designers, tries to stimulate creativity, research, sen- DO, E. & GROSS. M. D. (1996) Drawing as a sorial awareness, visual thinking, put con- means to design reasoning, Paper presented tents within contexts, use design thinking at Design 96 Workshop on Visual Represen- and problem solving through project work. tation, Reasoning and Interaction in Design,

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Palo Alto, CA. (1996) University

EDWARDS, B. (1970) Drawing on the Art- SPEED, H. (2004) (1913) The Practice and ist Within: How to release Your Hidden Cre- Science Of Drawing, http://www.gutenberg. ativity. New York: Harper Collins org/iles/14264/14264.txt: Project Guten- berg E-book: December 6, 2004 [E-Book GARNER, S. W. (1989) Drawing and Design- #14264] ing: Exploration and Manipulation Through Two-Dimensional Modelling. In Dater 1989, TRACEY (2007) Drawing Now: Between the pp 43-50 lines of contemporary art. London: I.B. Tau- ris & CO Ltd. GOLDSMITH, G. (1992) The Dialectics of sketching. In Design Studies Vol 4 pp123- VASCONCELOS, M & ELIAS, H. (2006) O 143 Campo Expandido do Desenho e Suas Práti- cas Criativas. In Caleidoscópio, pp 67-80. KOVATS, T. (2005) The Drawing Book, a sur- Lisboa: Universidade Lusófona vey of drawing: the primary means of expression. London: Black Dog Publishing VASCONCELOS, M & ELIAS, H. (2007) Questioning Drawing for Designers. In KRAUSS, R. (1979) Sculpture in the Expand- Wonderground, Design Research Society, ed Field. In October, Spring 1979, 8, pp 30- International Conference, 2006, Lisbon 44 WEEKS, R. (2004) Quest International: How LAWSON, B (1990) (2nd ed) How Design- smells can enhance a place. In SENSORY ers Think. Oxford: Butterworth Architecture TRUST (2004) A Sense of Place Conference Report 24 June- 1 July, pp14-16 LIPPARD, L. (1997) Six Years: The Dema- terialization of the Art Object from 1966 to 1972. Berkeley: University of California Press

MOLINA, J. J. G. & CABEZAS, L. & BORDES, J. (2001) El Manual de Dibujo: Estrategias de Su Enseñanza en el Siglo XX. Madrid: Cátedra

MOLINA, J. J. G. (2002) Máquinas de dibu- jar: territorios y escenarios del dibujo. In Molina, J. J. G. (2002) (coord) Máquinas y Herramientas del Dibujo pp15-80. Madrid: Cátedra

NICOLAIDES, K. (1969) The Natural Way to Draw: A Working Plan for Art Study. USA: Houghton Miflin Company

NORMAN, J. (2001) Design as a framework for innovative thinking and learning: how can design thinking reform education?. In IDATER 2001, pp 90-99, Loughborough

63 Helena Elias & Maria Constança Vasconcelos

Acknowledgements

Hugo (Fig 1); Joana Lemos (Fig 2); Sónia Zacarias (Fig 3); João Machado (Fig 4); Ana Silva, Joana Francisco and Joana Couto (Fig 5); Carla Dembo and Ana Pereira (Fig 6).

Biographies

Helena Elias & Maria Constança Vascon- celos Lecturer at the Lusófona University, Department of Sciences of Communication, Arts and Technologies, Lisbon, teaching drawing in design courses.

Members of CICANT (Centro de Investiga- ção em Comunicação Aplicada, Cultura e Novas Tecnologias – Centre for Investigation in Communication, Culture and New Tech- nologies) – Lusófona University, Lisbon, Portugal.

Maria Constança Vasconcelos is the Co- ordinator of drawing in the course of design at Lusofona University (Lisbon) and member of the DRN - Drawing Research Network.

Helena Elias is member of the PAUDO – Public Art and Urban Design Observatory and member of the DRN - Drawing Re- search Network.

64 “Blacktop: A story of the washing of a schoolyard” Suzanne Ewing University of Edinburgh

Introduction Charles and Ray Eames’ second ilm (made in 1952, reprinted in 1989) explores the ab- In this presentation I aim to draw attention stract beauty of soapy water washing down to a made piece of work which I feel is suc- an asphalt schoolyard, accompanied to the cessfully urban and successfully sensory. It sound of Bach’s Goldberg Variations. The is a small moment of literal urban action (ur- ilm won an Award at the Edinburgh In- banism?). It is a short ilm made by design- ternational Film Festival in 1954, and has ers, who were using ilm (moving image) been categorised as one of their ‘toy’ ilms and sound (imported score), not multi-mod- (Schrader, 1970), where they focused on al in content or representation or research, and respected everyday, often overlooked but in creating a space of experiment, for objects, for what they were, whether ma- the imagination to ill with literal qualities of chine or craft based. In some ways they sound, touch, taste and smell. Two particular have been seen as working as scientists, a aspects of ‘sensory urbanism’ which I would sort of sophisticated play method. Charles like to explore further- irstly understanding Eames has been famously quoted “They’re time and temperature as implicit particular not experimental ilms, they’re not really conditions fundamental to understanding ilms. They’re just attempts to get across an and documenting a place, secondly focus- idea” (Schrader, p2; Kirkham) ing on the everyday public spaces of play- grounds, playparks, allotments etc which In ilmmaking they found the characteris- operate at a more neighbourhood scale in tics that they were trying to bring out in their urban territory than the usually examined contemporary furniture design and other ar- (and deemed ‘urban’) city centre public eas of work (Plywood Chair,1945-6, Case (though often privatised) spaces. The de- Study House 1949, Wire Mesh Chair, 1951- liberate absence or emptiness of this urban 53, House of Cards game 1952, Lounge moment aims to draw the viewer/listener to Chair 1956-8, Eames Report raising stan- consider afresh a marginal, hidden aspect dards of design training 1950s). of collective everyday neighbourhood use. I “there is apt to be nothing self-conscious will show a clip of the ilm at the end of this about the use of materials”. Their work in presentation to be seen, heard, viewed and ilm and graphics has been seen as a fusion read by this conference audience to hope- of the folkloric and mass-manufactured. fully continue some thoughts this paper raises in further discussion. 65 Suzanne Ewing

Of course a second preoccupation of the the 4th in a series Bach called ‘Claview Eameses work was communication, and en- Ubung’ (keyboard practice). The inscription gagement with the newly emerging US con- of a frontispiece says “ composed for consumer. Kirkham has pointed out that much noisseurs, for the refreshment of their spir- of their wider ilm output was in the genre of its” (wikipedia). The form of the 30 Varia- sponsored ilms (IBM, Herman Miller, West- tions is: inghouse, ABC, Boeing, Polaroid), - Black- top is an exception- and that Charles and Aria (statement) 2 sections of 16 bars, Ray Eames’ work as communicators and each repeated educators was of equal importance to their design and architecture. “Indeed it was their Variations following bass line (fundamen- desire to transmit to others their passion for tal bass) ideas and objects that led them into ilm, Canon (following ascending pattern) multi-media presentations and exhibition design.” (Kirkham p3) Genre piece (baroque dance, fughetta, French overture, ornate aria) Over their working partnership of 40 years, they made 80 ilms and amassed 750,000 Arabesque images, mostly slides, now held in the Li- brary of Congress, as part of the Eames Of- Quodlibet (earthy folk songs ‘animated ice. In wider context, in the 1950s in the US rustic feel’) television was expanding, and movie cameras becoming available. The Eameses being Aria da capo e ine in LA also had contact with studios and the movie industry. Genres such as sponsored ilms were very popular- in 1959, 54000 were made in the US, while just 223 feature Variation 13 has been identiied as ‘sub- ilms were made. They wrote little about lime’, and an ‘emotional turning point’. their work, and discouraged others to write about them. Paul Schrader’s article “Poetry of Ideas: The Films of Charles Eames” was Angela Hewitt (www.goldbergvariations. a rare article published in their lifetime- in com) writes: Film Quarterly in 1970; Neuhart + Neuhart published a catalogue of their work 1941- “[ Its character and rhythm is] that of a 78 in collaboration with Ray Eames after digniied, stately sarabande, full of tender- Charles’ death; Pat Kirkham’s “Charles and ness and poise. It is highly embellished in Ray Eames: Designers of the Twentieth Cen- the French tradition- meaning that the orna- tury” (19 ) developed a fuller critique of their ments are an essential part of the melodic work, also positioning a feminist critique, line, not optional extras…. Bach builds a drawing out Ray’s more marginalised role. magniicent ediice that is beautifully pro- Recently Beatriz Colomina has critically portioned and astonishingly varied.. There looked at their work, the Case study house, is a strong visual component- thanks to the and their multi media presentations. An spectacular hand-crossings- that makes it Eames Film Festival ‘Design within Reach’ fascinating to the spectator…It is certainly was held in the US in November 2006. one of the most therapeutic pieces of music.” Bach’s Goldberg Variations – for 2 manual harpsichords, were published irst in 1741, “Of all the ilms, Blacktop is the one most

66 “Blacktop: A story of the washing of a schoolyard” orthodoxly in the mode of the short ‘art on the existing spaces and networks of a ilm’. Its main appeal lies in the rare visual home, or destination city (an embankment poetry of abstract patterns changing in time highway in the case of Paris-Plage). to Bach’s Goldberg Variations. The Eames stated that their aim in making it was ‘to see The success of Paris-Plage, irst held in what happens when you put one variation 2002 on the right bank of the Seine, caught over another, visual form over musical ones, the intersecting imaginations of European and the result was quite extraordinary…” city dwellers and legislators enough for this constructed displacement and suspension of “to see ordinary things aftresh- to offer a ‘everyday’ urban rules to be repeated. Urban new vision of an everyday object or event. beach ‘events’ (projects? theatres? parks?) The Neuhart’s point out that ‘Blacktop was have been mimicked elsewhere in France- a “live action-extension of the [still pho- Toulouse, Lyons, also along the Quai des tographic] studies of the seashore Charles Péniches in Brussels, the Parco Sempione made in his irst years in California…to rein Milan, in Budapest, Prague, Berlin, and cord close ups of tide pools and the natural have been proposed for London. textures of the water and the sand.” They had an interest in how as well as what the eye These are (hetero) topoi of ‘sites of tempo- saw, and in recording images. “You must be rary relaxation’ (Chaplin summarises Fou- committed to the subject, to the discipline cault: “Heterotopias which have the power of the concept involved, not to the medium. of juxtaposing in a single real place differ- In the process you may make a good ilm.” ent spaces and locations that are incompat- (An amateur using 16mm Cine-special cam- ible with each other. Foucault cited theatres, era- adjusting parallax technically tricky). cinemas and gardens.

“The Eameses believed in hard work rather In heterotopias of juxtaposition there is a than inspiration…they believed that one of perpetual accumulation of items or expe- life’s main objectives was to get as many of riences over time, such as with museums, the rewards of life from the work that you libraries, holiday camps and traveling fairs, do. (Kirkham p8) where these spaces function as “hetero- chronisms” which can either be permanent or ephemeral….The heterotopia exists between the two poles of illusion and Sensory Urbanism: Time and compensation”. Foucault Of Other Spaces 1967): sites of Variation, where juxtaposi- Temperature (Variation and tion and unexpected activity is seen as an Refreshment) essence of desirable urbanism. the Day- dream living at the urban beaches is the There is an orthodox (mainstream) crav- simulation and marketing of the everyday of ing for a certain idea of publicness, as con- collective childhood experiences of beach structed in the post-millennium urban beach holidays and wider horizons, of escape and events of European cities. Their proliferation relaxed social codes, a time for refreshment, can be seen as part of a literal mediterraniza- reinvention, the suspension of ties and duty, tion of cities deined by reference points of the possibilities of creating “a temporary aquatic infrastructure (rivers, canals). The utopia”. opportunity to escape the everyday is provided through literal fabrication and tempo- Problematic development issues related to rary remaking of the urban realm overlaid environmental quality, control, amenable recreation and transport access of real post- 67 Suzanne Ewing industrial urban waterfronts and beaches The Absence of the Sea (developing gated apartment blocks of Edin- burgh’s developing Waterfront for example) are suspended. I argue that these urban And The Absence of the City beach events are an example of a relative- The shared goal by all actors was the di- ly positive attempt to create an alternative, version of the bank of the Seine from its albeit temporary, public milieu, one that city function- the displacement of usually consciously attempts to realign and to ‘act passing cars since George Pompidou estab- away’ some perceived ills of the contempo- lished the high speed expressway in 1967. rary public realm in the city. In the context This was a “political act”, “a project” in of contemporary network space and soci- which city authorities, the press, dwellers ety, they are an example of an ‘integrating and visitors were all complicit. Rhetoric gesture’, where the simulation of a common about this being exemplary of the possibili- experience of place, in this case ‘the beach’, ties of contemporary public life and pub- is used to establish a local node interrupt- lic space in a European city was driven by ing a place of wider lows, here to reafirm Mayor Bertrand Delanoë and his electoral a coherence, collective civic potential and promises to reduce trafic and congestion in use of historic city riverfronts. the urban the city of Paris, and perhaps also a sense beach event depends on its clearly deined of a wider spotlight- the designation of the spatial and temporal limits to sustain a cer- banks of the Seine as a World Heritage site tain outworking of ‘publicness’ and ‘public since 1991. Note the event representations life’ in the city. The juxtaposition of beach which by Paris Plage 2004 graphically erase (representing nature, openness, reinvention, representation of the urban, retaining only renewal) and street (representing culture, a code of water (blue), beach (gold), access urban order, the city) is suggestive of a con- networks(names) and designated locations sciously created heterotopia (juxtaposition, of activities. collage, variation). The artiice of the operation was literally In Paris between 2002 and 2004, a very stage managed. The designers, Jean Chris- speciic beach scene has been acted out (or tophe Choblet, a scenographer, and his performed); one based primarily on cosmo- team which included sociologists, describe politan Mediterranean beach experiences of Paris-Plage “The playful, slightly rebellious the 1920s/ 1930s European elite. French ur- transiguration of the space…The highway ban anthropologists Michele De La Pradelle became a stage, as if in a theatre. And on and Emmanuelle Lallement conclude that that stage people played at “being at the Paris-Plage is effectively a performance of beach””. So the designers and participants a beach scene. “What may seem to be a both had to work together to make the idea promenade or a sort of seaside beachfront, of the sea present, a state of being at not on the kind found in French resorts from Deau- the beach. De la Pradelle and Lallement dis- ville to Nice, is actually a completely artii- cover in their ieldwork investigations that cial operation, resulting from the actions of the willingness of those visiting and partici- a great many actors with different abilities pating in Paris Plage to be interviewed and and with a wide variety of interests”. They photographed demonstrated the consensual argue that the success of this “theatrical understanding that they were participating event” depended on two key absences- in a theatrical production. The individuals behaved as actors with a role, rather than as suspicious citizens or individuals. People

68 “Blacktop: A story of the washing of a schoolyard” did what was expected of them, what had In the case of Paris-Plage and the spawned been planned. urban beaches across mainly Northern Eu- rope, this southern/ Mediterranean attrac- They propose that by extension Paris Plage tion is evident. is an actualisation of a new special city where “every place would belong to everyone”. By erasing a critical aspect of the reality of the developed twentieth century “Blacktop: A story of the city -cars, expressway link, and critically the feeling of being a constant consumer, they washing of a schoolyard” argue that it is possible to overlay a new city of some sort on the edited existing. Some thoughts about the relevance of the ilm: (the Eameses would probably hate In an interesting exploration of the unique any analysis, though musicians comments character of Mediterranean cities, Henri would be interesting) Lefebvre and Catherine Régulier draw attention to the lack of homogeneity of Mediter- ranean shores, noting that they essentially Time- temperature have a primarily solar rhythm (as opposed to lunar, tidal ones in oceanic situations) . “If Variations- refreshment it is true that Mediterranean cities are solar cities, one can expect a more intense urban Diversity water, cleansing (hot life than in lunar cities, but also one richer climate setting) in contrasts inside the city itself” They question what is speciic to M cities? “It seems to Heterogeneity collective civic agree- us that in these, urban space, that is public ments- cleansing/edu space, becomes the site of a vast scene-set- cation/work ting…. Rituals, codes and relations become visible and are acted out. A city where ‘actors and the public are the same in the multiplicity of their roles and relations’…a free- Watching this ilm (even without orchestral dom that depends on “being free in the city score) does, I feel infer a sense of the above outside the State” “The citizen resists the qualities: as well as experimenting with the State by a particular use of time. A struggle notion of variations of form, it is a work of therefore unfolds for appropriation in which physical and mental refreshment. rhythms play a major role. Through them social, therefore, civil, time seeks and man- ages to shield itself from State, linear, uni- While not deviating from the literal docu- rhythmical measured and measuring time. mentation and observation of soapy water Thus the public space, space of represen- on the asphalt surface of a particular neigh- tation, ‘spontaneously’ becomes place of bourhood schoolyard, it creates a sophisti- promenades, encounters, intrigues, diplo- cated space for the material and narrative macy, trade and negotiation, theatricalizing imagination. The attentiveness to the small itself. Time is hence linked to space and to part seems to require an inilling of the qual- the rhythms of the people who occupy this ities of the surrounding environment, the space”. John Urry notes that ‘going south’ temperature of the air, of the water, the ma- is associated with sensuality, decadence, terial qualities of surfaces and edges. What glamour, contrasts with a ‘spiritual’ north. is absent is the sound of actual brushing,

69 Suzanne Ewing swishing, slopping, buckets, body (bodies) London & New York, 2000: Routledge working. It is certainly speciically sited in time- the methods (brush and body labour Sarah Chaplin ‘Heterotopia Deserta: Las to hoses and machines?) and surfaces may Vegas and other spaces’ Chapter 12 pp203- have changed in 55 years (blacktop, paint 220 and mesh to soft rubber and plasticized metal), and will of course have an impact M. Christine Boyer The city of collective on the frequency and duration of the act of memory. The historical imagery and archi- washing. 11 edited minutes of ilm footage tectural entertainments, Cambs., Mass., is surely a small proportion of the actual 1996: MIT Press time it took to wash the schoolyard. Joan Copjec, Michael Sorkin ed. Giving The focus on the everyday – literally often Ground. The politics of propinquity, Lon- overlooked- surface of the ground, and an don, 1999: Verso everyday or weekly or whatever) event is of Ariella Azoulay, ‘Save as Jerusalems’ Chap- course heightened by the camera angle, re- ter 4 pp131-161 inforcing the subject of washing, rather than playing noisily as we would expect of a Rosalyn Deutsche ‘Reasonable Urbanism’ schoolyard, and by the overlay of the ‘high’ Chapter 6 pp175-206 music of Bach. The local neighbourhood playground has the potential for civic en- Michèle De La Pradelle, Emmanuelle Lalle- counter and participation. The ilm takes us ment, Paris Plage: “The City is ours” in Being to imagine other hidden spaces and times in Here and Being There: Fieldwork Encoun- the city ‘out of hours’/ beneath the surface. ters and Ethnographic Discoveries. Special It is assumed that the time of day is early Editors: Elijah Anderson, Scott N. Brooks, or late, the temperature therefore perhaps Raymond Gunn, and Nikki Jones. The An- cooler, the asphalt less hot than mid- day- nals of the American Academy of Political time, the air quieter, the soapy odour etc. and Social Science. Volume 595, pp134- The removal of actual sound from the ilm is 145, September 2004 signiicant- allowing all other senses to syn- thesise and interrelate in the imagination, or Michel Foucault The Order of Things. An ar- perhaps heightened at various points in the chaeology of the Human Sciences, London, music. It excludes and therefore the abstrac- 2000: Routledge (Let mots et les choses irst tion and enjoyment of pattern, form, state- published Paris 1966: Editions Gallimard; ment, Variation, Juxtaposition, overlay, Col- English edition irst published 1970, UK: lage etc is conversely more convincing and Tavistock) durable. Kurt Iveson ‘Justifying Exclusion: the politics of public space and the dispute over access to McIvers ladies’ baths, Sydney’, Gender, References Place and Culture, Vol. 10, No.3 pp215- 228, September 2003 Sara Ahmed Strange Encounters. Embodied Others in Post-Coloniality, London & New Charles Jencks Heteropolis. Los Angeles. York, 2000: Routledge The riots and the strange beauty of hetero- architecture, London, 1993: Academy Edi- Iain Borden, Jane Rendell ed. Intersections. tions Architectural Histories and Critical Theories, Lawrence Kritzman, ed. Michel Foucault. 70 “Blacktop: A story of the washing of a schoolyard” Politics Philosophy Culture. Interviews and Biography other writings 1977-1984, London & New York, 1984: Routledge Suzanne Ewing is an architect and educa- tor. She studied Architecture at Cambridge Henri Lefebvre Writings on Cities, trans/ eds. University, and has worked in practice in Eleonore Kofman, Elizabeth Lebas, Oxford London, Glasgow and Edinburgh. Over the & Cambs., Mass., 1996: Blackwell course of the past 9 years she has taught at all levels of architectural education, and has W.J.T.Mitchell Landscape and Power, Chi- been involved in many European city ield- cago & London, 1994, 2002: The University trips (Glasgow, Paris, Madrid, Cadiz). She of Chicago Press has published in the Journal of Architecture, Michael Taussig ‘The Beach (A Fantasy)’ Traditional Dwellings and Settlement Re- Chapter 11 pp317-347 view, Architectural Design. The invention and siting of working practices has been a Monique Mosser, Georges Teyssot, ed. The preoccupation since forming zone archi- Architecture of Western Gardens, Cambs., tects with David Jamieson in 2002. Mass. 1991: MIT Press (irst published Mi- lan, 1990: Electa)

Isabelle Auricoste “Leisure Parks in Europe: Ongoing research is currently concerned Entertainment and Escapism’ pp 483-494 with developing a critical understanding of ‘The Site Visit in Architectural Education’ and Galen Cranz ‘The reform park in the United she has recently been awarded a Carnegie States (1900-1930)’ pp466-468 Trust Grant to develop this. In 2007-2008 she is leading the inal year of the 2 year Thomas von Joest ‘Haussman’s Paris: A Masters of Architecture course at the Uni- Green Metropolis?’ pp387-398 versity of Edinburgh, with a studio theme: “Salt city: ieldworks-augmented proximi- Paul Rabinow, ed. The Foucault Reader: An ties” based on collective empirical studies Introduction to Foucault’s thought, London, and research in Cadiz, Spain. 1991: Penguin (irst published New York, 1984: Pantheon)

John Urry The Tourist Gaze, London, 2nd ed. 2002: sage

Ken Worpole Here comes the sun. Architec- ture and public space in twentieth-century European culture, London, 2000: Reaktion

** Lencek and Bosker The Beach: The history of paradise on earth, London, 1998: Secker & Warburg

71 Transit Spaces Inside-Out (side) Moscow’s Metro(scape) Wael Salah Fahmi UDERS, Helwan University, Cairo

Abstract constructed through neo-lâneur’s interrela- tionships within post soviet Metro(scape), The current paper proposes a post-tour- whilst witnessing the fetishism of commodi- ist’s journey through Moscow’s post-soviet ication and aestheticisation of Moscow’s Metro(scape) and transit spaces (October postmodern urban consumption. 2003), engendering frameworks of place and memory and time-space compression (Fahmi 2003, 2004), between the ret- rospective projected grandeur of Stalinist Transit Spaces and Post- spatial monumentality and the neo-realist Tourism cityscapes of the postmodern urban scenery. This is a situational representation of Postmodern leisure theory has heralded the a neo-lâneur’s navigation inside-out of arrival of the ‘post-tourist’ deined as a “play- transit spaces within Moscow’s post-soviet ful, ironic, and sometimes formally individ- Metro(scape), employing digital imageries ualized attitude to sight-seeing” (Rojek and and textual narratives, relecting the hybrid Urry 1997: 62), in terms of “proliferation of architecture of post-soviet Metro(scape) and images and signs presented as spectacles” Moscow’s postmodern urban scenery. (Bryman 1995: 176) . In one sense we do live in a society of spectacle in which most Moscow’s Metro(scape), as heterotopian environments have been transformed into setting in contesting ontologies of a soci- diverse and collectable spectacles (Debord ety in transition, is experienced as hybrid 1994). This is related to MacCannell’s (1976) transit spaces at the frontier of post-soviet interpretation of the relationship between transformation. As spatial infrastructure and the tourist and sight in terms of the visual venue for contested social spaces, post-so- reproduction of tourist attractions as a se- viet Metro(scape)’s spatiality is phenomeno- miotic structure and a sign which involves logically experienced as ‘a series of stages’ the creation of travelogues, brochures, post- enacting a variety of (re) (de) constructed lo- cards and souvenirs . cal identities (petty traders, commuters, urban youth) under time-space compression. Whilst Urry’s (1990) notion of the ‘tourist The sensory experience of navigating a me- gaze’ has become paradigmatic in explain- tropolis under transition attempts at weav- ing tourists’ visions, the mobile travel glance ing anecdotal observations and encounters

72 Wael Fahmi provides a visual ‘cinematic’ experience “The lâneur is still on the threshold, of the of moving landscape images to the travel- city as of the bourgeois class. He seeks ref- ing spectator. Larsen (2001) argues that a uge in the crowd. No matter how protective contemporary pleasure of leisurely automo- the crowd can be, the lâneur is still a loner, bility is related to the vehicle’s lexibility someone abandoned in the crowd” (Benja- and the imagined freedom that set in mo- min 1973: 55). tion the motorised lâneurie (neo- lâneurie) . The neo- lâneur is therefore subjected As the nineteenth century Baudelairean to changing visual experience of mobility street walker / urban drifter ( lâneur) is dis- which imposes a speciic viewing position, placed by the post-pedestrian and metro and hence, way of seeing with respect to train navigator (neo- lâneur), the paper as- tourists’ landscape. sumes a sensory post-tourist navigation inside-out of transit spaces within Moscow’s Nevertheless in a territory where non-place post-soviet Metro(scape). This represents a (Augé, 1995) and space of low (Castells, spatio-temporal narrative through the urban 1996) prevail, a new category of landscapes spectacle of Metro’s socialist realism and ‘in transit’ are experienced by ‘post-tourists Moscow’s post modern landscape. on the move’ as they cross ‘in-between metro stations’, providing the possibility By walking in a city dominated by time- of a more situational location of the ur- space compression with conspicuous glob- ban self within global mobility. ‘Trains’ us- al landmarks, the lâneur derives the sensual ers’ or ‘transit people’ do not fully engage pleasure from the dazzling urban spectacle, their senses in the landscape experience but shifting social spaces and interpersonal en- reduce the physical interaction to a remote counters. What he sees is montage, one snap gaze. De Certeau (1984) refers to a hetero- shot after another with the dream world of topian state as ‘traveling incarceration, im- urban spectacle offering the lâneur no com- mobile inside the train, seeing immobile plete narrative, but a series of fragments . things slip by’. Therefore a train is an ex- The lâneur, deined by his/her ‘incognito’ traordinary bundle of relations “because it and narratives , relies on a fetishistic identi- is something through which one goes, it is ication with the camera’s lens. This is com- also something by means of which one can mensurate with the lâneur’s eye-swiping of go from one point to another, and then it the urban landscape for creative material is also something that goes by” (Foucault (Sinclair 2002). Simultaneously, eye-swiping 1986). suggests the act of appropriation, saturating the text with proliferation of visual information as Sinclair (2002) refers to the camera to eye-swipe the detail, to log the sights which The Neo-Flâneur will later be translated into words (Seale 2005). As photography presents itself as the According to Benjamin (1973), the Baude- ideal technology for eye-swiping, Sternberg lairean lâneur is a igure/object (for inter- (1997) and Garlick (2002) discuss the role pretation) that embodies ambivalence: one of photography in determining the authen- who always borders on leisure, joy , mel- ticity of the post-tourist experience through ancholy, alienation and familiarity, resulting an array of representations and images. It is from the fragmentary nature of city life. The the type of ilter that Baudelaire stressed was gaze of the lâneur can be compassionate, essential to the lâneur’s depiction of urban invested, and inquiring and at the same time life. detached, alienated, and passive.

73 Transit Spaces

In the current study, representation of post (Figure 1). The Metro, which represented the -soviet Moscow’s Metro(scape) provides se- most grandiose architectural phenomenon quence of narratives in the journey along of the Stalinist era, signiied the ideological East-West transition. Walking through Mos- and artistic shifts that characterised the So- cow’s gentriied urban spaces and post-soviet State during the post war period. From viet Metro(scape) dominated by time-space the vast forces marshaled for its construction compression, the neo-lâneur is engulfed in to the shelter it provided for Moscovites dur- signs of global lows within GUM Mall (near ing World War Two, the Metro had evolved the Red square in Moscow) (the aesthetic from a monumental public work project and cocoon, Leach 2001), witnessing the fetish- a rapid mass transit into a hybrid of palace, ism of commodiication and aestheticisation basilica and fortress. of postmodern consumption.

Neo- Flâneur’s Spatio-Temporal Journey through Metro’s History

The 1931 monograph ‘Socialist Recon- struction of Moscow and other Cities in the USSR’ by Kaganovich who organised the building of the Moscow Metro, described the need for comprehensive city planning as an integral part of the building process of the new ‘proletarian’ socialist capital (Alden et al 1998). Stalinist ‘socialist realism’ planning approaches involved the construc- Figure 1. Mosaics within Metro Stations tion of wide boulevards and large blocks of lats serviced by an underground Metro transit system, which were later adopted in The political and ideological proletar- other communist Eastern European cities. ian course of the Soviet Union during the The Moscow Metro has 11 radial lines, with Stalinist period is relected in the vision of a 20 kilometers circular connection line, public social space with four principle lines comprising 171 stations, covering over 200 and forty stations constructed from 1932 to kilometers of track and serving 9 million 1954.The First Line, built in the early 1930s, people each day. There are 70 deep-level possesses an invigorating modernism repre- stations, and 87 shallow, with 10 ground- sentative of the Soviet avant-garde. With the level stations and 4 above ground. Two of Second Line, built in the late 1930s, a pro- the stations exist as double halls, with two gram of monumental sculpture and art was having three tracks, and ive having side introduced that signaled Stalin’s strangle- platforms. hold on the ideological goals of the Soviet The stations of Moscow’s Metro system state. The Third Line, built during the ‘Great were called ‘the people’s underground pal- Patriotic War’ from 1939 - 1944, became a aces’, for their lavish profuse use of marble, symbol of Soviet tenacity and ultimately a mosaics, chandeliers and stucco-covered memorial to the peoples’ resistance during ceilings, with popular art deco-style compo- World War Two. The Fourth Line, completed sitions merged with socialist realist design in 1954 shortly after the death of Stalin, is and artwork commemorating historic events perhaps the most lamboyantly ideological 74 Wael Fahmi and represents the epitome of the leader’s vision for the Metro. With the demise of Sta- lin, the expression of the system reverted to Neo- Flâneur ‘s Navigation within ‘Post- its rationalist origins. Soviet’ Metro(scape) During the late 1950s, the architectural ex- Spaces of Transition. travagance of new Metro stations was sig- niicantly toned down, and decorations at Moscow’s urban experience is identi- some stations, like VDNKh and Alekseevs- ied along Metro lines, with stations be- kaya, were greatly simpliied compared with ing regarded intermediary transit spaces original plans. This was done on the orders between train routes and city streets, whilst of Nikita Khrushchev, who favoured a more forming anchor spatial points and provid- basic decoration scheme. A typical layout ing entry and exit to speciic urban places . (known as ‘Sorokonozhka’) was developed Metro stations limit the line of sight to short for all new stations, which were built to look distances, whilst creating a strong sense almost identical, differing from each other of enclosure, keeping passengers in close only in colours of marble and ceramic tiles. proximity for extended periods of time, It was not until the mid-1970s that architec- with minimal and often complete lack tural extravagance was restored, and origi- of personal spaces. Metro walls not only nal designs once again became popular. respond to the physical need for enclosure, but give very subtle direction to a continu- One characteristic of post communism ous movement along its sinuous surface was the creation of a new symbolic culture (Figures 2,3,4). in terms of renaming of streets and places (Graeme 2005) . A signiicant number of stations have retained names resonant of the Soviet era, representing a number of institu- tions (the exhibition of economic achieve- ments VDNK and Red Guards); the revolutionary heritage (1905 Revolution and Revolution Square); and the labor ethos (Proletarian and Trade Unions) .

At the beginning of the 1990s the Metro received no money from the federal budget, with part of Serpukhovskaya line from Savelovskaya to Altuievo Stations being launched by raising money through leasing Metro buildings. Whilst Moscow’s Metro sta- Figure 2 Neo-Flâneur’s Sensory Navigation within tions have always relected the tough perso- Metro’s Transit Spaces (circulation spaces) na of the city, the introduction of new train cars within recently upgraded stations contributed to the feeling of an airport terminal train rather than historical Metro subway. On May 2002, Moscow government approved the program of the Metro construction until 2010 which planned the building of new stations and parts of the Metro lines .

75 Transit Spaces

Figure 3. Neo-Flâneur’s Sensory Navigation within Figure 4. Neo-Flâneur’s Sensory Navigation be- Metro’s Transit Spaces (corridors and halls ) tween Metro’s Transit Spaces (platforms and trains)

Moscow’s Metro lines are represented by concerns related to movement and people symbolic language for orienting passengers, after regime shift. These stations have be- in the form of signs and symbols , with some come places where ‘transition’ was most stations having distinctive exterior designs visible to inhabitants of Moscow, with the (pavilions) that allow them to function as Metro being considered both a background visual landmarks. New artworks, as well as to local narratives about social order, and fragments of ‘Stalinist’ spatial monumental- a place-setting in contesting ontologies ity further down the Metro platforms , relect of society in ‘transition’ as related to the the postmodern rejection of a uniied pub- emergence of new consumer class (Lemon lic sphere. This exempliies the contestation 2000). that occurs when Metro stations are com- modiied and imagineered into spaces of marketable characteristics (shopping malls) whilst being devoid of their socio-cultural contexts (Deutsche 1996).

Narratives made about Metro transit spaces are related to general political and social

76 Wael Fahmi

(CCTV), marking stations as surveillance spaces and defensive areas rather than as places for civic involvement and social ex- changes. Metro stations are thus becoming an articulation of an ‘aesthetic cocoon’ - a heavily serviced space of scrutiny.

The persistence of institutional and cultural discrimination within Moscow’s Metro stations characteristic of Soviet era, where order was imposed through the propiska registration system, has forced poor migrants to adapt to the new urban environment by Figure 5. Semiotic Matrix within Moscow’s Noctur- creating informal spaces within the Metro nal Spaces Tverskaya Ulitsa and Vozdvizhenkaya proper. Urban poor were obliged to ind lo- Ulitsa streets cations on the outside periphery of the Met- ro, as non state kiosks were set up at subway entrances, with vendors’ trading being conducted on folding tables, stalls or cardboard Spaces of Marginalisation boxes . This is in contrast to historical socialist realism aestheticisation further down Recently, Metro(scape) experienced major the Metro platforms, tunnels and cavernous spatial changes which affected the monu- stations (Lemon 2000). mentality and rituals associated with soviet urban spaces. Alongside images and symbols of soviet era, commercial activities became highly visible around Metro stations, with hawkers and street musicians (violin players) illing transfer tunnels and Spaces of Globalisation underground crosswalks, and with Metro pedestrians combining tactics of shopping In order to conform to the socialist notion and commuting without detouring. As petty of a uniied and independent public sphere, traders’ presence was regarded unlawful Metro stations, as civic projects, were origi- and inappropriate, and were considered as nally established in autonomous locations ‘people out of place’, movements restric- within public-right-of-way, whilst being tions (propiska system) requiring registra- disconnected from retail systems. Recently tion of residence with municipal authorities the distinction between Metro stations and were called for. Moscow’s commercial activities has become more blurred, a situation similar to However, police in Moscow are using eth- Tokyo’s metro stations which were found- nic proiling in their law enforcement within ed by department store companies. Com- Metro stations, with Central Asians being the mercial uses emerged within boundaries primary targets for document checks as they of some Metro stations and were linked to are commonly stigmatised by the media as ‘gentriied’ post-soviet public spaces , such the cause of crime and social disorder. In as Okhtny Ryad Metro station and Tverska- addition to ticket attendants (babushka) and ya Ulitsa street and Red Square; Ploshchad police supervision, new measures were in- Revolyutsii Metro station and GUM shop- troduced to enhance security within Metro ping mall; and Biblioteka im Lenina and stations in terms of closed circuit cameras

77 Transit Spaces

Arbatskaya Metro stations and Vozdvizhen- narratives (such as renaming of streets and kaya Ulitsa street. places). Postmodern landscape of contested East-West transformation was observed, As Deutsche (1996) points out that the when Moscow’s Mayor Luzhkov, embarked prevalence of commerce as a public func- on a major development program. The tion, reinforcing the role and dominance of capital has seen a remarkable program of consumption spaces, has led to the privati- reconstruction and restoration of historic sation of public spaces. With postmodern structures such as the Victory Memorial, transformation challenging the modernist the Gostinny Dvor (guests’ court), Kazan- notion of public space, and with the sepa- skiy Cathedral and Resurrection Gates at ration between various central stations and Red Square (Vinogradov 1998; Glushkova commercial spaces diminishing, the recog- 1998 cited in Lang 2004 ), together with nition of these stations as public spaces have the newly constructed statue of Peter the declined, particularly with the introduction Great. Whilst Moscow’s Kremlin and Red of shopping activities aspiring to the gentri- Square were designated as UNESCO World ication of Metro transit spaces. Rather than Heritage sites in 1990, a wider program of separate/ demarcate spaces that correspond historic preservation and revitalisation was to rationally deined roles, Metro stations launched including museums and nine rail- have recently become an extension of the way stations dating from Tsarist times (Luz- space of commercial transactions and part kov 1998, cited in Lang 2004) There was of the shopping experience . the downtown development of large, new postmodern hotels and ofice and apartment Nevertheless spatial variations ranging buildings, often funded by foreign consor- from suburban Metro stations and Cen- tia, which have impinged on such historic tral Moscow’s gentriied stations relect the areas as the Arbat, a major tourist area near scene of the sharpest contestation between the Kremlin. traditional street markets and the exigencies of the changing high commercial development. Open air and covered markets, stalls Spaces of Consumption and kiosks, as part of the informal sector During the 20th century, Moscow acquired often controlled by different ethnic groups, a limited number of downtown shopping were located on large expanses of vacant center spaces, mostly in the form of high- land within high-rise residential areas (mik- proile fashion galleries such as the 35000 rorayons) of Moscow’s periphery. square metres (376,670 square foot) Manezh Square near the Kremlin, the 63000 square metres Smolensky Passage; and the 10000 square metres Petrovsky Passage. A sym- Neo- Flâneur ‘s Navigation bolic sign of the times was the conversion within Moscow’s ‘Post Soviet’ of the famous state department store GUM (State Universal Store, Gosudarstvennyj Public Spaces Universalnyj Magazin) , a Moscow shopping tradition since 1887, which is now a Since 1990s Moscow’s promotional tour- 30000 square metres mall arcade with 185 ism strategy was launched to establish a new specialised retailers, including many West- place image and foster a new reinvented ern high street brands. identity, exploring discourse on the future of post-soviet urbanism, whilst recounting the The ‘bazaarization’ of Moscow was the erasure of ‘Stalinist’ past from its historical main agent of structural change during the

78 Wael Fahmi irst phase of post-soviet transformation sequently, the deinition of Metro stations’ (Rudolph and Brade 2005). Shrines of mar- public role is beginning to relect the gain- ket places appeared together with bazaars, ing dominance of postmodernism, with the street petty trading and informal exchange introduction of shopping facilities, gentri- of goods (Andrusz 1996), with the com- ication and commodiication of ‘touristic’ modiication of post-soviet urban spaces urban spaces, whilst challenging symbols near the Red Square: Tverskaya Ulitsa and of ‘Stalinist’ spatial monumentality within Vozdvizhenkaya Ulitsa Commercial Streets, Moscow’s post-soviet Metro. GUM Shopping Mall and Manezh Commer- cial Store. By the end of the 1990s market Leach (2002) emphasises the waning of trading have become a primary means for historical sensibility that is often associated the accumulation of capital and the way with the ‘postmodern condition’, with per- towards consumption- oriented society with ceptions of history being reduced to a col- large-scale retail location dominating Mos- lection of images of the past. In a culture of cow’s urban landscape simulation, a hyper-real world of images detached from their original cultural referents, Moscow’s post-soviet spaces of consump- we progressively lose the potential to grasp tion represent an inevitable outcome of the ontological reality of the past. Accord- pursuing commodity-oriented city develop- ingly Leach (2002) identiies two strategies ment, whilst attempting to create new forms in dealing with urban monuments, collec- of place marketing. Globalisation brings a tive memory and historical erasure. Firstly, new imperative to post-soviet Moscow, with the physical eradication of monuments ‘Ber- its transformation into the ‘entrepreneurial lin Wall syndrome’; and secondly the sym- city‘, invoking the legitimacy of place re- bolic re-appropriation and re-use of monu- making, even through substantial public ments ‘Bucharest syndrome’ . investment. Newly built suburban shopping outlets are competing with inner-city retail Whilst many of Moscow’s Metro mosa- centers. The townscape of merchant stalls ics are regarded as urban semiotics which in the early years of post-soviet transition is depict symbols of historical Soviet produc- gradually fading into one of supermarkets, tion, monuments of Russian soldiers during chain stores, shopping centers, and malls. World War Two and the Great Partriotic War, such questions are posed :

Will the artwork change with time or will it remain as a representation of the past ? and Conclusion as time passes how will people perceive the Meaning is being (re)constructed within mosaics that will fade further and further in Moscow’s post-soviet Metro(scape), with Russia’s past ? issues of collective memory and erasure Will new stations relect the life of modern of historical soviet symbols being relected times, with modern depictions of Russian upon imageries of contested urban spaces life? (between historical ‘soviet’ elements of the city and recent ‘postmodern’ architectural How is one to deal with the architectural development ) . The juxtaposition of histori- fabric of Moscow’s Metro which bears wit- cal traces of (communism) and (postmod- ness to the traces a former Soviet regime? ern) urban spaces has promoted themes of aestheticisation, whilst relecting the in- Various factors emerge to play a crucial role creasing role of image consumption. Con- in determining the spatial experience within

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Moscow’s Metro(scape) with its historical don : New Left Books. context in terms of both time and place, and its ‘social ground’ .The Metro assumes a Bryman, A. (1995). Disney and His Worlds. socio-political status through a mechanism London: Routledge. of semantic associations, either individually, through its particular politics of use as Debord, G. (1994) Society of the Spectacle. a space of transition, or collectively, through New York: Zone Books. its stylistic afinities with Stalinist Monumen- De Certeau, M. (1984). The Practice Of Ev- tality associated with its use as a space of eryday Life, (translated by S. Rendall). Berke- memory. This is in accordance with Roland ley: University of California Press. Barthes’ (1976) claim that ‘use never does anything but shelter and generate meaning’. Deutsche, R. (1996). Evictions: Art and Spa- Accordingly we ind that Metro’s meaning tial Politics. Cambridge, Massachusetts: The is deined by its actual function as a transit MIT Press. infrastructure and its symbolic meaning as a tourist soviet heritage of Stalinist urbanism. Fahmi, W. (2004). Postmodern Spatiali- Political content depends upon a memory of ties of Glocalisation : Conceptualising Het- what a particular form is supposed to mean, erotopian Urbansim. In CD-Rom proceed- and as that memory fades, so the meaning ings of 11th International Planning History is erased, as noted in the pattern of name Conference IPHS 2004, “Planning Models changes of Metro stations which relect one and the Culture of Cities”. Barcelona. 14th aspect of the nature of post- soviet Russian -17th July. http://www.etsav.upc.es/person- experience (Graeme 2005). als/iphs2004/pdf/055_p.pdf Accessed 18th August 2007

Fahmi , W. (2003). Transit Landscapes and References Shifting Place-Identities: A Spatio-Temporal Narrative of Transit Spaces and Post Social- Alden, J.; Crow, S.; & Beigulenko, Y.(1998). ist Urbanism (Berlin and Moscow). In Transit Moscow Planning for a World Capital City Spaces- Bauhaus Kolleg V Documentation towards 2000 . Cities, 15 (5), 361–374. of the First Trimester (pp. 46-58) . Dessau: The Bauhaus Dessau Foundation. Andrusz, G.(1996). Structural Change and Boundary Instability. In G. Andrusz, M. Har- Foucault, M. (1986). Of Other Spaces. Dia- loe & I. Szelenyi (Eds). Cites After Socialism critics, 16(1), 22-27. (pp 30-69). Oxford: Blackwell Publisher. Garlick, S. (2002). Revealing the Unseen: Barthes, R. (1976). The Pleasure of the Text. Tourism, Art and Photography. Cultural (translated by R. Milter). New York: Hill and Studies, 16(2), 289-305. Wang. Glushkova, V.G. (1998). Economic Transfor- Baudelaire, C. (1995). The Painter of Modern mations in Moscow and the Socio-cultural Life. In J. Mayne (Ed), The Painter of Modern Environment of the Capital. In Y.M Luz- Life and Other Essays (pp. 9-10). London: kov (Ed), Moscow and the largest Cities of Phaidon. the world at the Edge of the 21st Century (p.120). Moscow: Committee of Telecom- Benjamin, W. (1973). “The Flâneur” Charles munications and Mass Media of Moscow Baudelaire: A Lyric Poet in the Era of High Government. (Cited in Lang (2004). Capitalism. (translated by H. Zohn). Lon- 80 Wael Fahmi

Graeme, G. (2005). Changing Symbols: The Rojek, C. & Urry, J. (1997). Transformations Renovation of Moscow Place Names . The of Travel and Theory. In C. Rojek & J. Urry Russian Review, 64 (3), 480-503. (Eds), Touring Cultures: Transformations of Travel and Theory (pp. 1–23). London and Larsen J. (2001). Tourism Mobilities and the New York: Routledge. Travel Glance: Experiences of Being on the Move . Scandinavian Journal of Hospitality Rudolph, R. & Brade, I. (2005). Moscow: and Tourism, 1( 2), 80-98. Processes of Restructuring in the Post-Soviet Metropolitan Periphery. Cities, 22 (2), 135– Lang, M.H. (2004). Red Moscow: Capital 150. of the Revolution or a Revolution in Capi- tals. In CD-Rom proceedings of 11th Inter- Seale, K. (2005). Eye-swiping London: Iain national Planning History Conference IP- Sinclair, Photography and the Flâneur. The HS2004, “Planning Models and the Culture Literary London Journal, 3 (2). http://www. of Cities”IPHS2004 . Barcelona. 14th -17th literarylondon.org/london-journal/septem- July. ber2005/seale.html Accessed 25th Octo- ber 2007. http://www.etsav.upc.es/personals/ip- hs2004/pdf/109_p.pdf Accessed 18th July Sinclair, I. (2002).London Orbital: A Walk 2007 Around the M25 . London: Granta Publica- tions. Leach, N. (2001). The Aesthetic Cocoon. OASE, 54, 105-121. Soja, E. (1995) Heterotopologies: a remembrance of other spaces in the citadel-LA. In: Leach, N. (2002). Erasing the Traces: The Watson, S. and. Gibson, K. (eds) Postmod- ‘Denaziication’ of Post-Revolutionary Ber- ern Cities and Spaces. Blackwell, Oxford, lin and Bucharest. In N. Leach (Ed.), The Hi- UK, pp. 13–34. eroglyphics of Space: Reading and Experi- encing the Modern Metropolis (pp. 80-100). Sternberg, E. (1997). The Iconography of the London: Routledge. Tourism Experience. Annals of Tourism Re- search, 24(4), 951-969. Lemon, A. (2000). Talking Transit and Spec- tating Transition: The Moscow Metro. in D. Urry, J.(1990). The Tourist Gaze: Leisure and Berdahl, M. Bunzl & M. Lampland (Eds), Al- Travel in Contemporary Societies. London: tering States: Ethnographies of Transition in Sage. Eastern Europe and the Former Soviet Union (pp. 14-39). Ann Arbor : The University of Vinogradov, V.A. (1998). Meaning of the Ar- Michigan Press. chitecture Heritage. In Y.M LUZKOV. Mos- cow and the Largest Cities of the World at Luzkov, Y.M.(1998) (Ed). Moscow and the the Edge of the 21st Century (p104). Mos- Largest Cities of the World at the Edge of the cow: Committee of Telecommunications 21st Century. Moscow: Committee of Tele- and Mass Media of the Moscow Govern- communications and Mass Media of the ment. (Cited in Lang (2004) Moscow Government. (Cited in Lang, M.H. (2004). Ward, S. (2005) The passenger as lâneur? Railway networks in German-language ic- MacCannell, D. (1976) The Tourist. A New tion since 1945. The Modern Language Re- Theory of the Leisure Class. New York : view 100(2), 412–428. Schoken Books.

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Acknowledgement

The study visit to Moscow was funded by a grant from the Bauhaus-Dessau Foundation in Germany as part of the Bauhaus Kolleg V – Transit Spaces Programme 2003-2004.

Biography

Wael Fahmi is an Associate Professor of Ar- chitectural Design and Urbanism at Helwan University in Cairo. He was trained as an architect at Cairo University and is a visiting academic at The University of Manchester (UK) where he received his PhD in Plan- ning and Landscape. Through Urban Design Experimental Research Studio (UDERS), he explores deconstructive experimentation within urban spaces, postmodern spatiality and representation of city imaging employing narratives, digital photo images, video stills and architectural diagrams.

82 A Proposed Structure for a Programme of Urban Sound- scape Research Mike Fedeski Welsh School of Architecture, Cardiff University

1. Abstract In this structure, sonic data is cycled between the urban public and researchers, or Complex and rich urban soundscapes re- between the city and the laboratory. On sist visual representation because of their the urban side, the public collect and se- aural, ephemeral, and value-laden nature. mantically tag sound samples, which they This has not only hampered the communi- stream from a mobile phone network to a cation of soundscape research results to ur- database on the research side. Quantiiable ban planners and the public, but has been ields from the database can be mapped into a handicap to developing results that are spatial dimensions in a laboratory through meaningful to urban design. The dificulty which listeners can move. New sound- of manipulating sonic data to demonstrate scapes developed by exploring the database ideas hampers discussion of research results in the laboratory are returned to the city in a with stakeholders and policy-makers. public gallery and inform the further choice of samples by contributors to the network. Assuming that a major objective for designers is to plan for an enjoyable and beneicial This cycle generates a database which can urban soundscape, rather than a merely tol- grow and enrich over time, it supplies a erable one, it is suggested that objectives for means of investigating future soundscapes a soundscape research programme should which supplements modelling, it can repli- include: 1) public participation in order to cate these soundscapes easily and rapidly, discover what sounds people value when it can present them to the public and urban they shift from basic listening to enhanced designers, and by extension allows access hearing; 2) working with sonic data in ways to them over the Internet. that explore new soundscapes that can inform urban design; and 3) inding ways of communicating the results of such research to urban designers and the public. 2. Aim

A programme structure for urban sound- This paper proposes a methodology for ur- scape research is proposed that brings to- ban soundscape research. It relects a shift gether some recent technological advances in emphasis in urban sound studies from in digital processing and communication. negative to positive issues, as reviewed in Dubois, Guatavino and Raimbault (2006).

83 Mike Fedeski

In the U.K., prominence has recently been (1994) and Blesser and Salter (2007). given to this shift through an RGS-IBG An- nual Conference in September 2005 Urban Improving this situation must involve at Sustainability: Rethinking Senses of Place, least three parties, each with different per- at an RTPI EPP Network event in September spectives: the public who use cities, the de- 2005, Planning for Soundscape Quality, and signers who shape them, and the research- an EPSRC Ideas Factory in January 2006, A ers who study them (Raimbault & Dubois, Noisy Future. Positive soundscape design 2005, pp 340-1). Collaboration between has even reached urban planning policy in them is required, which for all should pro- London (Greater London Authority, 2004, mote a shift from basic hearing to enhanced p.207). listening.

The research structure outlined here is All three parties have different modes of coloured by a number of ambitions. It contact with the urban environment. Pub- wants the results of soundscape research lic users have direct experience of environ- to assist urban design. The overall objec- ments that exist, moving through them and tive that it hopes to serve is to help design- interacting with them. The sonic environ- ers plan for enjoyable, beneicial, and posi- ment is ever present and changing for them, tively engaging sonic environments, rather although they often do not attend to it. Re- than merely tolerable ones. It expects the searchers can study existing sonic environ- creation of such environments to involve ments, but these are often limited to samples the public, and it sees a place for creative and abstractions which, whilst close to user “composition” using the material of urban experience, are restricted in compass. De- soundscapes. signers have to be content with representations of future environments that they have The sound we hear in cities is an outcome imagined. The sonic environment is often of activity in the city, activity in which the simply absent from these representations, as city’s inhabitants take part. Sound carries are activities that give rise to it. a great deal of information about this activity, concerning what it is, and where, when, Communication between these parties is and for how long it is happening. It can be necessary: users need to understand what understood, correctly or erroneously, to in- designers intend, researchers need to under- fer the motivation of the people producing stand what users value, and designers need it, and this can arouse marked emotional re- to understand what researchers have discov- sponses in the hearers. The spatial reach of ered. But with each type of user occupying sound is greater than that of the visual ield, a different world of experience, there are and the information it contains tells more dificulties in sustaining a dialogue between than can be learned from looking alone. them on the subject of sonic environments. Channels of communication need to be The soundscape has the potential of en- opened and a commonly understood form riching our interpretation of city life and of representation needs to be made avail- our collective experience of being a part able. This problem will be the subject of of it. Yet urban sound receives little atten- discussion in this paper. tion from the public or city planners unless it gives rise to complaint. The full panoply of sound within the city lives at the edges of our attention. The case for giving it closer attention is argued persuasively by Schafer

84 A Proposed Structure for a Programme of Urban Soundscape Research

3. Challenges that face the are hearing in cities is not straightforward. If the research is conducted in the ield in public users of urban spaces the direct presence of the phenomena being investigated, the constantly changing and Members of the public wishing to discuss leeting nature of the phenomenon is prob- the urban soundscapes that they experience, lematic. Subsequent reference to what was have language they can use to describe it. heard is needed if the views of several sub- The vocabulary they use has been analysed jects about the same phenomenon are to be by, for example, Hedfors (2003, pp. 47-8), compared or if the context for what they say and Dubois, Guastavino and Raimbault is to be understood by others not present at (2006). However, unless the discussion is the time. One way of dealing with this is to located in the sound environment being de- abstract sound recordings from the ield and scribed, this vocabulary is limited in its abil- conduct the listening research in a sound ity to describe soundscapes evocatively and laboratory (e.g. Paquette, 2004, sec. 4.2). reliably. It thus fails to facilitate extended dialogue on the subject, which is essential But the use of sound recordings throws if there are to be advances in public aware- up another kind of problem, which is that ness of soundscapes. of characterising the sonic environment of a place from short samples. How do we To be useful, any descriptive language deine the modal thread running through a needs to support value judgements as well. changing soundscape in order to capture its Such judgements should not be limited to character? This is analogous to the process whether this or that particular kind of sound of changing a recorded time sequence of is preferred, but should relate to complex weather data into climatic knowledge. Re- soundscapes as a whole, on the level of au- lated to this is the problem of inding a con- ral aesthetics. venient way of associating semantic data with the recordings, such as commentary by listeners about what they are hearing. 4. Challenges that face re- Moving on to the second dificulty, communicating the results of soundscape research, searchers the standard means of publishing research results through papers limits the direct rep- Since its introduction in the 1970s by Scha- resentation of data to such means as text, fer (1994), soundscape research has been pictures, diagrams, and symbols. concerned with the central problem of how to represent the phenomenon being investi- In specialist ields such as architectural gated. The problem presents itself in work- history, researchers are able to discuss in ing with and archiving the sonic evidence writing the nature of things seen with some gathered during the research, and again precision by using and servicing a well-de- later in describing to others the nature and veloped and commonly understood vocab- signiicance of the research results. ulary, but even then the support of drawings is essential. In the ield of soundscape, the Sharing and comparing aural experiences vocabulary is more primitive, and the aural is at the heart of the matter. A representation support dificult. Valuable work has been of the sonic phenomenon being investigat- undertaken to address this shortcoming ed helps to identify it clearly and to separate at CRESSON (Augoyard & Torgue, 2005), its several strands. For example, commu- where a vocabulary has been developed nication with subjects about what it is they

85 Prayas Abhinav and Yashas Shetty around the idea of “sound effects”. works.net). But we are a long way from having a comprehensive reference archive Existing ways of representing sonic data of soundscapes for use by researchers and visually are limited. In principle, the com- designers. plete data set can be illustrated graphically by showing the changing pressure of air presented to the listener’s ear as a linear sequence. However, this could not be in- 5. Challenges that face de- terpreted without analysis. A more articu- lated graphic representation that existing signers software can generate is the sound spectrogram (or sonogram), which locates the data Urban designers have traditionally used in frequency, amplitude and time dimen- drawings, often supplemented with physi- sions. But it fails to evoke an impression cal models, to represent their designs prior of complex urban soundscapes, principally to construction so that their patrons can see because the various sound sources are difi- what to expect. Drawings and models have cult to distinguish. This can be illustrated by also been used by specialists as the basis applying the method to the sound of an or- for calculations to predict performance in chestra performing a classical composition transport, lighting, drainage, structural sta- (e.g. Winckel, 1967, p. 76, which shows the bility, and so on. More recently, computer opening of Beethoven’s 8th symphony). It is models have been used for simulating future dificult to identify from the sonogram either performance, but their output is also often the instruments used or the composition. presented using drawings or animations to make it more explanatory. In contrast, traditional musical notation enables practiced readers to hear the sound The primacy these methods give to vision in their heads. There have been attempts to over hearing, discussed, for example, by develop analogous graphical notations for Hedfors (2003, pp. 17-18 & 21-22), ham- soundscapes. They generally begin by iden- pers their ability to represent the sonic en- tifying the separate sources to be notated. vironment in urban design. They can hint One approach is then to characterise their at expected soundscapes through the use of qualities, e.g. attack, pitch, grain, dynamics, labels and pictograms, but this does not give decay (e.g. Schafer, 1994, pp. 134-139), and an impression that is in any way adequate to another is to chart their duration and their the needs of the designers or the public. apparent variation in loudness (e.g. South- Moreover, visual presentations emphasise worth, 1969, ig. 4). acoustic enclosures rather than sonic sourc- Direct access to aural records has been en- es. They show the proposed building fabric, hanced by the Internet. It has always been but not the active life that will eventually in- possible to make sound iles available by habit it, although this latter is as important post on request, but on line they can now in deining the soundscape. Whilst the par- be integrated with research papers. Sound ticulars of what happens in a city from day to iles can be attached, say, to maps that lo- day are outside the control of the designer, cate sampled sound geographically (e.g. the generic activities anticipated in spaces Sound-Seeker at www.nysoundmap.org/), are the subject of design, and so could be or to GPS tracks that record the journeys shown, if the medium were available, bear- their collectors make as they record them ing in mind that they too change over time. (e.g. Experiencing Issun-Boshi at www.ield- An obvious improvement would be to add

86 A Proposed Structure for a Programme of Urban Soundscape Research aural information to the visual presenta- evaluation of sonic data from cities and the tion, and in this respect computer terminals, exploration of this data in the laboratory which give access to sound as well as vision, by working with new soundscapes. The open up a promising, though under-exploit- process is expected to increase awareness ed, opportunity. However, standard presen- of soundscapes amongst the public and to tation for acoustic modelling in urban design assist urban designers in creating positive is still numerical and graphic; current meth- soundscapes. ods are reviewed by Kang (2007, pp. 107- 174). Acoustic software that enables sound The following objectives for the methodol- environments to be auralised has been de- ogy can be speciied, relating to the discus- veloped, but for simulating the acoustic in- sion above: teriors of buildings, so that it retains a focus on the building envelope and simple inte- to persuade urban inhabitants to shift from rior geometries. To simulate sonic futures basic listening to enhanced hearing; at an urban scale, the models would need to discover what the public value in their to be populated with sound sources, whose sonic environment, not just what they ind nature, diversity and variation are critical to intolerable; the outcome. Suitable sound sources, associated with the generic activities proposed to capture sonic data together with its for the city, and programming techniques for associated meta-data, attributes and per- using them, are only beginning to emerge. ceived values; Kang discusses techniques for auralisation on pp. 134-142. to substitute aural for textual and visual representation in propagating research re- Such computer enhancements do not pro- sults; vide designers with methods of representing soundscapes that they can work with to enable aural data to be manipulated in directly, or that lend themselves to deeper order to increase understanding of sound- exploration and evaluation, or that supply scapes; archive material to work on. This paper suggests alternative ways of representing to investigate representation of the long- soundscapes to help researchers character- term character of soundscapes; ise soundscapes and archive them for future reference, and to help designers envisage to enable soundscapes to be appreciated improved soundscapes, such that the syn- at an aesthetic level; ergy between research and design could be improved. to discover and deine new soundscapes that can inform urban design;

to give access to the results via the Inter- 6. Objectives for the propos- net after completion of the research. als This paper suggests a research environ- 7. Description of the propos- ment in which the three parties (public, researchers and designers) can communicate als to their mutual beneit. The focus of their The proposed methodology has four stag- communication is to be the collection and 87 Prayas Abhinav and Yashas Shetty es which feed information from one to the en in endnotes. next in a cycle. The stages are a Network for collecting data from urban soundscapes, Name/theme/function/component a Repository for storing it, a BlackSpace for turning it into new soundscapes, and a Network/ WhiteSpace for presenting the results. The Engaging Gather an ongoing com- cycle straddles a notional interface between mentary on a city’s soundscape from its the public and the researchers, centred re- inhabitants. A continuously recep- spectively in the city and the academy. The tive mobile network in which subscribers Network collects data from the city and de- transmit data. livers it to the academy. The WhiteSpace collects soundscapes from the academy Repository/ and delivers them back to the city. The data and the soundscapes are stored virtually but Analysing Collect, sort, search, and de- presented aurally. A schema illustrating the liver audible data and related semantic method is shown below. data contributed by citizens. A database capable of inputting and outputting On the city side, a Network of contribu- annotated streaming aural data. tors is established for collecting sonic data which they transmit by mobile phone to a BlackSpace/ Repository on the academic side. The Re- pository is a database created to receive and Revealing Investigate the characteristics store live sonic data, the circumstances of its of the data and explain it aurally to the collection, and the contributors’ comments. research and planning community. Research on this data is conducted in a An aural laboratory able to map selected Black Space, which is a room for listening. ields from the database into its spatial di- By mapping data ields from the database mensions. into spatial dimensions in the BlackSpace, listeners will be able to “inhabit” and “walk WhiteSpace/ through” the Repository. It is intended that spatial exploration of the data will enhance Exhibiting Share the research outcome understanding in the planning context, and with the contributing public, and pro- allow composition of new soundscapes. The mote further data gathering. A public insights developed will be taken back to the exhibition of soundscapes composed in city in a similarly equipped White Space, the BlackSpace related to the city’s geog- which is a public gallery for the spatial pre- raphy. sentation of the results. Contributors to the Network Network have access to the White Space, and it is hoped that what they learn will in- A Network is established for collecting luence their choice of sound samples for audio samples using a wireless Grid of further input. remote terminals and mobile phones. It monitors the contributors’ perceptions The function of each of the four stages and their creative interpretations of sonic in the cycle and the physical component place. This activity is to have the charac- which enables it are stated in the table be- ter of play rather than research, taking the low. This is followed by a fuller description form of a sonic game in which the con- of the four components in which examples tributors explore the soundscape collab- of technologies they could draw on are giv- oratively. In preparation, a website will

88 A Proposed Structure for a Programme of Urban Soundscape Research be established to generate interest, attract BlackSpace subscribers and provide an initial conduit for data contribution. The BlackSpace is a room equipped for listening to and analysing the aural data. The audio samples are accompanied by Any ordered data ield from the Reposi- metadata documenting provenance (date, tory database can be mapped into a time, location, sound source, amplitude, physical dimension of this space. The contributor) along with unstructured data mapping may mimic spatial dimensions (comments). The progress of the collec- in the city or reveal such diverse proper- tion can be followed on the website. A ties as the age of the contributor, the per- map shows the location from which sam- ceived quality of the sound, the order of ples were collected, and plays them back sampling, the time and date, the type of when selected. It can be searched by its source, and so on. Participants listen over provenance (date, time, etc.). Contribu- headphones, which feed them sound ap- tors will be able to reach these maps and propriate to their spatial location as in- the aural feedback on their mobile termi- dicated by position sensors. Movement nals, supplemented with headphones, to through the BlackSpace then corresponds provide motivation and allow them to im- to movement through these data ields, prove the quality of their input. allowing the database to be explored. This technique unpacks attributes of the Repository data to reveal information about the way people experience space aurally. Bodily The Repository is a database created to movement through the space relates to receive and transmit semantically tagged the exploration and memory of space in streaming data and to allow the addition cities, keeping participants in mind of the of supplementary data collected later in urban context. Several participants can the research. The tagging will in part de- share the experience interactively. scribe and in part classify the data. The practicality of using semantic labels to ab- The BlackSpace also allows evaluation to stract qualitative dimensions is illustrated be made and recorded for whole sound- in Hedfors (2003, pp. 47-52 & 35-38). For scapes. This provides for an aesthetic di- an overview of soundscape classiication mension. Varying the quality of sources as it relates to auditory design and urban and their spatial and temporal distribu- planning, see McGregor, Leplatre, Crerar tion will help planners make choices, as and Benyon (2006, sec.2) and Raimbault illustrated by Hedfors and Berg (2003). and Dubois (2005). The equipment offers a means for making soundscape compositions with the am- Its interrogation may range from simple bient sound, regarding them as environ- retrievals based on location information ments for listening rather than objects of to more complex queries using data in- attention. tegrated from external databases such as land values or weather conditions. The The spatial discrimination of the Black- sonic data being collected can be played Space lends itself to miniaturisation on the through a streaming server to remote lis- screen of a computer monitor or a smart teners. As well as archiving past con- phone, and a tool is proposed which will tributions, the database will allow syn- be both a control console for coniguring chronous presentation of its current and the ields in the Black Space and a moni- changing state. tor for making the compositions acces-

89 Prayas Abhinav and Yashas Shetty

sible when the BlackSpace is not. that they will employ have been used by others to realise similar components, although WhiteSpace some reinement and adaptation is needed for them to serve the objectives stated here. The WhiteSpace “turns on the lights”. It is There are several alternative ways of doing a public event curated to demonstrate the this which need to be explored, but what is results of the research to the public, and featured in this paper is the proposed rela- to complete a “research bargain” with tionship between the components, which is subscribers. It may take place in a gallery believed to be novel. This provides a con- or be integrated into the area of a city be- tinuum for handling aural data in sounding investigated. scape research: capturing, storing, studying, reproducing, and disseminating. Its stages It adapts the technology devised for the make important links between investigating BlackSpace for public presentation. the public’s preferences and advising urban Sounds from the city - known, forgotten, designers, in a practical cycle that serves the unheard, recreated, imaginary - will be objectives for soundscape research listed located geographically in the space. Tex- earlier. tual commentary on the sounds from contributors will be available to participants A research programme structure of this on their mobile phones. kind opens channels of communication between urban citizens, planners and re- Exploring the database in the BlackSpace searchers and provides incentive for using will drive curatorial questions for the them. It maintains a collaborative environ- WhiteSpace. New soundscapes will be ment in which the parties can make discov- composed for potential use there. On oc- eries interactively and share results. It can casion, live contributions will be invited receive from the public streams of live sonic from the Network, to modify these com- data, semantically tagged, capture them in positions, illing gaps, adding layers, alter- an aural buffer for research, and deliver the ing sounds, and extending the commen- outcome back to the public aurally in an tary. Over the time span of a WhiteSpace unfolding interpretation of the city’s sonic exhibition, it is anticipated that the origi- fabric. It addresses the question of how the nal compositions would be transformed, public experience and interpret sonic place. to reveal emergent patterns that will help It offers a method for experimenting aurally understand the public’s interpretation of with new urban soundscapes which can in- soundscape. form urban designers. The WhiteSpace offers a new curato- It subverts the issue of inding a commonly rial method for practice-based research, understood form of representation for son- which is resonant with the increasing ic information by presenting it aurally, but trend for exhibitions to become less pas- coding it digitally in a system that allows for sive, to involve the public, and to reach the aural database to be explored and asso- into the city. ciated with semantic comment. The sound samples and soundscapes are replicable, 8. Conclusion and, given the proposed laboratory set-up, their aural presentation is immersive. For There has not been space in this paper to users who do not have access to the set-up, discuss the technology proposed for each the information can still be made available of the components. The recent advances in on display screen analogues of the Black- digital representation and communication 90 A Proposed Structure for a Programme of Urban Soundscape Research

Space (and WhiteSpace), although in a sim- Greater London Authority, (2004). Sounder pliied way. city: The Mayor’s ambient noise strategy. London: GLA.

Grimstead, I., Avis, N., & Walker, D. (2004). References Automatic distribution of rendering work- loads in a grid enabled collaborative visu- Augoyard, J-F., & Torgue H. (Eds). (2005). alization environment. Proceedings of the Sonic experience; A guide to everyday 2004 ACM/IEEE Conference on Supercom- sounds. Montreal & Kingston: McGill- puting. Washington: IEEE Computer Soci- Queen’s UP. ety.

Benford, S., Seager, W., Flintham, M., An- Hedfors, P. (2003). Site soundscapes: Land- astasi, R., Rowland, D., Humble, J., et al. scape architecture in the light of sound. (2004). The error of our ways: The experi- Doctoral thesis; Uppsala, Swedish Univer- ence of self-reported position in a location- sity of Agricultural Sciences. Retrieved with- based game. Proceedings of Ubicomp 2004, out attached papers from http://diss-epsilon. 6th International Conference, pp70-87. Ber- slu.se/archive/00000325/. lin, Springer, 2004. Hedfors, P., & Berg, P. G. (2003). The sounds Blesser, B., & Salter, L-R. (2007). Spaces of two landscape settings. Landscape Re- speak, are you listening? Experiencing aural search, 28(3), 245-263. architecture. Cambridge, Mass: MIT. Hornecker, E., & Buur, J. (2006). Getting a Burke, J. A., Estrin, D., Hansen, M., Parker, grip on tangible interaction: a framework A., Ramanathan, N., Reddy, S., & Svrivasta- on physical space and social interaction. va, M. B. (2006). Participatory sensing. First Proceedings of the SIGCHI conference on Workshop on World-Sensor-Web: Mobile Human Factors in Computing Systems, pp Device Centric Sensory Networks and Ap- 437-44. New York: Association for Comput- plications. At the 4th ACM Conference on ing Machinery. Embedded Networked Sensor Systems (Sen- Sys’06). Retrieved from http://repositories. Hull, R., Clayton, B., & Melamed, T. (2004). cdlib.org/cens/wps/140/. Rapid authoring of mediascapes. Proceed- ings of Ubicomp 2004, 6th International Dubois, D., Guastavino, C., & Raimbault, Conference, pp125-142. Berlin: Springer. M. (2006). A cognitive approach to urban soundscapes: Using verbal data to access ev- Kang, J. (2007). Urban sound environment. eryday life auditory categories. Acta Acous- London: Taylor & Francis. tica united with Acustica, 92, 865-874. Kansal, A., Goraczko, M., & Zhao, F. (2007). Dunlop, M. D., Morrison, A., McCallum, Building a sensor network of mobile phones. S., Ptaskinski, P., Risbey, C., & Stewart, S. Proceedings of the 6th international confer- (2004). Focussed palmtop information ac- ence on Information processing in sensor cess combining starield displays with pro- networks (IPSN’07) pp 547-548. New York: ile-based recommendations. Mobile and Association for Computing Machinery. Ubiquitous Information Access; Proceed- McGregor, I., Leplatre, G., Crerar, A., & Be- ings from Mobile HCI 2003 International nyon, D. (2006). Sound and soundscape Workshop, pp 79-89. Berlin: Springer. classiication: Establishing key auditory di-

91 Prayas Abhinav and Yashas Shetty mensions and their relative importance. al Conference on Auditory Display (ICAD). Proceedings of the 12th International Con- Retrieved from http://www.dcs.qmul.ac.uk/ ference on Auditory Display. Retrieved research/imc/icad2006/proceedings/. from www.dcs.qmul.ac.uk/research/imc/ icad2006/proceedings/papers/f21.pdf. Warusfel, O., & Eckel, G. (2004). LISTEN, Augmenting everyday environments through Paquette, D. (2004). Describing the con- interactive soundscapes. VR for Public Con- temporary sound environment; An analysis sumption: Notes from the Workshop at IEEE of three approaches, their synthesis, and a VR04. Retrieved from http://resumbrae.com/ case study of Commercial Drive, Vancou- vr04/. ver, BC. Doctoral Thesis, British Columbia, Canada, Simon Fraser University. Retrieved Winckel, F. (1967). Music, sound and sensa- from www.sfu.ca/media-lab/archive/grad/ tion; A modern exposition. New York: Do- david_paquette/index.html. ver.

Pichler, M. (2004). Enabling communities in Wozniewski, M., Settel, Z., & Cooperstock, physical and logical context areas as added J. R. (2006). A framework for immersive au- value of mobile and ubiquitous applica- dio performance. Proceedings of the 2006 tions. Mobile and Ubiquitous Information Conference on New Interfaces for Musical Access; Proceedings from Mobile HCI 2003 Expression (NIME06), pp144-149. Paris: IR- International Workshop, pp 43-53. Berlin: CAM, Centre Pompidou. Springer.

Quick, K., & Vogiazou, Y. (2004). CitiTag multiplayer infrastructure. KMI-TR-138. Acknowledgements Open University, Knowledge Media Insti- tute. Retrieved from http://kmi.open.ac.uk/ The team that developed this research publications/papers/kmi_tr_147.pdf. programme structure is cross-disciplinary, involving staff from the Welsh School of Raimbault, M., & Dubois, D. (2005). Urban Architecture and from the Welsh eScience soundscapes: Experiences and knowledge, Centre, the artist Glenn Davidson of Artsta- Cities, 22(5), 339-350. tion, and the composer Simon Thorne.

Rubidge, S., & MacDonald, A. (2004). Sen- suous geographies: A multi-user interactive/ responsive installation. Digital Creativity, Biography 15(4), 245-252. Academic and professional qualiications: Schafer, M. (1994). The soundscape: Our PhD, MSc, MA, Registered Architect. sonic environment and the tuning of the world. Rochester, Vermont: Destiny. Current posts:Senior Teaching Fellow and Director of Postgraduate Research Studies Southworth, M. (1969). The sonic environ- at Welsh School of Architecture, Cardiff Uni- ment of cities. Environment and Behaviour, versity. Director of the Graduate School in 1. Physical Sciences and Engineering, Cardiff Stockman, T., Nickerson, L. V., Frauenberg- University er, C., Edwards, A. D. N. & Brock, D. (Eds). Research Interests: I am an architect whose (2006). Proceedings of the 12th Internation- persistent interest in the interface between

92 A Proposed Structure for a Programme of Urban Soundscape Research architecture and the physical sciences has steered me through changing currents of public enthusiasm through the years for energy conservation, bio-climatic design, and sustainability. The part played by climate in architectural and urban design has been my area of expertise. My focus has moved from individual buildings towards urban environments, and such issues as the integration of green planting in cities and the adaptation of urban design to climate change.

More recently, I have become interested in the broader implications of environmental research and design in relation to “sensescapes”, and in particular to urban soundscapes. I consider the soundscape to be a neglected aspect of urban design which calls for investigation at a fundamental level. I am investigating the concepts and issues that are pertinent to its understanding.

The work described in this paper is the outcome of discussions with other researchers in the Welsh School of Architecture and the Welsh e-Science Centre at the Cardiff School of Computer Science, with artists outside the University.

I am currently collaborating with the School of Psychology in a study of the effects of ambient sound in rooms on speech intelli- gibility. My major role at the Welsh School of Architecture is co-ordinating the school’s taught masters programmes in architectural science.

93 City Identity and Presence: form furnishing events Marie Frier, Nanna Gram Thomassen, and Anna Marie Fisker Dwellab, Department of Architecture & Design and Depart- ment of Civil Engineering, Aalborg University, Denmark

1. Abstract Architecture Biennale in Venice 2006. The pavilion is a 32m2 experience unit, seeking This paper explores how small scale ar- to establish relations within the city through chitecture utilising new technologies can the mediation of events such as exhibitions, mediate relations between people and ob- concerts and gastronomy, offering a sen- jects within the future city strengthening our sory experience of place. NoRA has two multi sensory experience of place. identities; on the one hand “she” describes a particular interior experience of form, on Economic prosperity and population the other she unfolds a digital eventscape, growth has within the last decades caused hence both grasping and communicating cities to develop into metropolises, experi- points of presence within the city. enced as lows of metros, highways, eleva- tors and escalators. This low allows society Born in the compressed pedestrian passag- to develop into fascinating urban environ- es, the secret explorations and encounters ments and large scale visually perceived of Venice, NoRA offers a perspective on the prestige architecture, but simultaneously it subject of presence, relations, identity, and raises the question whether the individual senses of place via form; furnishing and nar- inhabitant is losing the experience of physi- rating events in the urban interior. cal and metaphysical presence within this mainly visually represented unfurnished city? 2. Introduction Introducing the pavilion NoRA as a case study, the aim of this paper is to explore the “The phrase “to go into town”, which re- potential of using small scale sensory archi- placed the nineteenth-century´s “to go to tectural experiments as generators for future town”, indicates the uncertainty of the en- urban developments, by combining archi- counter, as if we could no longer stand be- tecture, light, sound and even gastronomy fore the city but rather abide forever within.” in a sensuous furnishing of public spaces. (Virilio in Leach et al., 1997, p.382) NoRA is a mobile pavilion combining aspects of architectural-, product-, urban- and Architect and theoretician Paul Virilio’s sound design in a multimodal structure, statement in his The Overexposed City built and exhibited at the 10th International questions our encounter with the modern

94 Marie Frier, Nanna Gram Thomassen, and Anna Marie Fisker metropolis. His interpretation describes an overlowing, expanding, unfurnished; difi- alienation herein suggesting that we have lost cult to shape and to inhabit. It seems that control of our own constructions becoming ”we have to approach the question of access megalopolis’ no longer relating to the scale to the City in a new manner. For example, of our bodies. Simultaneously we seem to does the metropolis possess its own façade? be lacking the means to act upon the city, At which moment does the city show us is to start anew, to straighten out, to develop face?” (Virilio in Leach et al., 1997, p.382). further, or even to add another layer; a prob- Following the lines of thought of Virilio and lem which became obvious already in the Ballantyne, this paper raises the question: early 1920’s when Le Corbusier presented How to develop the necessary experience his radical urban visions (Frampton, 2001). of physical and metaphysical presence, in- Since then a number of strategies have de- habitability, relations, taste, feel and face to veloped suggesting different ways of acting face communication within the mainly visu- upon the city; different ways “to go to town” ally represented unfurnished future city? if continuing Virilio’s analogy. According to American architect and theo- In continuation hereof the 10th Internation- retician Marie-Ange Brayer, a chair, a car- al Architecture Biennale in Venice took the pet, a bed etc. are immediately inhabitable subject of Cities – Architecture and Society due to their proximity to the human body as its point of departure, proposing “rather (Brayer & Simonet, 2002, p.42). Hereby than an exhibition of (models and examples Brayer suggests that when speciically de- of) architecture, a discourse on the conse- signed a chair has the capability of unfold- quences and possibilities of architecture ing a micro cosmos; a place. Following this applied to urban and meta-urban systems: line of thought a chair can possibly gener- the world-city.” (Burdett et al., 2006, p.ii). ate relations between individual and com- Visiting the exhibition at the Arsenale a lit- munity, unfolding a furnished place in the eral encounter of the kind described by Vi- city allowing us to dwell as well as to inter- rilio was experienced, an encounter of un- act. This raises the question whether a small certainty confronted with structures, smug, scale architectural experiment comparable slum, destinies. The Cordories of the Arse- to a chair can mediate sensuality, commu- nale, transformed into experiences of cit- nication, and inhabitability, by suggesting ies understood and encountered through a furnishing of the expanding city. Thus, graphs, numbers, mega-scale architectural adopting Virilio’s phrase “to go into town”, projects, statistics, maps and photographs; suggesting a personal physical involvement visually exposed facts. The world quanti- with the shaping of the city, present paper ied, shaped, shaping, out of shape. investigates how an experimental approach, combining experiences of event and form; “As architects we give shape to the house architecture, furniture, light, sound and gas- and the house gives shape to us facilitat- tronomy can help developing future poten- ing a necessary experience of belonging” is tials of the city from small scale furnishing what one can read from architectural theo- points of encounter. In this matter the paper retician Andrew Ballantyne’s introduction to introduces a speciic project as a case study the book What is Architecture? (Ballantyne, in order to exemplify how the developed ap- 2002, p.2). It is our conviction that the same proach can be utilised as theory and design can be said about the city; our involvement method. The project chosen as a case study with the city is relected in its materiality, is a 32m2 mobile pavilion called NoRA, we are a part of the city’s interior. However, developed in Northern Jutland by a group as it appeared at the Arsenale the city seems of students in cooperation with supervisors

95 City Identity and Presence and local industries. causing an implosion of our physical presence in space. Consequently size does not matter, the range of dimensions of grand scale architectural projects become insig- 3. The city approached as niicant and without impact on our experience of the city; insensible. Instead Virilio event and form foresees digital and electro-optical devices and event-implants doubling, or even tak- In his inluential book S,M,L,XL architect, ing over our senses (Thau et al., 2006). urban planner and theoretician Rem Kool- Thus, when relating the prospects of the fu- haas approaches the question of the un- ture city as described by Virilio, exhibited at controllable expanding metropolis head on the Biennale, and endeavoured climbed by suggesting to solve the problem of the Large Koolhaas two opposing strategies for future by climbing. Under the headline “Bigness- developments seems to evolve: As archi- the problem of the large” Koolhaas state tects we can either choose to endeavour to that “The best reason to broach Bigness is satisfy the digital implants and speed of the the one given by climbers of Mount Everest city by developing architecture as “software “because it is there””, an approach which events” or we can insist on the signiicance has for Koolhaas resulted in a number of XL of our physical encounter with architecture projects where the exertion is fruitful (Evers and the city by focusing on a slowed down et al., 2003, p.818). In Rotterdam the Kun- sensuous material architecture understood sthalle speaks both to the pedestrians arriv- as form. ing from the park leading to NAI and to the drivers on the orbital road on the other side, In opposition to the digital prospects of Vi- likewise can be said about the giant Seattle rilio architect and theoretician Aldo Rossi Central Library which unfolds an urban in- has formulated theories on what he called terior which has become of signiicance for “the analogue city”. Rossi’s intention with the city identity. These projects are of a scale the formulation of his book The Architecture and expression which has an impact on the of the City was to produce an architectural form of the city. However, with reference to treatise equal to architectural writings of the the quotation of Virilio in the previous one renaissance (Rossi, 1982). Through a meth- could ask whether at some point the moun- odological analysis of the cities components, tain can become too high and hereby im- Rossi endeavoured to map the identity of the possible to climb? city and hereby of architecture. The dissec- tion of the city’s components aimed towards As it appears in Virilio’s theories on space, an answering of the question concerning the power, speed, and the acceleration of vi- quality of cities and architecture as artefacts sion, which are highly inspired by the cir- of form hereby Rossi meant human gener- cumstances of war, the escalating size and ated objects and carriers of the inhabitants’ speed of the city causes an encapsulation, memories of past and present (Rossi, 1982, both physically and metaphysically. When p.29-35). The identiication of the city with the speed and need for surveillance of the the inhabitant’s memory is rooted in Rossi’s “enemy” increases we become encapsu- notion of “the analogue city”, illustrated in lated, in the car, the ofice, the tank, the his collage of the same name from 1976 (Pe- bunker, the airplane the spaceship and si- tersen, E. W. et al., 1985). The collage shows multaneously face to face communication how the city consists of different structures and presence decreases (Thau et al., 2006, and artefacts implemented in different lay- p.315). According to Virilio and his “law of ers, forming a symbiosis, and hereby both dromology” speed will continue to increase 96 Marie Frier, Nanna Gram Thomassen, and Anna Marie Fisker preserving and developing the city for fu- ing events. ture inhabitants. In the collage Rossi’s own work is placed together with an extraction The column at once expresses a begin- of plans of the ancient Como, Filarete’s ideal ning, a development and a conclusion; it is renaissance city, Sforzind, and several other at once both form and event. We can relate historical elements. In this way the collage to the column in scale; it is smaller than oth- at once articulates the characteristics of the er columns, of a strange size compared to historical elements but also insinuates the the building, ighting to hold the masses up, singularity and particularity of Rossi’s own but at the same time conident and shining. work. Thus, Rossi did not conceive of the Thus, with the column a relation between city solely as an object of preservation, but such diverse and inluential conceptions rather as being part of an analogous transfor- on media, city, architecture and interior mation, manifest in and dependent on the put forth by Virilio, Koolhaas, Ballantyne, inhabitant’s and the architect’s experiences Rossi and Brayer starts to evolve focusing of artefacts and city. By placing his own ig- on our ability as architects to furnish places ure, “the poet who watches the city from within the city. Compared to the exertions the window” in the collage, Rossi stresses of Koolhaas, Filarete’s column is of a differ- the human perception and presence as sig- ent scale, it does not force its signiicance niicant for constituting the singularity and and mark in the city; rather it comments and particularity of an urban artefact (Petersen, suggests. The column has left a trace in the E. W. et al., 1985, p.9). Hereby the ability city motivating thoughts and events due to of an artefact to remain relevant over time its speciic form. Hereby a theory and de- occurs in the ability of a speciic form to ac- sign method for how to approach the future commodate and motivate different events. city is suggested based on our sensuous understanding of the urban interior, motivating As an example of an artefact which is in utilisation of novel technologies in the fur- its essence both event and a form Rossi in- nishing of future events. In the following an troduces Filarete’s column in Venice (Rossi, application and development of this strategy 1981). The column is set in the corner of a is sought introducing the pavilion NoRA as palazzo, where a narrow canal crosses a a case study. wider canal, however the column is not a regular column supporting for example a When the 10th International Architecture cantilever. The column is set into a massive Biennale in Venice was announced it was corner, and has a strange length, it seems as mentioned with the theme of the city and a leftover from an earlier construction of its architecture and society as the point of a different scale or perhaps the beginning departure. At the same time, an idea to de- of another structure breaking out and into velop a mobile and multifunctional pavilion the palazzo; changing it. The column is a capable of promoting food related products remark related to a context but also a dei- was formulated in the Northern part of Den- nite closed form in itself, the column poses mark by the Network consortium Food Col- questions, it is impossible to sail by it with- lege Denmark. Cooperation between Food out considering it. With this column and College Denmark, chefs from The National Rossi’s remarks on architecture as event and Culinary Team, food related manufacturers, form, a combination of the two opposing local industries and supervisors and students strategies outlined in the previous seems to from Department of Architecture and Design evolve, suggesting an involvement with our at Aalborg University was hereby founded sensory experience of form as well as with and the cornerstone for developing NoRA future technological developments mediat- was laid out. The biennale became NoRA’s

97 City Identity and Presence irst journey and hereby also a framework walkways, and palazzos are narratives of for her emergence. a mysterious and fascinating past, a sensuous experience of form long forgotten in the modern asphalt city. Thus, Venice as artefact came to represent a number of shaping po- 4. NoRA tentials when a mapping of characteristics of the biennale site; light, shadow and low The mobility and lexibility demanded by of people became digitally translated into the pavilion called for a small scale col- polar forces, pushing and pulling shaping lapsible unit able to set roots at different the initial sketch(see Figure 1). This volume locations, attracting and communicating became the outset for developing the spe- its presence by unfolding a place in the ur- ciic pavilion, an artistic approach which ban interior. Hereby a radical point of de- allowed for an ensuing discussion and departure was taken in relation to the theme velopment of the speciic potentials of the proposed at the biennale mentioned in the form as artefact. By optimizing the geometry introduction. NoRA would never become of the pavilion in relation to programming, a grand scale vision for the future city, but functionality, entrances, furniture etc., a a potential for her to express an alternative crystalline formal language for the pavilion strategy developed; a small scale approach developed. Likewise a number of character- of encounter. The group of supervisors and istics; an ear, a bottom, a mouth, a number students working on the design were of dif- of smaller satellite volumes surrounding the ferent ields of study, architecture, industrial pavilion, and the name NoRA developed design, urban design and digital design, (NoRA is short for the maiden name Elea- which was relected in the design process. nor, which means light and shining). Thus, The complex programme, the multiplicity the digital emergence of NoRA became a of applications (cooking events, exhibitions, narrative for the pavilion, both in terms of concerts, workshops etc.), locations and shape and functionality, as the satellite vol- design approaches demanded for a com- umes started to unfold potentials for NoRA mon point of departure, Venice became that as an urban structure occupying a large area point. despite its limited size.

Figure 1: The development of NoRA from a digital analysis of site into speciic physical modeling and programming followed inally by production.

As stated by Ruskin in The stones of Ven- ice; “The raising of stone into the air is at its most miraculous in Venice” (Davis, P., 1995, p.172). The streets of water, narrow

98 Marie Frier, Nanna Gram Thomassen, and Anna Marie Fisker

encompassing light and sound which opens up for the potential of further applications expanding the intended programme. Be- cause of its mobility the pavilion can hereby become an urban mediator; a forum for discussing future plans, a meetingpoint in the metropolis forming a furnished micro cosmos to taste, feel, and encounter face to face. Hereby NoRA as an effect of being a small scale experiment suggests how to leave traces and hereby contribute to our experience of the future city’s identity and presence. The combination of reference to the physicality of our bodies and the temporality of the pavilion offers a new kind of trace; a way of furnishing encounters and hereby relations within the city. Like Filar- Figure 2: NoRA in plan and section facilitating ete’s column NoRA poses immediate ques- stage, lounge and library, as well as smaller satellite units unfolding a digital eventscape of light and tions and suggests involvement. sound activating the physical form.

In the processes of detailing the initial digital approach changed into a speciic analogue drawing and cardboard-modelling process aiming to speciically shape the pavilion and its interior according to a number of deined scenarios of use. The interior of the pavilion unfolds three speciic zones; a lounge in one end, a library in the other and a kitchen itted on a raised stage-area in the Figure 3: NoRA at night time unfolding a tempting middle designed to accommodate different sensuous interior strengthened by the use of digital, performances of cooking, exhibiting and constructional and material technologies. work-shopping (see Figure 2). The twisting loor and luent interior of the steel frame and polycarbonate covered pavilion catch- es the light and forces visitors to mind their 5. Discussion steps as they enter the pavilion, an experience similar to the uncertain jump onto the Through a study of the city conceived as Vapporetto. Consequently the speciic form form furnishing events introducing the pavil- of the pavilion came to support the idea of ion NoRA as a case study, the initially pro- multi functionality, combining digital and posed small scale approach to future urban analogue references and approaching the initiatives has developed into a speciic view pavilion as both form and event (See Figure of the qualities of the city as an artefact. The 3). Hereby the pavilion happens to combine opposing strategies previously outlined as physical experiences of formal sensuality consequential means to act upon the “Big- with the potentials of a digital eventscape ness” of the city have both been found in-

99 City Identity and Presence suficient: Choosing to either endeavour to satisfy the digital implants and speed of the city by developing architecture as “software events” or choosing to insist on the signiicance of our physical encounter with architecture and the city by focusing on a slowed down sensuous material architecture. Future architectures and urban development’s must consequently, in our opinion, be positioned in relation to future technologies, utilising them as generators of events and communication while in keeping with the immediate sensuous qualities of a speciic furnishing Figure 4: NoRA offering a sense of belonging and form. Thus, as a consequence of being an suggesting action. experiment NoRA brings new perspectives to architecture and urbanity in general, suggesting the potential of small scale furnishing points of encounter as generators capable of References rooting in the urban interior while motivating changing events over time. NoRA is at Ballantyne, A. (2002). What is architecture?. once an expanding mediated urban space London, Routledge. and a small tempting interiority, akin to furniture. Brayer, M.-A. & Simonot, B. (2002) Archi- lab’s futurehouse, radical experiments in liv- Thus, the subject of developing future poten- ingspace. Thames & Hudson Ltd., London. tials of the city is closely related to the question of approach; how we “go into town”. Burdett, R. et al.(2006). Cities Architecture Based on the theories of Virilio, Koolhaas, and Society. Venice, Marsilio. Ballantyne, Rossi and Brayer a potential to develop our sensuous understanding of the Corbusier L. (1931). Essential Le Corbusier: future urban interior arises. By combining L’esprit Nouveau Articles, Oxford, Oxford the sensuality of speciic interiorizations of Architectural Press. space with the integration of technologies, there is perhaps a potential that our future Evers, B. et al. (2003). Architectural Theory, industrialised houses, public buildings, ur- From the Renaissance to the Present. Köln, ban spaces, and maybe even parking lots Taschen. could be made as chairs inviting us to sit, enjoy, communicate and interact (See Figure Frampton, K. (2001). Le Corbusier. London, 4): A challenging and inspiring task, encom- Thames & Hudson. passing a great responsibility and empathy Leach, N. et al. (1997). Rethinking archi- wherein the future city might show its face, tecture, a reader in cultural theory. London, allowing us to “go into town”. Routledge

Rossi, A. (1982). The Architecture of the City, MIT Press.

100 Marie Frier, Nanna Gram Thomassen, and Anna Marie Fisker

Rossi, A. (1981). A scientiic Autobiography. Cambridge, Massachusetts and London MIT Press.

Davis, P. (1995). John Ruskin Selected Writ- ings. London, Everyman.

Petersen, E. W. et al. (1985). Aldo Rossi. SKALA, Nordic Magazine of Art and Archi- tecture. special issue. København, Henning Larsens Tegnestue.

Thau, C. et al. (2006). Filosoi & Arkitektur i det 20. Århundrede. Århus, Kunstakad- emiets Arkitektskole.

Biographies

Anna Marie Fisker, b. 1957, is Architect maa. from The School of Architecture, Århus in 1984 and PhD in “Food and Architecture” from Aalborg University, Institute of Archi- tecture and Design in 2003. Anna Marie is today Associate Professor at Aalborg Uni- versity Institute of Architecture and Design, Project Manager in the Networkconsortium Food College Denmark and Head of Devel- opment at Culinary Institute of Denmark.

Marie Frier, b. 1982, is M.Sc. Eng. In Archi- tecture from Aalborg University, Institute of Architecture and Design in 2007 and is today Ph.D. Student at Institute of Architecture & Design, Aalborg University, Denmark.

Nanna Gram Thomassen, b. 1980, is M.Sc. Eng. In Industrial Design from Aalborg Uni- versity, Institute of Architecture and Design in 2007 and is today Ph.D. Student at Insti- tute of Architecture & Design, Aalborg Uni- versity, Denmark.

Tenna Doktor Olsen, b. 1981, is Master Student at Institute of Architecture & Design, Aalborg University, Denmark,

101 Haptics and Vision in Architecture: designing for more senses Jasmien Herssens and Ann Heylighen University College of Hasselt & Belgium 2 Katholieke Uni- versiteit Leuven

1. Abstract 2. Introduction

Architecture is experienced in a multisen- Although the built environment is experi- sory way. Moreover, human capacities to enced in a multisensory way, architecture perceive architecture are highly diverse. Un- evokes for most people visual associations. fortunately the emphasis in designing and creating architecture lies in large measure These associations are stimulated by the on the visual representation. Other senses visually marked Western society (Classen are hardly represented or even considered 1998; Bowring 2007) and the fact that archi- during the design process. Because of this, tects, like other designers, tend to practise the resulting building does not always com- design mainly in a visual way (Cross 1982). ply with the human needs. This paper re- Campbell (2007) wonders whether archi- ports on a research project that calls in the tecture results in a visual sport. Our cultural experience of people who are blind to re- history gave rise to this visual predilection. store the multisensory qualities in the built The ancient Greeks already adored the eye environment. These users/experts are more as the primary sense and this adoration led attentive to other senses. Their spatial ex- to what is called the ield of optics, study- perience relies mostly on the haptic sense, ing light and vision and used by the Romans which appears to be the foundation for cog- too. In the Renaissance, this visual adoration nitive spatial representation. In this paper revived and new insights contributed to the we point out the differences and similari- scientiic rise of perspective. This develop- ties between visual and haptic perception ment was very far-reaching for visual domi- related to architecture. This should allow to nance as it stimulated working in a new vir- identify design parameters which create the tual visual world (Herssens 2004); moreover, opportunity for architects to take the haptic at that time, the arts favoured painting. sense into account during the design process. In this way the paper hopes to point Western culture is dominated by ocular- out the potential contribution of Design for centrism, the hegemony of the eye. The All for improving the multisensory quality of appearance of museums and zoos further the built environment. elevated sight to the position of the pre-eminent sense (Bowring 2007). This visual dominance lives on to the twentieth century and peaks during Modernism (Frampton 2001).

102 Jasmien Herssens and Ann Heylighen

Visual dominance is striking and it disguises the expertise of people who are congenital- the importance of the other senses. ly blind, some turn out to be relevant for all of us. In view of this, our research aims to question the visual dominance in architecture, and, to ind ways to restore the multisensory qualities in the built environment. After all 3. Objective and approach we should not adapt ourselves to the environment; the environment should be adapt- In questioning architecture’s visual domi- ed to us. This view its in with the principles nance, this paper compares the visual per- of Design for All (DfA)—also called Inclu- ception of architecture to the haptic, the sive Design or Universal Design—a recent focus of our research. Just as vision is the design paradigm aiming at handicap elimi- psychological science of the optic input, nation in the environment so as to establish haptics is the science of what is tangible a more inclusive environment for everybody. (Kennedy & Juricevic 2003). The term “hap- Ultimately, our research hopes to contribute tic” refers to touchable experiences and de- to the realization of this design paradigm. rives from the Greek word “hapthai”, to lay hold of . When comparing the haptic and Increasingly disability is viewed no longer visual sense, caution is necessary in order to as a (physical or mental) characteristic of the avoid generalising sensory perception (Hel- individual, but as resulting from the inter- ler 2003). action between individual and unadapted (social or physical) environment (Devlieger For this comparison, insights from literature et al. 2003). By consequence, designers, are complemented with in-depth interviews producers and constructors are responsible with people who are congenitally blind. for handicap elimination in the built envi- Interviews with 10 people with congenital ronment (Froyen 2002). To realize DfA we blindness have been conducted and analy- use insights from Design for Special Needs sed (8 male and 2 female with an average (DfSN), which focuses on adaptations for age of 44 years). Each interview took place people with certain impairments. at the participant’s home and started by an open discussion on living patterns based, re- Our research relies on the abilities of peo- corded on a dictaphone. We asked the par- ple who are congenitally blind because they ticipant to give a guided tour throughout the are more attentive to other senses than sight residence, while ilming their movements (Warren 1978, Hollins 1989, Heller & Ken- and asking to demonstrate how they orient nedy 1990, Froyen 2002). The age of ive themselves in the dwelling. is critical with respect to loss of sight: “If people keep their vision up to this age, they Spontaneously they started talking about seem to retain some sort of visual memory (mis)its in their environment. Afterwards we (... )” (Fjeldsenden 2000). Because spatial transcribed the interview and made a plan representation of people with visual im- of the residence with annotations of (mis)its pairments is so diverse, we work with one and guiding lines. For each participant we speciic group: users/experts who are con- illed in a iling card with the coordinates, genitally blind and have no residual vision, personal data and medical information. This because they cannot rely on a visual refer- paper veriies indings from literature con- ence system (Warren 1974). Moreover we cerning the similarities and differences be- focus on the haptic sense in the exploration tween visual and haptic perception of archi- of space. Although the insights are based on tecture with examples from the interviews.

103 Haptics and Vision in Architecture

After !"#$%&'$(')(*+,-)$.&*('briely discussing the importance of haptic experience. Even as the eye touches haptics in architecture,/&*+0$1&*2*1+'2,(+,1($-3$+&'$(+,456,7 we zoom in on the and the gaze strokes distant outlines and haptic perception process through Révész’s contours, our vision feels the hardness, tex- classiication!"#$%&'()*'+*%+,($-%'.),+*/'()*'$%0-#1,($-%'-%'2"$34$%&+',%4'+.,5*+'#*5*$6*4'()#-"&)'-"#' of principles (Section 3). We ture, weight and temperature of surfaces. close by+*%+*+'4$00*#+7'8)*#*,+'6$+",3'+*%+,($-%'-%39'#*3$*+'-%'(:-;4$1*%+$-%,3'$%0-#1,($-%/'57<7',% deining haptic design parameters Without the collaboration of touch the' eye $1,&*/'),.($5'+($1"3$',#*'()#**;4$1*%+$-%,3'$%'()*'0$#+('.3,5*/'2"('5,%'2*'0*3(',+'(:-;'-#'()#**; as tools4$1*%+$-%,3'4*.*%4*%('-%'()*'+5,3*'-0'()*'*%6$#-%1*%(7'=-#'*>,1.3*/'-%*'$%(*#6$*:**'#*0*#+' to obtain more haptic qualities in would be unable to decipher space and architecture(-')$+'.$,%-',+'1-+('$1.-#(,%('?!'#*0*#*%5*'.-$%('$%'()*')-"+*7'8)*%'1-6$%&'()#-"&)'()*' (Section 4). depth, and we could not mold the mosaic of )-"+*/')*'-#$*%(+')$1+*30'29'#*0*##$%&'(-'()*'.$,%-/'+"&&*+($%&'(),(''$%'),.($5+'0"#%$("#*'$+',+'sensory impressions into a coherent contin- $1.-#(,%(',+'()*'2"$34$%&'$(+*307'@A6A+B'CDEFFG'5,33+'()$+'()*',5($6*;.,++$6*':,9'-0'+*%+,(uum. The sense of continuity unites$-%'-#' isolated ()*'+(*#*-.3,+($5,3'.#$%5$.3*H'$('$+'-%*'-0'()*'1-+('0"%4,1*%(,3'.#$%5$.3*+'-0'),.($5+/'2*5,sensory fragments in the temporal"+*' continu- :*'3$6*':$()',%'$%+($%5('(-'(-"5)'$%'-"#'()#**;4$1*%+$-%,3':-#347'ity of the sense of the Self.” 4. FeelingI%4**4'()*'),.($5'+9+(*1'$+','4$#*5('+*%+*J'),.($5'.*#5*.($-%'-55"#+'$%'#*,3'($1*',%4' what architects #*,3'.3,5*7'I%'2-()'),.($5',%4'6$+",3'.*#5*.($-%/'()*'+($1"3$'#*39'-%'1,(*#$,3'C(*>("#*/' see (*1.*#,("#*/'4*%+$(9G',%4'+.,5*'5),#,5(*#$+($5+'C0-#1/'.3,5*/'-#$*%(,($-%/'3*%&()G'CKThis process from sensation ,(:*33'to representa- LMM?G7'N*(/'()*'),.($5'+9+(*1'#*3$*+'0,#'1-#*'-%'1,(*#$,3'.#-.*#($*+/',%4'()*'%,("#*'-0'()*'tion is a human way of perceiving and simi- 4.1 Haptic0*,("#*+'$%'2-()'+*%+*+'$+'4$00*#*%('CO3,(BP9',%4'Q*4*#1,%'LMM?G experiences in ar- lar for vision and"$8),(':*'3--P'0-#' haptics. Nevertheless, in ,#5)$(*5("#,339'$+'+$1$3,#'$%'2-()'+*%+*+/'2"('()*'*1.),+$+'-%'()*'+($1"3$',%4'(the perception process, the)*'+($1"3$' type of and way chitecture()*1+*36*+'4$00*#/':)$5)'1,P*+'()*'#*.#*+*%(,($-%'4$00*#*%(7'R)"+'()*':,9'-0'*>(#,5($%&' of gathering information differs between $%0-#1,($-%'$%'2-()'$+'4$00*#*%('(--7$ both. Imagine your environment without ever 8-90$+&'$.2-1'(($-3$(')(*+,-) having felt the texture of wood, the tempera- In relation to the environment, the term ture of steel, the sharpness of a corner, the !*.*%4*%('-%'()*'0$*34'-0'+("49'-#'+5$*%($0$5'$%(*#.#*(,($-%/'),.($5+'$“haptic” was irst%6-36*'4$00*#*%(':,9+'-0' introduced by Révész verticality+*%+,($-%7' of a wall, '8*'5,%'+*%+,(*'()*'),.($5',5($6*39'C,5($6*'(-"5)$%&G/' or without ever having (1950) and further.,++$6*39'C(,5($3*'(-"5)'-#' investigated by Piaget moved2*$%&'(-"5)*4':$()-"(',%9'.#*5*4$%&',5($-%G'-#'49%,1$5,339'C(-"5)'29'1*,%+'-0','(--3G7'S on a ramp. Space is determined by and Inhelder (1956). Révész investigated-1*' haptic+5$*%($+(+'4*0$%*'),.($5'(-"5)',+',5($6*',%4'(,5($3*'(-"5)',+'., sensations, as subscribed by archi- the spatial perception++$6*'(-"5)7'T()*#+'1,P*'%-' of people who are 4$00*#*%5*',%4'"+*'(,5($3*/'(-"5)',%4'),.($5',+'+9%-%91+7'@*3,(*4'(-',#5)$(*5("#*':*'$%(*#.#*(' tect and critic Juhani Pallasmaa (2005): “The blind and considered spatial experiences mental experience of the city is more a hap- as the central problem of the psychology of tic constellation than a K*#++*%+;K*93$&)*%J'U,.*#'S*%+-#9'V#2,%$+1'.7WXEsequence of visual the blind (Révész 1955). He deined the –in images; impressions of sight are embedded his view– key principles for haptic percep- in the continuum of the more unconscious tion: the stereoplastical, the successive, ki-

104 Jasmien Herssens and Ann Heylighen nematical, metrical, constructive, analytical How: the process of sensation and optical principle (Révész 1938). Using his principles as guiding line, we compare Dependent on the ield of study or scien- the different phases of spatial exploration in tiic interpretation, haptics involve differ- vision and haptics. ent ways of sensation. We can sensate the haptic actively (active touching), passively (tactile touch or being touched without any preceding action) or dynamically (touch by 4.2 The sensation phase What: means of a tool). Some scientists deine haptic touch as active and tactile touch as pas- characteristics of the stimuli? sive touch. Others make no difference and use tactile, touch and haptic as synonyms. During the sensation phase, the infor- Related to architecture we interpret mation on buildings and spaces received through our senses differs. Whereas visual haptics as an active and passive as well as sensation only relies on two-dimensional in- dynamic way of perceiving. For example, formation, c.q. an image, haptic stimuli are we actively walk into our ofice and passive- three-dimensional in the irst place, but can ly feel the warmth of the sun shining on our be felt as two- or three-dimensional depen- skin. Dynamically we feel the weight of the dent on the scale of the environment. For door through the door handle. This differs example, one interviewee refers to his piano from visual sensation, which requires active as most important 3D reference point in the visual participation; in real time we can al- house. When moving through the house, ways actively choose whether we want to he orients himself by referring to the piano, see or not. suggesting that in haptics furniture is as important as the building itself. Révész (1955) calls this the active-passive way of sensation or the stereoplastical principle; it is one of 4.3 Perception and interpre- the most fundamental principles of haptics, because we live with an instinct to touch in tation lead to representation our three-dimensional world. What do we perceive/represent? Indeed the haptic system is a direct sense: haptic perception occurs in real time and Haptics and vision both use information real place. In both haptic and visual per- based on context and past experiences ception, the stimuli rely on material (tex- (Klatzky & Lederman 1995), but the former ture, temperature, density) and space char- makes us perceive in a structural manner: acteristics (form, place, orientation, length) we explore things in an analytical way. An (Hatwell 2003). Yet, the haptic system relies interviewee explains: “(..) but yeah moreover far more on material properties, and the a house is also, in a pure structural way, very nature of the features in both senses is dif- practical for me. Euhm, sometimes more ferent (Klatzky and Lederman 2003). What practical than an apartment. Yes, because in we look for architecturally is similar in both fact certainly in a house, a workman’s house senses, but the emphasis on the stimuli and of about 4.5 to 5 metres large, you’ve got a the stimuli themselves differ, which makes fairly structured interior. You’ve got a little the representation different. Thus the way place at the front side, a place in the middle of extracting information in both is different and in the back a little place. There are no too. doors here for the moment, and that is absolutely not necessary, otherwise it would be

105 Haptics and Vision in Architecture a very closed feeling, those have been there experience of space is still very dificult to once, but we didn’t remove them, they were observe visually. Purely haptic spatial forms already removed…(…)” even exist only for people who are congenitally blind. Moreover, research shows that Haptically we perceive every part sepa- the process of form perception for haptics rately (Révész 1955). This is reverse to the as well as vision refers to the same dimen- visual process: we start by seeing a whole, sions of differentiation (Pick & Pick 1966) but do not see the structure immediately. We and pays attention to the same complexities can ind structure by analysing the whole. (Brumaghin & Brown 1969; Owen & Brown Révész compares this process to sketching. 1970). For example, scale, symmetry and If you start drawing you irst receive an over- complexity are aspects people rely on when view, but during the sketch process you gain using vision as well as haptics to identify insight into the structure. This conirms that, objects (Garbin & Bernstein 1984; Garbin for haptic perception, structure and materi- 1990). Haptic spatial objects even work as als are the most important aspects. Material haptic triggers, which can provide recogniz- characteristics are irst perceived, while in able information. vision (Klatzky & Lederman 2003) space characteristics as form, depth and the basic For people who are blind or visually im- principles of perspective are ruling. For ex- paired, haptic triggers are considered as re- ample, the estimation of corners is more ac- warding recognition points. Haptics in space curate in visual perception than in haptics are positively experienced when space is (Appelle 1971). not

The differences between the haptic and that large so that one is still surrounded by visual puzzle of perception result in a dif- haptic triggers, but not too small as move- ference of representing space: visual per- ment is sill required to perceive haptically. ception leads to form observation, whereas haptic representation provides a form im- Interviewee: pression. The process works reversely. “euhm but the largest advantage for me Révész distinguishes between three kinds is that it is all very small in here and in of haptic spatial impressions or haptic im- fact you can move yourself very easily agery: haptic space, concerning the spatial from one tactile point in the house to the experiences of haptics; haptic spatial form, other. Like this you’ll never be on a place standing for the representation of forms re- where you won’t know where you are in lated to touch; and haptic spatial objects, the house. (…) ” Researcher: “Do you feel covering the recognisability of haptics yourself at ease in this house?” Intervie- thanks to the recognition of things and ma- wee: “mmm yes but there wouldn’t be terials. Those three impressions all support much more (furniture) in this interior… the haptic experience of space. otherwise you got such a closed feeling”

In haptic representation, form is discuss- Texture appears to be the most important able as it can be unrelated to its meaning. information to identify objects through This is due to the fact that, related to form, touch (Klatzky & Lederman 2003). We visual information dominates haptic infor- should not underestimate the role of pattern mation (Révész: the optical principle). Yet recognition (Klatzky et al.1985, Klatzky & a slight difference exists between the form Lederman 2003) and the ability of texture of movements and the purely haptic forms. recognition (Hatwell 2003) in haptics. You Movement and the successive-kinematic have certainly experienced the night quest 106 !"#!!%#&'(!)*!!"#!!*+(!,)!)!,%%!)-&&*-+.(.!/0!"#1!,2!!&,''(&)3!/-!!+*!!!**!)4#%%!#)!4*5(4(+!!,)! ),%%!&(6-,&(.!!*!1(&2(,5(!"#1!,2#%%07! 8+!(&5,(9((:! Jasmien Herssens and Ann Heylighen "#$%&!'$(!(%#!)*+,#-(!*./*0(*,#!12+!&#!3-!(%*(!3(!3-!*))!/#+4!-&*))!30!%#+#!*0.!30!1*5( ! 42$!5*0!&2/#!42$+-#)1!/#+4!#*-3)4!1+2&!20#!(*5(3)#!6230(!30!(%#!%2$-#!(2!(%#for the lavatory. Most of the time this move- !2(%#+7!839# ! (%3-!42$:))!0#/#+!'#!20!*!6)*5#!;%#+#!42$!;20:(!902;!;%#+#!42$!*+#!30!(%#!%2$-#ment happens in a dark environment, but 7!<=> ?! still you are able to ind the door handle or ;()(#&2"(&:!"@2!42$!1##)!42$+-#)1!*(!#*-#!30!(%3-!%2$-#A?light switch. One interviewee describes it 8+!(&5,(9((:!"&&&!4#-!'$(!(%#+#!;2$).0:(!'#!&$5%!&2+#!<1$+03($+#>!30!(%3-!30(#+3very poetically: “For me good architecture 2+= 2(%#+;3-#!42$!,2(!-$5%!*!5)2-#.!1##)30,?exists in its imperfections”. He refers to the traditional made architecture in which you ! <(=!-&(!#11(#&)!!*!/(!!"(!4*)!!,41*&!#+!!,+>*&4#!,*+!!*!,.(+!,>0!*/?(2!)!!"&*-'"! feel the authenticity of its production. For !*-2" ! @A%#!BC0 ! D ! E(.(&4#+ ! FGGHI7 ! J( ! )"*-%. ! +*! ! -+.(&()!,4#!( ! !"( ! &*%( ! *> ! 1#!!(&+! example, a little twist in a wooden armrest &(2*'+,!,*+!@A%#!BC0 !(!! #%7KLMN3!A%#!BC0 !D !E(.(&4#+! FGGHI! ! #+. !!"(! #/,%,!0 !*> !!(=!-&(! can provide a good orientation point. The &(2*'+,!,*+!@"#!9(%%!FGGHI!,+!"#1!,2)7!P*-!"#5(!2(&!#,+%0!(=1(&,(+2(.!!"(!+,'"!!6-()!!>*&!!"(! %#5#!*&07!Q*)!!*>!!"(!!,4(!!",)!4*5(4(+!!"#11(+)!,+!#!.#&C!(+5,&*+4(+!whole of haptic impression related to ar- 3!/-!!)!,%%!0*-!#&(! #/%(!!*!>,+.!!"(!.**&!"#+.%(!*&!%,'"!!)9,!2"7!R+(!,+!(&5,(9((!.()2&,/()!chitecture largely relates to the irst aspect: ,!!5(&0!1*(!,2#%%0:! "B2+!&#!,22.!*+5%3(#5($+#!#C3-(-!30!3(-!3&6#+1#5(320-?7haptic space. It is the more fundamental !"(!&(>(&)!!*!!"(!!&#.,!,*+#%!4#.(! #&2",!(2!-&(!,+!9",2"!0*-!>((%!!"(!#-!"(+!,2,!0!*>!,!)!1&*.-2!,*+7!S*&!(=#41%(3!#cognitive space of interpretation or basic !%,!!%(!!9,)!!,+!#! 9**.(+!#&4&()!!2#+!1&*5,.(!#!'**.!*&,(+!#!,*+!1*,+!7!!<"(!9"*%(!*>!"#1!,2!,41&()space from which pictorial (cognitive inter- ),*+!&(%#!(.! !*!#&2",!(2!-&(!%#&'(%0!&(%#!()!!*!!"(!>,&)!!#)1(2!:!"#1!,2!)1#2(pretation of taste, smell, sound and 7!8!!,)!!"(!4*&(!>-+.#4(+!#%! visual 2*'+,!,5(!)1#2(!*>!,+!(&1&(!#!,*+!*&!/#),2!)1#2(!>&*4!9",2"!1,2!*&,#%!@2*'+,senses) and transperceptual spaces (refering !,5(!,+!(&1&(!#!,*+! *>!!!#)!(3!)4(%%3!!)*-+.!#+.!5,)-#%!)(+)()I!#+.!!&#+)1(&2(1!-#%!)1#to wayinding) are metaphorically derived2()!@&(>(&,+'!!*!9#0>,+.,+'I! Figure 2: An at irst sight normal interior is in fact a #&(!4(!#1"*&,2#%%0!.(&,5(.!@Q#&C!KLLHI7!(Mark 1993). supporting haptic space. Due to the concrete chair !"#"$%&$'($)#$*+,-#$-+./#$(",0)1$+(#2,+",$+-$+($*)3#$)$-455",#+(.$/)5#+3$-5)326$742$#"$#/2$3"(3,and lower box, the furniture of the house became 2#2$3/)+,$ )(8$*1"92,$:";<$#/2$*4,(+#4,2$"*$#/2$/"4-2$:23)02$)-$+05",#)(#$)-$#/2$/"4-2$+#-21*6$=/2$+(as important as the house itself. The interviewee and #2,>+2922$)(8$/+-$ 5),#(2,$?25#$#/2-2$,20()(#-$"*$#/2$:),($)(8$("9$4-2$#/20$)-$",+2(#)#+"($5"+(#-6$his partner kept these remnants of the barn and now use them as orientation points. !"#$%"$#&$'&()&*+&,(&'(&-&./0 $! How do we perceive/represent? "#$%&'!(%&)*+&!#,-!-.$-,&-/'-0!&/!#!(*''-((&1-!2#3!43!*(-!56!7&/-)#%&'(8!%9- !1*.&23/*)34$ '(*.)*'4&!#''5,0&/:!%5!;<1<(=>!?$#'-!&(!9#$%&'#++3!-.$+5,-0!%9,5*:9!)51-)-/%!#/0!4Haptic stimuli are experienced in a succes- 3!)-#/(! 56!#!(%-$@43@(%-$!$,5'-((8!#/#+5:5*(!%5!(5+1&/:!#!+#,:-!$*==+-8!&/!29&'sive way by use of kinematics, the kinemati- 9!(%,*'%*,-!&(!%9-!7-3! #($-'%>!A/-!&/%-,1&-2--!,-6-,(!%5!9&(!0#&+3!2#+7!%5!%9-!$5(%45.>!"cal principle according to Révész. Space -!-.$+#&/(!&%!1-,4#++3!#/0!is ,-$-#%(!9&(!#'%&5/!&/!,-#+!%&)-!#/0!$+#'-!%5!(952!%9#%!9-!2#+7(haptically explored through movement!1-,3!(-B*-/%&#++3!&/!(-#,'9!65,! and 9&(!0#&+3!)#&+!#$$+3&/:!9&(!9#$%&'!(-/(-C!9-!5$-/(!%9-!6,5/%!055,8!65++52(!%9-!2#++!56!%9-by means of a step-by-step process, analo- !95*(-! 29&'9!:*&0-(!9&)!%5!%9-!9-0:-,52>!D5++52&/:!%9-!+&/-!56!%9-!9-0:-8!9-!(*00-/+gous to solving a large puzzle, in which 3!6--+(!#! '9#/:-!&/!%9-!%#'%&+-!$#%%-,/!56!%9-!$#%9>!E!:,&0!(-,1&/:!%9-!0,#&/#:-!structure is the key aspect. One interviewee56!%9-!0,&1-!&/0&'#%-(!%9-! 2#3!%5!%9-!$5(%45.>!F5!:5!4#'7!&/(&0-8!9-!G*(%!2#+7(!%9-!(#)-!$#%9refers to his daily walk to the postbox. He !&/!#!,-1-,(-!2#3>! H9#,#'%-,&(%&'(!#/0!0&66-,-/%&#%&5/(!#,-!$-,'-&1-0!%9,5*:9!)51-)-/%>!I-0-,)#/explains it verbally and repeats his action in !#/0!J+#%=73! KLMNOP!&0-/%&6&-0!-.$+5,#%5,3!$,5'-0*,-(!#(!2&/052(!%9,5*:9!29&'9!%9-!9#$%&'!(3(%-real time and place to show that he walks )!'#/!4-! $-,'-&1-0>!D5,!-.#)$+-8!&6!2-!-+&)&/#%-!1&(&5/!29&+-!-.$+5,&/:!($#'very sequentially in search for his daily mail-8!2-!6&,(%!(%#,%!)51&/:! %9,5*:9!($#'-!#/0!-.$-,&-/'-!%9-!-/1&,5/)-/%!%9,5*:9!%9-!6+55,!#/0!2#++(!29&'9!+applying his haptic sense: he opens the front -#0!*(!%5! %9-!2&/052(> !56.7"(23/*".$7("2$2"+&2&./$"8/'8/$/98-$'43:-$3.$*2'"(/3./;$3.%$'("<3<4:$door, follows the wall of the house which )(8)*34;$("4&$*.$/3)/834$(&)"=.*/*".>$guides him toKQ&++#,!LMMRP>!S-!)-#(*,-!($#'-!2&%9!%9-!9-+$!56!5*,! the hedgerow. Following the Figure 1: Twist in a metal armrest.52/!4503!K;<1<(=!LMTTC! Although from a 2&/(*)34$'(*.)*'4&P!#/0!5*,!4503!:&1-(!*(!&/65,)#%&5/!#45*%!($#%&#+! !"#"$%&$'()*#$)+$,$-.#,/$,0-0.*#1$2/#3"453$60"-$,$7)*4,/$8")+#$"6$7).($"+.$-,9$80.6.0$,$*#0,)53#$/)+visual point of view one may prefer a straight line, line of the hedge,.:$#3)*$ he suddenly feels a change #(!2-++!#(!)#%-,&#+!$,5$-,%&-(!K"#%2-++!UVVWP>!X&(&5/8!5/!%9-!5%9-,!9#/08!'#/!4-!'5/(&0-,-0!#(! ,0-0.*#$)*$3,8#);,//9$-,0<.=$,*$,$5""=$,0-0.*#$=4.$#"$#3.$#()*#$,*$"0).+#,#)"+$8")+#1this armrest is haptically marked as a good armrest in the tactile pattern of the path. A grid serv- ,-)5%-!$-,'-$%&5/!$,51&0&/:!($#%&#+!&/65,)#%&5/ !-*284/3.&"8-4:>!X&(*#++3!2-!$-,'-&1-!%9-! due to the twist as orientation point. ing the drainage of the drive indicates the #,'9&%-'%*,#+!$*==+-!#(!#/!&)#:-!#/0!/5%&'-!%9-!(%,*'%*,-!#6%-,2#,0(>!D5,)!51-,,&0-(!(%,*'%*,->! way to the postbox. To go back inside, he F9&(!#($-'%!'5/%,&4*%-(!%5!%9-!'5/(&0-,#%&5/!56!1&(&5/!#(!%9-!$,&)5,0&#+!(-/(-!65,!$-,'-&1&/:! ($#'-!#(!+-((!%&)-!&(!/--0-0!%5!-.$+5,-!($#'-!1&(*#++3>!S9&+-!just walks the same path in a reverse1&(*#++3!2-!(%#,%!2&%9!#!95+&(%&'! way. K?%,-,&!UVVWP!65,)!%5!4-!#/#+3(-0!&/%5!#!(%,*'%*,-8!9#$%&'#++3!2-!$-,'-&1-Characteristics and differentiations are per- !&/!#!)".-/(8)/*+&? 3.34:/*)34!2#3!K;<1<(=!LMTTP!#/!&)$,-((&5/!56!%9-!(%,*'%*,-!29&'9!-15+1-(!&/%5!#!295+ceived through movement. Lederman and ->!Y*-! "(&))(+)T"(0%,'"(+:!U#1(&!V(+)*&0!W&/#+,)4!17XYL%5 ! %9&( ! 0&66-,-/% ! 2#3Klatzky ! 56 ! :#%9-,&/: (1987) !identiied &/65,)#%&5/8 exploratory ! (5)- ! ('&-/%&(%( proce- ! '5/'+*0- ! %9#% ! 9#$%&'! ,-$,-(-/%#%&5/!&(!+-((!(-/(&%&1-!%5!%9-!+#2(!56!Z-(%#+%>!K"#%dures as windows through which the2-++!-%!#+>LMMV8!I#7#%5(![!Q#,7(! haptic LMMMP>!\/!9#$%&'!,-$,-(-/%#%&5/!%9-!295+-!&(!5/+3!$-,'-&1-0!#(!#!*/&%3!43!#''&0-/%>! 107

"-,((-/(@"-3+&:9-/C!]#$-,!?-/(5,3!^,4#/&()!$>O_M Haptics and Vision in Architecture system can be perceived. For example, if we tance of haptic (he uses the term tactile) per- eliminate vision while exploring space, we ception in the exploration of the environ- irst start moving through space and experiment and the fact that this sensory source is ence the environment through the loor and universal in the animal world. walls which lead us to the windows. “Infor- mation from movement output thus plays an important, and probably crucial, role in tactual recognition” (Millar 1994). We measure 5. Towards haptic design pa- space with the help of our own body (Révé- sz 1955: metrical principle) and our body rameters gives us information about spatial as well as Strikingly, the architectural concepts for vi- material properties (Hatwell 2003). Vision, sual and haptic representation tend to rest on the other hand, can be considered as re- on similar categorisations of mental maps. mote perception providing spatial informa- In his book “The image of the city”, Kevin tion simultaneously. Visually we perceive Lynch (1960) analysed the city and its rep- the architectural puzzle as an image and no- resentation. Focussing on visual perception tice the structure afterwards. Form overrides he divided the visual mental map into ive structure. This aspect contributes to the con- categories of networks: paths, nodes, land- sideration of vision as the primordial sense marks, districts and edges. Judging from the for perceiving space as less time is needed interviews with people who are congenital- to explore space visually. While visually ly blind, these categories even exist in the we start with a holistic (Streri 2003) form to haptic mental map. For example, they make be analysed into a structure, haptically we use of haptic landmarks in their orientation perceive in a constructive-analytical way process. (Révész 1955) an impression of the structure which evolves into a whole. Due to this dif- This is an interesting point for architecture: ferent way of gathering information, some if we want to implement haptic aspects into scientists conclude that haptic representa- the design process, we can make use of rec- tion is less sensitive to the laws of Gestalt. ognizable architectural concepts. This offers (Hatwell et al.1990, Lakatos & Marks 1999). a clue for translating haptic experiences in a In haptic representation the whole is only useful architectural language. perceived as a unity by accident. However, because of the distinct character- An interviewee refers to the usefulness of istics of the haptic sense, haptic landmarks, passages instead of a void, which gives him edges, paths, nodes, districts will likely dif- the feeling he is lost. The walls give struc- fer from the visual categories. For example, a ture to the space and a feeling of safety and large tower can be an excellent visual land- comfort. Another interviewee refers to the mark in the city, but when walking sightless structure he made with the help of little car- around the tower, you cannot feel the differ- pets in his living room. Details and structure ence with a 2 storeys high building. This is are important in haptic perception and, of illustrated by a funny story about blind men course, there must be a haptic stimulus in who gave two completely opposite answers the irst place, otherwise there is no haptic to the question “What is an elephant?” after perception. We should not forget that we touching one. The one who touched only once learned to give meaning to our envi- the animal’s leg replied “It is a tree”, while ronment thanks to the interaction between the one who touched only the animal’s body visual and haptic sense (Piaget & Inhelder, replied “It’s a wall” (Kusajima 1970). 1956). Burton (1993) subscribes the impor-

108 Jasmien Herssens and Ann Heylighen

In summary, the interpretation of what a References landmark, node, path, district or edge may differ from visual experience. Moreover, the Apelle, S. (1971). Visual and haptic angle hierarchy which exists in the categories is perception in the matching task. American not similar to that in the haptic categories. Journal of Psychology, 84, pp.487-499. In This interpretation is what we call a hap- Gentaz E. & Hatwell Y. (2003). Haptic pro- tic design parameter. It is a description of a cessing of spatial and material object prop- haptic design structure and its resulting en- erties. In Hatwell, Y., Streri A. & Gentaz, E. vironmentbehaviour, which can be useful to (2003). Touching for Knowing. Amsterdam/ implement in a design process. This haptic Philadelphia: John Benjamins Publishing structure consists of a description in mate- Company. pp.123-159 rial, space and scale. The environment-behaviour deines the movement, experience Bowring, J. (2007). Sensory Deprivation: and time. For example, a haptic path can Globalisation & the Phenomenology of be a route through your house, marked by Landscape Architecture. Sint-Petersburg: the texture of the materials and subscribed St. Petersburg State Polytechnic University by the form it makes. The fact that this route Publishing House. has the shape of a wave makes you feel free. It gives the impression of relaxed time. By Brumaghin, S.H.& Brown, D.R. (1969). Per- this means the information in these haptic ceptual equivalence between visual and parameters relates to architectural concepts tactual stimuli: An anchoring study. Percep- deined through haptic behaviours. tion and Psychophysics, 4, pp.175-179. In Hatwell, Y., Streri A. & Gentaz, E. (2003). Touching for Knowing. Amsterdam/Phila- 6. Discussion delphia: John Benjamins Publishing Com- This paper attempted to draw up the simi- pany. pp.123-159 larities and differences in perceiving archi- Burton, G. (1993). Non-neural extensions of tecture between the haptic and visual sense. haptic sensitivity. Ecological Psychology, 5, It becomes clear that differences are due to pp.105-124. the characteristics of the stimuli and the way they are sensed, which lead to a different Campbell, R. (2007). Experiencing architec- manner of representation. Notable is the ture with seven senses, not one. Architec- fact that we mark the same mental patterns tural record (November), 2. in the haptic spatial Classen, C. (1998). The Color of Angels. representation as in the visual mental maps, London: Routledge. although they sometimes are supported by a different way of perceiving. Cross, N. (1982). Designerly ways of knowing. Design Studies, 4(October), 221-227. In the future we want to identify haptic design parameters which can be introduced Devlieger, P, Rusch and Pfeiffer FR (eds.): in the design process to realise architecture 2003, Rethinking Disablity. The Emergence with more haptic qualities, or to check these of New Deinitions, Concepts and Commu- qualities in an architectural design. For this nities, Garant. purpose we will make use of the patterns which correspond in haptic and visual men- Eberhard, J. P. (2007). Architecture and the tal maps. brain. Atlanta: Greenway Communications, LLC.

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Fjeldsenden, B. (2000) Blindness and cog- (2000). Touch, representation, and blind- nitive structures. Access on: www.svt.ntnu. ness. Oxford: Oxford Univ. Press. no/psy/Bjarne.Fjeldsenden/Articles.html, 20-02-2006. Heller, M.A.& Kennedy, J.M. (1990). Per- spective taking, pictures, and the blind. Per- Frampton, K. (2001). Moderne architec- ception and Psychophysics, tuur: een kritische geschiedenis. Nijmegen: SUN. 48. pp. 459-466.

Froyen, H. (2002). Universal Design Educa- Heller, M.A. (2003). Haptic perceptual il- tion. In Dua, I. & Dujardin, M. e. (2002). lusions. In Hatwell, Y., Streri A. Gentaz, E. Universal design education. Brussel: Konin- (2003). Touching for Knowing. Amsterdam/ klijke Vlaamse Academie van België voor Philadelphia: John Benjamins Publishing wetenschappen en kunsten. Company. pp.161-171

Garbin, C.P. & Bernstein, I.H.(1984). Visual Herssens, J. (2004). Virtualiteit in architec- and haptic perception of tri-dimensional tuur-(re)presentaties.-een ambiguïteit. Leu- solid forms. Perception and Psychophysics, ven: K.U.Leuven. 36, pp.104-110. In Hatwell, Y., Streri A. & Gentaz, E. (2003). Touching for Knowing. Hollins, M. (1989). Understanding Blind- Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins ness. Hillsdale/N.J.: Erlbaum. Publishing Company. pp.123-159 Kennedy, J. M. & Juricevic, I. (2003). Optics Garbin, C.P. (1990). Visual-touch perceptual and haptics. Access on: www.semioticon. equivalence for shape information in chil- com/virtuals/multimodality/kennedy.pdf, dren and adults. Perception and Psychophys- 24-05-2008. ics, 48, pp.271-279. In Hatwell, Y., Streri A. Klatzky, R., Lederman, S., & Metzger, V. & Gentaz, E. (2003). Touching for Knowing. (1985). Identifying objects by touch: An “ex- Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins pert system”. Perception and Psychophysics, Publishing Company. pp.123-159 37, pp. 299-302. Hatwell, Y., Orliaguet, J.P., & Brouty, G. Klatzky, R.L. & Lederman, S.J. (1995). Iden- (1990). Effects of object properties, atten- tifying objects from a haptic glance. Percep- tional constraints and manual exploratory tion and Psychophysics, 57, pp.1111-1123. procedures on haptic perceptual organization: A develpmental study. In Bloch H. & Klatzky R. & Lederman S. (2003). The hap- Bertenhal B. (Eds.). Sensory –Motor organi- tic identiication of everyday life objects. In zation and development in infancy and ear- Hatwell, Y., Streri Arlette; Gentaz, & Gen- ly childhood. Dordrecht: Klumer Academic taz, E. (2003). Touching for Knowing. Am- publishers. pp.315-335. sterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins Pub- lishing Company. pp.105-123. Hatwell, Y., Streri Arlette; Gentaz, & Gen- taz, E. (2003). Touching for Knowing (v. 53). Kusajima, T. (1970). The World of the Visu- Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins ally Handicapped. Karlsruhe: G. Schindele Publishing Company. Verlag.

Heller, M.A. (1983). Haptic dominance in Lakatos, S. & Marks, L. (1999). Haptic form form perception with blurred vision. Per- perception. Relative salience of global and ception, 12, pp. 607-613. In Heller, M. A. local features. Perception and Psychophys-

110 Jasmien Herssens and Ann Heylighen ics, 61, pp.895-908. van de blinden (pp. 20-91). Leiden: H.E.Stenfert Kroese N.V. Lederman, S.J. & Klatzky, R.L. (1987). Hand movements: A window into haptic object Schinazi, V. R. (2005). Spatial representation recognition. Cognitive Psychology, 19, and low vision: Two studies on the content, pp.421-459. accuracy and utility of mental representations., 1-14. Streri A. (2003). Manual Explo- Lynch, K. (1960). The image of the city. Cam- ration and haptic perception in infants. In bridge, Mass.: MIT PRESS. Hatwell, Y., Streri Arlette; Gentaz, &

Mark, D. M. (1993). Human Spatial Gentaz, E. (2003). Touching for Knowing. Cognition. In D. Medyckyj-Scott & H. Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins Hearnshaw(Ed.), Human Factors in Geo- Publishing Company. graphical Information Systems (pp. 51-60). Belhaven Press. pp.51-67. Warren D.H., Anooshian, L.J., Bollinger J.G. (1974). Early vs. Late vision: Millar, S. (1994). Understanding and repre- The Role of Early Vision in Spatial Reference senting space. Oxford: Clarendon. systems. New Outlook for the Blind 68: 157-162 In: Fjeldsenden, Owen, D. & Brown, D. (1970). Visual and tactual form discrimination: A psychophysi- B. 2000. Blindness and cognitive structures. cal comparison within and between mo- Access on: http://www.svt.ntnu.no/psy/ dalities. Perception and Psychophysics, 7, Bjarne.Fjeldsenden/Articles/Cognitionand- pp.302-306. In Hatwell, Y., Streri A. & Gen- blindness.html, 20-02- 2006. taz, E. (2003). Touching for Knowing. Am- sterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins Pub- Warren, D.H. 1978. Handbook of Percep- lishing Company. pp.123-159 tion. New York: Academic Press.

Pallasmaa, J. (2005 (1996)). The eyes of the Zelek, J. S. & Bromley S. & Asmar D. & skin. Chichester: Wiley-Academy. Thompson D. (2003). A Haptic Glove as a Tactile-Vision Sensory Substition for Way- Pallasmaa, J. (2005). Encounters. Helsinki: inding. Journal of Visual Impairment & Rakennustieto Oy (Building Information Blindness, 97(10 October), 621-632. Ltd). Piaget, J. & Inhelder, B. (1971 (1956)). The child’s conception of space. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul. Pick, A.D. & Pick, H.L. (1966). A developmental study of tac- Acknowledgements tual discrimination in blind and sighted children This research is funded by a PhD grant from the Institute for the Promotion of Innovation and adults. Psychonomic Science, 6, pp.367- through Science and Technology in Flan- 368. Révész, G. (1938). Grundlegung der ders (IWT-Vlaanderen). The authors would Haptik und der Blindenpsychologie. Den like to thank Kim Bols, Blindenzorg Licht en Haag: Nijhoff. Révész, G. (1950). Psychol- Liefde, Spermalie, de Markgrave, and espe- ogy and art of the blind. London: Longmans cially the participants for sharing their time Green (partly) Révész, G. (1955). Blind- and insights. enpsychologie. In G. Révész & W. Zeeman (Ed.), Het persoonlijke en sociale leven

111 Haptics and Vision in Architecture

Biographies

Jasmien Herssens studied architecture at the university college of Ghent, WENK, Sint- Lucas where she graduated in 2001. After- wards she went to the Catholic University of Louvain to take a MAMA in architectural sciences. She started her internship at Ante- architecten in Saint-Nicolas. After 6 months she inished the internship and started to work at Wim Goes Architectuur in Ghent where she had worked for 3 years. In 2005 she began teaching architectural design at the University College of Hasselt, where she also does research in Design for All. Her current phd-project aims at inding new haptic design parameters with the help of people who are congenitally blind.

Ann Heylighen studied architecture/engineering at the K.U.Leuven (Belgium) and E.T.H. Zürich (Switzerland). She received her MSc in Engineering: Architec- ture (1996), and her PhD (2000) from the K.U.Leuven. As a post-doc she conducted research at Harvard University, and at the University of California-Berkeley. Since Oct 2006, she is research professor at the Design & Building methodology research group of the K.U.Leuven. Currently her research and teaching focus on fostering more knowl- edgeable ways of designing, especially in the context of Design for All.

More information on http://www2.asro. kuleuven.ac.be/home/heylighen/

112 Design and Communication in a Multi-sensory Environment Peter Howell and Julia Ionides Dogrose Trust

1. Multi-Sensory Thinking 2. History and Work of the

In his Preface to our book, Another Eye- Trust sight, Professor Juhani Pallasmaa wrote: The Dog Rose Trust has been directly con- “In fact it is misleading to think of the sens- cerned with the communication of the his- es in isolation from each other. The senses tory, form and function of buildings and en- interact and collaborate, and their interplay vironments to blind and visually impaired with each other and the body gives rise to visitors for over 20 years. more complex systems of perception, mem- The Trust worked on the project Cathedrals ory and consciousness than any one of the through Touch and Hearing and developed senses singly.” in situ binaural recording techniques for Although Professor Pallasmaa points out one of the most complex forms of building what an ocularcentric culture we now have, that exists. This technique uses microphones he believes that, ‘after centuries of neglect, in the position ears on a dummy head and the body and the senses are shifting into the gives a very convincing stereo image. The centre of today’s architectural discourse’ microphone was always correctly positioned and our neglected senses are being redis- for that particular acoustic space. covered. Besides the spatial aspects of the sound, The Dog Rose Trust over many years has there are what we termed the iconic forms been running parallel with Professor Pallas- of sound: people walking and talking, choirs maa’s thinking as we have worked to devel- singing, and even the sound of some par- op intelligent multi-sensory design and the ticular function. It is possible through listen- consideration of all senses. Most design and ing, to position the sounds but sometimes communication is presently sense-speciic, not possible to identify them unless you are but many people have dificulties with one well versed in how a cathedral works, but or more sense and an environment designed the same principles apply to other speciic to take into account all the senses would in- places. clude and help everyone. After that project inished, Dog Rose then formed itself into a separate charity to research and develop access to all environ- 113 Peter Howell and Julia Ionides ments for people with sensory impairments. Mabey in his book ‘Fencing Paradise’ which relates to the Eden Project wrote: A signiicant part of our work is design and supervising the manufacture and installa- ‘For all its overlay of cultural associations, tion of tactile and audio signs. Although the smell is the most direct of our senses. The situation is changing slowly and through the odour molecules ly straight to the receptor Disability Discrimination Act and general cells at the back of the nose. And there is humanitarian pressure people are becoming no way, except in the very short term, we more aware of the need for universal com- can close scent down, in the way we can munication and we look at new technolo- sight. To stop smelling we would have to gies to it the situation. stop breathing. Smells continue to operate below the level of our consciousness’. So far very little deep thinking has gone into the design, modern manufacture and con- Anthropologists have found that many temporary use of tactile forms for everyone, groups of people, unlike us, have cultures particularly in the open environment and that take into account the sense of smell. interesting tactile experiences are rare. A recent research project where we produced We have used smell in our guides where tactile ish in a range of materials such as possible and it can be used as wayinding glass, stainless steel and ceramic which are too with certain food shops for example. very promising. Another example is the damp smell of an undercroft in a cathedral.

I hope that we have made the point that it needs sensitivity and skill to design for the 3. Using All Our Senses senses and we do need to develop postive We are less aware of our senses than we ways of designing for the senses if we are should be. We must look at the senses as all to enjoy and extend the richness of our a whole expression of our life, but we are environments. restricted at a very early age in the use of them. Do these phrases bring back memories? Do not touch! Keep quiet! Do not mention smell! Whether this is socially right or 4. A Basis for Design wrong is not the issue, the issue is that the use of our senses is restricted almost before We have, because of our aim as a we have been able to use them. In conse- charity, had to come to terms with design quence we have little experience in using work in several areas that are traditionally them in life or in design. unusual for the architect and the designer. We, and in fact all of us, need a new basis It is important to realise that all our senses on which to work. In the view of Juhani Pal- are important although some are dificult to lasmaa it is dificult to isolate senses, and design for and some are lacking the neces- the compound senses are what we need to sary research. deal with. We ind this to be true. There are very few real situations that concern only If we take one sense, that of smell, and give one sense. However, for practical purposes it some thought we can see how complex the we need to simplify the list so that we can general situation is. Typically smell is not re- begin to understand. They are simple areas ally thought of as a sense but in fact it is and which you will be aware of. a very important and evocative one. Richard 114 Design and Communication in a Multi-sensory Environment

The list, based on Aristotle, is as follows: In simple terms the actual design process follows the three steps given below.

Analysis VISION Synthesis TOUCH Evaluation SMELL These operations recycle almost continu- HEARING ously during the design process. It is a simple problem solving model. However, the TASTE analysis depends on the deinition of the problem or event that generates change that is central to the irst step and indeed our All of these headings have physical and judgement of the evaluation which is the physiological characteristics that can be last step. Without these deinitions we can- considered in design but all have unknown not effectively use the model. regions as we have demonstrated with smell. But we think that in the consideration of However, the real problems in the consid- the design model there is a vital factor generation of our senses in design occur when erally missing. The missing factor in simple the signals get to the brain where it becomes terms is human need. This need may be real exceedingly complex but the processing is or imaginary but is necessary. Real or imagi- slowly being researched and understood. nary because advertising often dictates and To be more serious about this, we as the interprets our need in a way that beneits the human race seem to have lost the full use advertiser rather than us. of our senses. Our developing knowledge of Considering the analysis of the problem the broader sensory world in, for example, there is a story about a very well known sci- bats and insects is beginning to demonstrate entist who stood up at a meeting and said what we have lost. We in the Trust have been ‘tell me the problem and I will solve it’, and fortunate to work with many blind friends all the other scientists present fell about who have been teaching us about touch and laughing! Solving problems is far easier than listening. There is something to be learned deining them. from everyone. There are consultants who carry out what For historical reasons our own work has has become known as ‘usability testing’ and been aimed at those who have problems mostly this is product speciic, but the tech- with perception and cognition. However, nique is worth consideration. we believe that the techniques that we are using could perhaps, with suitable research, This technique is very focussed and useful be used to form general design techniques. but it does not go far enough. Generally, as This does not mean that we know all the an- designers we are commissioned by a client swers but at least we have had to design us- and paid to do what we are told, but is this ing all our senses. This is not simple. Indeed, our total responsibility? We feel there are the more we work the more we see a need certain basic factors that we must for moral for design groups that should contain spe- reasons include. cialists from every discipline.

115 Peter Howell and Julia Ionides

Writers like Philip Thiel, as set out in his touch and sound, using an interactive sys- book ‘People, Paths, and Purposes – Nota- tem. Dorcas was our friend, Eric Sayce’s tions for a Participatory Envirotecture’ begin late guide dog who was part of our research to look at the way people are in relation to team. We received a Millennium Product an environment in a cooperative way which Award from the British Design Council for is good. Further he refers to ‘Envirotecture’, this, one of a thousand products that were design and organisation of the whole envi- thought to be outstanding in Britain. ronment, which is a concept that we ind relevant. If one takes into account all the One of the most popular methods of in- senses then it begins to add up. terpretation is a three dimensional model, either of a building, city or outdoor environ- Human needs are complex but one as- ment. Designing a tactile model, especially pect that is always a problem is ‘Wayind- a costly bronze one, of a complex historic ing’, which is the necessary understanding city such as York is not easy from any point of the environment. Some of you may be of view. aware of the book by Arthur and Passini entitled ‘Wayinding’ and also the work of Reg In order to design the general layout of Golledge. Considering the overall concept the model we carried out a telephone sur- of ‘Envirotecture’ it is almost overwhelming vey of blind and partially sighted people in and it is the real problem in front of us. But York and asked them what routes they took this is just the beginning! and what features were important to them; it was essential to make routes clear and the As part of the understanding of an environ- model must be designed in such a way that ment we need to have an image of it in our the ingers could follow them. Special key mind and it does not need to be visual. For buildings were modelled in more detail. a blind person this is dificult and in order to Of course all these help sighted people as enable them to do this we have made many well. tactile plans and three dimensional models to help form this image. All the signs that we Models are obviously three dimensional make are both visual and tactile and so are and there seems to be little problem with suitable for everyone. the tactile interpretation of these, but simple raised images or plans, that is ‘two and a Materials used vary according to use: often half D’, such as the one above, are not easy model are outside and not protected so the to read and many blind people ind them most satisfactory material is bronze which is dificult to interpret. They need to be care- expensive but bomb proof and repairable. fully designed and we test them out with For interior use wood is adequate, but our swell paper, that is, special paper on which experience with the model we made for the the images can be raised by heat. Where Palace of Westminster suggest that is will be possible we provide an audio description of damaged however it is protected. the images. It takes some time for even an experienced touch reader to make out the images. 5. Interactive Systems Signs designed for townscapes have to be robust and to have suficient strength to deter The Dorcas Project, developed by the Trust vandals as well as withstanding the weather in 1994 was our irst interactive system. The and natural hazards. They can be made in Dorcas Project involves three senses, sight, many different tactile forms such as raised silk screen printing. 116 Design and Communication in a Multi-sensory Environment

With the advent of the mobile phone we had the unfortunate experience of feeling a have another way to communicate images plastic door that has moulded onto it the im- and information and we are doing this for itation shaping that would have been origi- Transport for London. nally created by a moulding plane. While we can interpret such a tactile image it does We are scripting and recording descrip- not have relevance any longer since few tions of places and routes and placing these traditional doors are now used. With the on a relay station and so when you key in a machines that we can now use more excit- pin number you hear the description or ining tactile shapes can be generated and the formation you need on your mobile phone. door could be something quite different. The scripts have to be suitable for everyone including those without sight. A ive axis milling machine can make very exciting shapes and so can moulded plas- Consultation is necessary for all projects. tic. For the replacement panel in London, a group of people met with us to give their Thus, we suggest that we need to consider advice which was very; consultation also all our senses because this is what we are took place at for a model of Downpatrick and deines our perceived ‘envirotectural’ Museum, Northern Ireland. world. Each of our senses has its own characteristics and consequently we must devel- Some organisations have developed clear op for each its own design technique. There statements on inclusion: “Coventry City is some progress here but not as much as Council states that: Our aim is to work with we need. the people of Coventry to explore and cel- ebrate the creativity and cultural heritage of All environments have the same problems all our communities.” in their appreciation: the sound environment might be as it was in the past - for example The Trust was involved with the Coventry in a bazaar in Istanbul or the choir of an disability access committee and as part of English cathedral. Or it might be unaccept- our work on this committee we produced able where the pattern of the old roads can- tactile plans of the sections of the city that not cope with heavy modern vehicles and were being redeveloped so that the mem- have become dangerous as the trafic noise bers with visual impairments could take part blots out the natural and acoustic environ- in the discussions. These plans were well ment. tested and were available from the internet: it is possible to print these, photocopy them and make a raised copy from this suitable to take on site. The same basic forms were 6. Spatial Hearing in the En- used for one of the city centre signs, in the manner of this example. vironment

Although touch is necessary to read tac- Much of our appreciation of space is by tile images, this sense also applies to a the interpretation of relections of sound and much broader experience and context and this is often produced initially by the person we must remember that the whole body is who is trying to appreciate the space. How- equipped with sensors. ever, if we were trying to destroy somebody’s appreciation of a painting we would pour Many conventions such as the surface of a engine oil all over it. This is exactly what we door need to be reconsidered. We have all do with the sound environment; vehicles

117 Peter Howell and Julia Ionides produce nasty, oily sounds that override ev- lower stall; bold easily seen landmarks such erything else. Few environments are com- as large interestingly shaped trees or colour- pletely without background sound, but if ful seats or murals with tactile details. Listen there is no background sound then there is to the sounds such as clocks striking to give an opportunity to carefully introduce sound orientation, footsteps that might sound dif- in a meaningful way. If there is meaningful ferent in various places, trees that the wind sound then the situation is more complex blows through. We are starting on a survey but could be very exciting. of Ludlow right now in order to produce a sound picture and a tactile booklet. But, there are places where the unhappy by product of the internal combustion en- In the Avalon Marshes in Somerset we gine does not penetrate and cover the world worked on panels, a tactile booklet and a with a nasty noisy cloud. An example of this sound guide which included oral history is the Greek island of Hydra which has no from the older members of the communi- motorised vehicles on it and Venice where ty and contributions from local experts in the sound of bells is enhanced by the ab- history, trees, mythology and natural his- sence of the constant hum of cars. tory. Wind-up audio units have been placed around the site. This kind of quiet, changes our way of hearing the sound of an environment. Venice is We need to encourage designers and ar- another example of a place with a quite dif- chitects to include sensory icons in their ferent kind of sound and here we have made projects – the sound of water is an obvious over one thousand recordings of this envi- sound icon to navigate by, different textures ronment. We ind that these ‘unclouded’ en- underfoot provide tactile clues, especially if vironments allow us to see the environment there is a difference in the sound of the ma- through our ears. Sometimes, it might not be terial used; handrails by steps can have mes- a romantic ideal environment but it is real. sages built into them in Braille and images It is important to remember that sound is an – I am sure you can think of many more. important way of communicating in all situations. If we believe in multi-sensory design as a component of a new world which will al- Surveys of Rural England show that the low communication with everyone then we sound of trafic slowly but surely is eating have to watch information low concepts up the space between roads and in only one very carefully, otherwise we will be irmly or two counties there are still small areas locked out from the development of a world where there is no noise from vehicles except that considers control and proit more im- from the occasional passing tractor or car. portant than people! In other words a world that follows human greed rather than hu- Our town of Ludlow in Shropshire, England, man need! it is a good example of practical sensory urbanism with its feast of historic buildings for We have talked about various techniques the eye, the sound of the rushing river, the and concepts in relation to the creation of smell of the food shops and the taste of the communication systems to connect people many award winning cafes. There are also with the urban environment and to design sensory clues around the town: the cobbles for people. It is vital in this consideration to underfoot for example; tactile clues such as realise that there are real people out there. railings and statues; open spaces where the The human race is very varied in experience, wind blows through more than sheltered language and sensory ability. It is important corners, smells such a baker or brewery or a to realise that they, that is human beings, are 118 Design and Communication in a Multi-sensory Environment the essential aim of the design programme. eryone, and in particular people with visual Sadly this is often overlooked! impairments, to access all environments, especially heritage sites and museums.

Biographies

Julia Ionides, M.A., is an art and architectural historian with a special interest in the 18th and 19th centuries. She is the author of Thomas Farnolls Pritchard of Shrewsbury, Architect and Inventor of Cast Iron Bridges (1999) which she published with her hus- band, Peter Howell, under their own Dog Rose Press. Other books published by the Dog Rose Press are Memories by Luke Ion- ides, with an Afterward by Julia Ionides and Victorian Days in England by Anna Maria Fay with Additional Material by Julia Ionides and Peter Howell. Also The Old Houses of Shropshire in the 19th Century by Julia L Ionides and Peter G Howell. Work is pro- gressing on a book on the Poor Law in the Ironbridge area and a book on Shropshire Churches based on water colours by Ed- ward Williams.

Peter Howell, Diploma in Architecture, Ar- chitect, RIBA, trained as an architect at the Birmingham School of Architecture. He was a Research Fellow at the Building Research Station in England, group leader of a research and development unit at the Greater London Council Architects’ Department and Regional Architect with the Department of Environment. After taking early retirement he followed an interest in acoustics. As part of a project by the University of Birming- ham he developed the Acoustic Fingerprint Guides which enabled blind visitors to appreciate historic buildings.

The Dog Rose Trust was set up by Peter Howell and Julia Ionides following this work with the University of Birmingham. The charity, which is committed to universal design, carries out research and development work on tactile and audio facilities to enable ev-

119 Awakening the Blinded Sensation Min-Feng Hsieh University of Edinburgh

Abstract ocularcentric culture in which the vision- centered thinking largely dominated the de- This paper will focus on pursuing the issues velopment of the Western culture but also of why we should, and how we could, un- suppressed other senses and restricted “the derstand our urban environment as a series way architecture was conceived, taught and of sensory scenarios and perceptual encoun- critiqued”(Pallasmaa 2005). ters in spaces which are to be performed by our perception of and interaction with the To emancipate from these conceptual con- sensory context and events happening and straints, we need to restore our knowledge lowing around us. Following this argument, of perception and reactivate all the over- an anatomic exploration of the “experienc- shadowed sensory aptitudes in reconstruct- escape” of an urban space will be discussed. ing the missing layers of the way we experi- This exploration is to be executed by utiliz- ence, understand, and create urban reality. ing notions of “musical perception” as analytical device in revealing the subtle and dynamic complexity of the sensory fabric we perceive in a lived space. The concept 1. Emancipation: Awakening of UPIC system1, devised by Xenakis, and from the Absolute Space a digital music composition tool will be applied in the process of abstracting and trans- Since vision became the noblest sensory forming the rhythmic perception of a space faculties, we have been unconsciously and into a musical episode as an approach of conceptually conining ourselves to this awakening the blinded sensations in our sense. Consequently, the world we live in everyday experience. Since vision became and our understanding of the world have, the noblest sensory faculties, we have been therefore, been built upon the concept, unconsciously and conceptually conining knowledge, and skills developed through ourselves to this sense. Consequently, the this ocular bias. This overpowering sensa- world we live in and our understanding of tion, as Juhani Pallasmaa has pointed out, the world have, therefore, been built upon not only directed us towards an ‘ocularcen- the concept, knowledge, and skills devel- tric culture’in which the vision-centered oped through this ocular bias. This over- thinking largely dominated the develop- powering sensation, as Juhani Pallasmaa ment of the Western culture but also sup- pointed out, not only directed us towards an 120 Min-Feng Hsieh pressed other senses and restricted “the missing dimension needed to be revealed way architecture was conceived, taught and and restored in the way we understand and critiqued”(Pallasmaa 2005). construct the world.

While celebrating the advances and pros- To emancipate from these sensory bias perities that modern architectural and urban and conceptual constraints in the course culture had brought to us, the negative de- of reconstructing the missing layers of the velopment of architecture and city has been way we experience, understand, and create overlooked. As Pallasmaa states that “the in- space, this paper will try to adopt a phenom- humanity of contemporary architecture and enological approach in reorienting our con- cities can be understood as the consequence ception of sense and perception. Through of the negligence of the body and the sens- utilizing the notions of perception derived es, and an imbalance in our sensory sys- from the theories of musical experience in tem” (Pallasmaa 2005). As a consequence, exploring the spatial experience, an experi- architecture and cities were created through mental observation and its musical transla- Cartesian conception and abstract thinking tion will be presented and discussed as an which appeal to the disembodied visual ap- attempt to reveal the blinded sensations we preciation and intellectual eyes and eventu- encounter in a lived space. ally ”push us into detachment, isolation and exteriority”(Pallasmaa 2005). Although the visual-centered thinking and 2. LivedSpace: A Phenome- the ocular bias are still overwhelmingly dominating the practice of today’s architec- nological Interrogation tural design and urban planning, an awareness of this sensory depression has emerged According to Monika Langer, “...the clas- and called for emancipation from the con- sical dichotomy between a fully determi- straints and restrictions which imposed on nate world in itself and an impartial hu- our perception and conception. As the an- man observer had been challenged”. He thropologist Ashley Montagu reminds us, also suggested that ”space and time lost “We in the Western world are beginning to their absolute standpoint was no longer discover our neglected senses. This growing tenable; the perceiver’s situation could no awareness represents something of an over- longer be ignored...the perceiver became a due insurgency against the painful depriva- participator...”(Langer 1989). In this sense, tion of sensory experience we have suffered space should no longer be thought as an ab- in our technologised world,...” (Pallasmaa solute and determinant object and void, but 2005). According to Pallasmaa, “this new something appealing to our bodily sensation awareness is forcefully projected by numer- by which we form the dynamic, luctuant, ous architects around the world today who incarnate, and sensuous understanding of are attempting to re-sensualized architec- it. It may be true to say that this embodied ture...” (Pallasmaa 2005). approach of space and its architectural and urban implementation could and should be These claims reassure how the biased oc- understood as a series of sensory scenarios ularcentric culture has blinded the other and perceptual encounters performed by sensory faculties, and how the visual think- our perception of and interaction with the ing has overshadowed the primordial rela- sensory context and events around us. tionships between our body and the world. These claims also suggest that there is a

121 Awakening the Blinded Sensation

2.1 Space is an Experienced leau-Ponty considered experience ‘a process of transcendence’ (Langer 1989). In his Phenomenal Field phenomenological approach of perception, Merleau-Ponty stated that “the perceiver is Nevertheless, what do these lived and ex- not a pure thinker but a body-subject”. He perienced sensory scenarios and perceptual also claimed that “phenomenology must encounters actually mean? The notion of awaken us to an awarenessof conscious- ‘phenomenal ield’ introduced by Merleau- ness as incarnate in a body and inhering in Ponty’s has suggested some helpful insights. a world”(Langer 1989). On this view, expe- According to Langer, Merleau-Ponty’s ‘phe- rience could be considered a sensuous per- nomenal ield’ “is not a spectacle spread out ceptualization of the interaction between before a disembodied mind, but rather an the body and the world. This perceptualiza- ‘ambiguous domain’ in which perspectival, tion has to be performed by a body-subject incarnate subjects are situated. It is in this and with in a lived world. It is an act of domain that perceptual experience can be transcending what is perceived by not mere- rediscovered” (Langer1989). Merleau-Ponty ly paying attention to ‘pre-existing(sensory) went on to argue that “which is perceived... data’ but also by actively and progressively belongs to a context–or ‘ield’–which shapes articulating “what is initially given as posi- it” (Langer 1989). In other words, seeing tively indeterminate, as a ‘still ambiguous space as a lived and experienced phenom- meaning’...”(Langer 1989). enal ield is to stand for the perspective that space is never static and identical but is This positive indetermination and ambigu- continuously altering itself by “our primor- ity of our perceptual experience is some- dial relationship to the world” which is, as thing needing to be explored and rediscov- phenomenology declares, “the dynamic, ered other than something being literally internal relation between body-subject and received as ixed and ready-made. world.“ (Langer1989) Expending these views, we may say that Therefore, while a space is a phenomenal rather than only focusing on visually appre- ield to be lived and experienced by way of ciating the formal characteristics and intel- the relationship established between one’s lectually interpreting the symbolic repre- body-subject and the world, the lived and sentation, to experience a lived space is to experienced space is in lux; constantly be- explore the phenomenal ield by enacting ing shaped and reshaped; corresponding to the sensorial dialogue between the body- the changes in both the perceiver and the subject and the world, and it requires atten- context; and contrasting to the static and tive and transcendental perceptualization. identical counterpart we hold as the concept of absolute space. 3. Investigating Spatial Expe- 2.2 Experiencing a Space is rience via Musical Agency: Perceptual Exploration Rhythmic fabric in Spatial Perception One might ask that what a performance of the perception of the sensory context and Along with the phenomenological ap- the interaction with the happening events proach to understanding experience, mu- could be like? Langer explained that, Mer- sic is generally recognized as an art form

122 Min-Feng Hsieh grasped by experiencing it through listen- the perceiving mind. ing. The following discussion, the notion of perception proposed in the theories of mu- Based on the phenomenological stance of sical experience will be introduced and ex- experience, rhythm, an agency in musical tended in meaning for further investigation experience, requiring the principle percep- of spatial perception. tual attributes acknowledged previously, has been chosen to be applied in the investigation of the perceptual experience of a lived 3.1 Musical experience space. Leonard Meyer deined music as “the relationship between moving sounds and felt experience”(Reimer and Wright 1992). Thomas Clifton believed “Music is an or- 3.2 Rhythmic Perception in dered arrangement of sounds and silences to Music be experienced with human mind, feelings, senses, and wills” (Clifton 1983). Accord- James Mursell said, “Rhythm is the primary ing to Roger Sessions, “Music is intrinsically element that causes the sensuous response experienced sound-in-motion”(Reimer and of kinesthetic experience...”He continued Wright 1992). Despite the different aspects that “Rhythms are perceived in hierarchi- these deinitions focus on, they all point to- cal groups which are quite literally like real wards a consensus that music is an expe- feelings physically felt in life”(Reimer and riential art. No matter what music is con- Wright 1992). Susanne Langer wrote that sidered as an experienced relationship or as ”Music is a vital, dynamic, organic form that ordered sounds and silences, these dynamic is characterized by rhythm...Rhythm in mu- relationships and order-in-motion can only sic is a virtual time, an image of lived time, be realized through experiencing them with the immediate sense of passage, and the an embodied perceiving mind. Bebbet Re- semblance of one’s subjective time”(Reimer imer & Jeffery E Wright summarized in their and Wright 1992). She claimed that musi- ‘On the Nature of Musical Experience ’that cal time “has the same logical patterns as “A piece of music is a particular episode of our tensions which are brought to life by sounds organized to create dynamic interre- rhythms” (Reimer and Wright 1992). Ac- lationships and the internalized experience cording to these descriptions about rhythm, of their dynamicism (their expressiveness) we realize that rhythm dominates the kinetic constitutes musical experience”(Reimer and aspect of musical experience and character- Wright 1992). izes the dynamicism of music. In listening to music, rhythm reveals itself as a lived and In these inspiring insights of music and subjective time which can also be found in musical experience, we can derive three our everyday experience. principle attributes about how music is realized perceptually through experience which is also believed to be true in experiencing architecture. Firstly, art requires an act of ex- 3.3. Rhythmic Fabric in Lived periencing by which it can be brought into live; secondly, this act of experiencing has Space to be performed by a perceiving mind with embodied perception; inally, this embod- An experimental observation of an urban ied perception is always dealing with luc- space has been conducted based on an as- tuant interaction between the art work and sumption that rhythm is a lived temporality

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Awakening the Blinded Sensation

involving transcendental perception, and sition of the moving entities which pro- the rhythmic perception of a space can only duce the rhythmic fabric of the observed become perceivable by enacting an atten- spatial episode. tive exploration with multi-modal senses. By depicting the rhythmic fabric of a lived 4. Based! on the mapping " analysis of the space, we will be able to disclose the implicit kinetic disposition detected by MaxM- perceptual landscape, orasI called it ‘Expe- SP2, a rhythmic-graph was produced in riencescape’, of a lived space and to reveal graphical music composition software the mechanism of the perceptual structur- HighC33, which was inspired by Xena- ing performed by the perceiver. The concept kis’s UPIC work of the mid 80’s. of UPIC system1, devised by Iannis Xena- kis, and a graphical music composition tool 5. By assigning sonic parameters, this will be applied in the process of abstracting rhythmic-graph has been transformed into and transforming the rhythmic perception a musical passage as a translation of the of a space into a musical passage as an ap- kinetic experience of a spatial episode. proach of awakening the implicit peripheral

sensations which are experientially blinded by vision in our everyday experience.

Figure 1: A crossroad at Portobello in Edinburgh. Figure 2: Max/MSP+Jitter Interface

The experiment has been carried out by following the steps as below:

1. Acrossroadhasbeenchosenasthesitefor- samplinganurbanepisodebyvideo recording.

2. A 10 seconds short clip was selected out of this video recording.

3. This video clip has been processed, using Max/MSP+Jitter, a graphical programming environment for music, audio, and Figure 3: Vertical scanning component multimedia, for iltering the kinetic dispo- 124 Min-Feng Hsieh

Figure 4: A rhythmic-graph created with HighC ate the perceived sensorial episodes as an embodied ‘Experiencescape’ in which we, the perceivers, transform the physical space into a ‘phenomenal ield’ and perform the Derived from this observation and musi- dynamic perceptual landscape in our inner cal translation, there are several points to be subjectivity. In short, this ‘Experiencescape’ elaborated and extended: The translation of emerges in a body-subject and requires ac- spatial perception via a musical agency is tive and creative performance of perceptu- an attempt to divert the perceptual interac- alization with all senses. It also dynamically tion away from visual mode, which is a rela- evolves itself, and is luctuant in nature. tively passive and focus perception, to aural mode, which requires active and peripheral perception. Through this perceptual trans- mission from one sense to the other, the correlations between all the alternative sensa- 4. Think and Experience tions reshufle themselves. In this reshufling Rhythmically: process, the visual sensation concedes and the aural sensation takes the center stage. Towards a Music-phenomenological approach to Multimodal Perceptualization of While listening to this musical passage with Space a perceiving mind, our attentive perceptualization of the heard sensorial episode can Extending from the previous discussion, be considered as an embodied performance I would like to conclude this paper by re- of experiencing the rhythmic fabric which lecting upon the wonder of how rhythm dynamically evolves itself in a lived space. could be utilized as a musical agent and This perceptualization is an active perfor- as a phenomenological conception, and mance which perceptually structures the by proposing, at the same time, a music- sensed by constant shifting and prioritizing phenomenological approach of multimodal the multimodal sensations we engage. perceptualization of space.

In the way and process of our experiencing, In the framework of spatial experience, perceiving, and confronting these felt and rhythm, in its implicit dimension, only exists lived perceptual encounters, the perceiver in an attempt to grasp the temporal relation acts not just as a passive receiver but an ac- as a kinetic pattern among instances happen- tive performer and creator. By and through ing simultaneously. The kinetic relation can the perceptualization conducted, we recre- only be perceived through an act of relating

125 Awakening the Blinded Sensation and integrating the felt sensations in an ac- the apparent disorder currents...”Through tive way. In this sense, while we are attend- these “accidental or determined encoun- ing to the rhythmic context of a given situa- ters”... ”The Rhythmanalyst thus knows how tion, the process is executed by correlating to listen to a square, a market, an avenue”. the available multi-modal sensations in real He asserts that “what Rhythmanalyst does... time which utilizes rhythm as a ‘perceptual is to increase the reader’s sensibility to the coordinator’ in searching for a kinetic rela- diverse, multiple rhythms of everyday life” tionship in a given spatial episode. Instead (Lefebvre c2004). of being a kinetic pattern to be grasped, perceived, and experienced, rhythm, in its explicit dimension actively regulates and mod- ulates the related felt sensations by which References it shapes, changes, and dominates the perceptual experience when the perceiver’s in- Clifton, T. (1983). Music as Heard: a Study terior rhythmic impulse (biological and psy- in Applied Phenomenology. New Haven; chological rhythm) is over powering its felt London, Yale University Press. exterior counterpart. In other words, rhythm plays its role in our perceptual experience Langer, M. M. (1989). Merleau-Ponty’s Phe- as a ‘performative modulator’ by which the nomenology of Perception: a Guide and ‘Experiencespace’ of a lived space is shaped Commentary. Basingstoke, Macmillan. and reshaped from within. Lefebvre, H. (c2004). Rhythmanalysis: By conceptualizing and utilizing the dual Space, Time and Everyday Life. London, facets of rhythm inwardly as an implicit per- Continuum International Publishing Group. ceptual coordinator and outwardly as an explicit performative modulator, this approach Pallasmaa, J. (2005).The Eyes of the Skin: not only suggests the necessities and impor- Architecture and the Senses. Chichester, tance of taking both aspects into account in Wiley-Academy. understanding the rhythmic perception, but Reimer, B. andJ. E. Wright (1992). On the also points out the potential of using rhythm Nature of Musical Experience. Niwot, as an ‘experiential device’. It allows us to Colo., University Press of Colorado. articulate the richness of our lived spatial experience through organizing the kinetic patterns and relations between the multimodal sensuous catalyzers which are allo- cated and to be composed in the process of Biography experiencing and designing our space. With a background of 12 years of training in All of which has been brought out give us classical music, I was offered recommended some conidence in believing that adopting admission with full scholarship by National these views in investigating spatial percep- Board of Special Education to continue my tion will potentially direct us to a new ap- music study at Tunghai University. A year proach to reconsider the way we experience later, I transferred from Music Department space and create architecture and our urban to Architecture Department to start a ive environment. As Henri Lefebvre declares year architecture course and obtained my that “rhythms surrounds us, if only we pay BA degree in architecture in 1990. In 1993, attention, with all our senses...” an order I graduated with a Master degree of archi- will “reveal themselves through rhythms in tecture from the University of California at Berkeley, USA. 126 Min-Feng Hsieh

After practicing as an architect for more than 10 years and teaching in universities as a full-time lecturer for 6 years, I continued to pursue my interest in thinking and exploring the correlations between architecture and music in my PhD research. By ways of studying the concept, theory, and aptitude of musical perception, my current research aims at developing a conceptual model for investigating the perceptual aspect of the way we experience architecture and the potential application of this model in architectural design and its education.

127 Aural Wallpaper and Music of the City Laura Lewis & Harvey Ward Turner Mugstain Design

1. Introduction the A3 and A202 that circumvent the park on two sides. Aural Wallpaper and Music of the City provides an initial investigation into the aural Lambeth Council was proposing a whole- experience of urban space; urban ‘place’, sale regeneration of the Park; an opportu- and the ever-increasing presence of white- nity to consider diverse approaches. First noise. How do we harness this white-noise; thoughts followed the traditional approach this wasted aural energy? And how can we to this invasion of noise, that the solution utilise it to enhance the sensory experience was to screen it by hard, or soft landscaping of place; to heighten the aural without com- or a combination of both. To weave pedes- promising the visual? trian pathways from their point of entry to the park, creating distance from the periph- Befriending diffraction and appealing to the ery. mind’s ear; the knowing ear, we use Russell Square as a case study, endeavouring to ind In the following weeks, the park was visit- not the solution at this stage but the location ed on a number of occasions; different days, of a solution; how do we design with aural different times and under differing weather integrity in mind? conditions. On each occasion and following a predetermined location grid, sound- level readings were taken. The central thesis at that time was that this noise was hostile with no value, simply an invasion to be re- 2. History pelled. Beyond a public presentation to the Kennington Park, February 2002; it’s a cold, committee Friends of Kennington Park, the grey winter afternoon and a local historian proposal; following traditional thinking but is giving an al fresco talk on the signiicance nevertheless radical, never advanced fur- of this South London park’s social and polit- ther. ical past. Approximately 15 willing recep- Moving on two or three years………. tors are huddled against the wind, gathered around the speaker in increasing discomfort. As the group huddle ever closer, the speaker raises his voice ever higher. The problem is the barrage of trafic noise thundering off

128 Laura Lewis & Harvey Ward Turner

3. The Experience of Others ritation, perhaps causing us if the occasion permits, to seek refuge. Encouraging students of the built environ- But where do we take refuge from trafic or ment; future architects, spatial and urban city noise? designers; to abandon a purely visual exploration of place and to explore, whilst blindfolded, relying on their sense of touch, smell, sound and intuitive perception, reveals that quite alternative views of place 4. Case Study: Russell Square and meaning can emerge; what Pallasmaa Public squares; elegant, ordered and en- calls the “associative power of smell, touch closed by trees; the oases of London, were and taste as opposed to the sterile retinal built for people to take refuge. They were image.” Suddenly, the visual seems not so 19th century instruments of escapism; then, exciting, even when place or ediice are from Victorian poverty. described within traditional visual terms as radical and groundbreaking. Russell Square, a typical example, was designed by Repton originally in 1805. Ne- Led in this direction, students are capable glected, redesigned, with a blatant disregard of generating work of greater originality that for the original design, and neglected again, reveals an alternative view. Of these alter- Russell Square was eventually restored, native senses perhaps our sense of hearing, back to the original plan, in 2003. While its enigmatically in this time, in which we live, success in terms of historical aesthetic accu- might be simultaneously the most used and racy is not at question, its success in terms of the most neglected; the most assaulted and functionality for the 21st century is. the most under-utilised. For sound animates a picture; as Sullivan and Gill explain, “Sight Setting the scene… paints a picture of life, but sound, touch, taste and smell are actually life itself.” December 2007 and it is perilously cold in Russell Square. It is winter; all the trees are But when not focused on the immediacy bare; the Square is barren; the wrought iron of speciics; our own voice or the conversa- railings are exposed. Russell Square is ex- tions of those with whom we are engaged posed – to the elements as well as the noise. or noises attendant to our personal activities Vegetation, a potential, yet involuntary noise and industry, a sort of white-noise ensues. buffer, is minimal; dead or dying. How eas- With the exception of intrusive big-noise, ily it could be replaced – the Square dressed the further the cause of noise is removed up at Christmas time! Here, the commercial from our own making and immediate lo- Christmas tree provides the only real visual cation, the more it becomes a sort of wall- interval from the cold, bleak wilderness of paper. Interwoven threads forming a fabric the Square. from which, without focused intent, no rec- ognisable design or meaning emerges. A family with young children pause to play chicken with the fountain; a man eat- As we hurry through our days this wallpa- ing lunch on the move sits; weary shoppers per might be a constant that through famil- rest; cold walkers adjust their itchy woolly iarity we hardly take too much notice of, we socks; couples linger momentarily, breaking learn to live with it. Yet on occasion we are their march through the axis of the Square. reminded of it, it intrudes rudely into our Crows squawk in unfriendly chorus. Youths consciousness causing annoyance and iron bikes stray from the path. Cigarette

129 Aural Wallpaper and Music of the City

Fig. 1. Photomontage: Russell Square, December 2007 breaks are taken, as well as photos, despite its winter hostility it is still a tourist attraction, but most city pedestrians pause only briely, failing to ind the refuge they’re in search of. Fig. 2. Illustration: Meter reading locations

This begs the question, are public Squares Conversation in Russell Square 67 of less value to us in the winter? Do these ur- Average conversation 50 – 60 ban places have a kind of seasonal effectiveness? And what is the function of a Square; Threshold of outdoor noise level 50 – 55 on a summer’s day; in the grey of winter? To gain a clearer insight into the aural quality of Russell Square and its potential effect on our experience, decibel level readings were Pedestrian crossings adorn each side, al- taken at three speciic points; the periphery, lowing access to the Square and providing the interim and the centre of the Square. brief respite from the acceleration of vehicles. When trafic pauses to let the pedes- Location trians cross, the hum of the bite reads 65 dB towards the periphery of the square, at the dB outermost footpath loop. When acceleration resumes, the average reading of trafic at Periphery 65 the same point is 72 dB, 75 dB if motorbike Periphery – acceleration 72 – 75 trafic. At the top of the hierarchy of noise is the emergency vehicle’s siren, heard but not Periphery – emergency sirens 78 – 80 seen, so evidently not even that close, pushing 78, 79, 80 dB. These noises are shrill, Interim 62 unwelcome, intrusive.

Centre 62 At the interim as well as at the centre, the average decibel reading is 62 dB with a dull

130 Laura Lewis & Harvey Ward Turner hum of trafic. The average conversation is conducted at 50-60 dB, but with 62 dB as the volume of aural wallpaper, conversation in Russell Square is pushed to 67 dB to com- pensate for, or compete with, this wallpaper of white-noise. While 62 dB is enormously lower than the 80 dB of emergency sirens, this is a public space of refuge; an outdoor living room. For comparable readings, the World Health Organisation recognises that an outdoor noise level of 50-55 dB (LAeq) is the threshold of acceptable noise.

5. Types of noise… Fig. 3. Illustration: Russell Square noise source The noises within the café however, as loud – louder! – are friendly, welcoming, allowing the comfort blanket of anonymity. Incessant chattering reads an average of Although our own inherent decibel reading 69 dB, with the clattering of cutlery up to ears recognise that it is a little quieter in the 76 dB. But these sounds; these immediate centre, the hostility created by the exposure sounds, do not offend. Decisions are made to the elements registers with our minds that subconsciously, and a taxonomy of noise we are no more protected. Additionally, the acceptance is created. eye can’t see the vehicles; the machines and their noise become nothing more than wall- Back in the Square… paper, but the mind’s eye creates a picture based not only on the noise, but also on the It was assumed that the further one got smell and taste of the car fumes. A visual away from the noise source, in this case the equivalent is created. Note, the associations trafic in the neighbouring roads, and to the are visual, but the original source is not. centre of the Square that the noise would lessen. This was barely the case. Yes, there Back to the 2003 restoration… is 3 dB difference between the periphery and the centre, but only 3 dB. It became The restoration however was largely, if not immediately apparent that the greater the solely, geared towards a visual aesthetic. distance from one noise source, the closer The Square is Grade II registered by English the other three became. Russell Square is Heritage, and the restoration was designed violated by noise from all sides. to replicate the original plan of 1805, rather than to produce a contemporary interpretation. In fact, the oficial information for Russell Square states that the restoration was designed “to return the garden as far as possible to its appearance in the 1800s.”

Form was faithfully restored and it was expected that function should automatically follow suit. But what is the function? Can

131 Aural Wallpaper and Music of the City pedestrians follow the exact same route as to be designed-in, and formulas for urban before? Yes. Can they do it with the same design and landscaping created, so as not to feeling of escapism from city life? No. mar the visitor experience.

Can the aim of any restoration project be In 2005, in a progress report of the Mayor’s purely physical at the absolute detriment Ambient Noise Strategy, it was noted that to the original intended function of urban “recent transformation in the visual qual- space? Here, due consideration has been ity of new buildings and public spaces has given to the arrangement of plants “accord- not always been matched by a similar atten- ing to Regency horticultural principles”, tion to sound quality.” The proposed solu- but not according to the creation of noise tion? More water features in urban parks management. Additionally, “ornamental” and squares; masking intrusive noise with planting has taken precedence over stra- acceptable noise. tegic planting to control trafic noise. Ar- chaeological research has it that the inner The contemporary water feature at Rus- horseshoe-shaped path was lined with “a sell Square reads 65 dB when on high. This cloister-like tunnel of lime trees” originally. is little competition for the trafic noise, let To replicate this as closely as possible, a alone enough to mask it completely. pergola has been erected in its place; the effects of its complimentary planting are yet So what is an effective solution? How to be seen. do we provide refuge from intrusive noise and create ambient urban parks that really Commendable as this regimented ap- do achieve Repton’s original intention, and proach to planting and the preservation of become, “a space for the wider communi- past methodologies may seem, inconsisten- ty, and… a welcoming escape from a busy cies then arise with the built aspects of the city.” Square. A pick ‘n’ mix mentality is adopted as a contemporary water feature is introduced; and a reclaimed 1960s café is used, retaining nothing of the visual integrity of 6. Conceptual Proposal; be- the 19th century concept. ing for now more question If such compromises can be made at lei- than answer! sure, then surely here is an opportunity for the introduction of structural elements to Where is refuge when on the streets? enhance the aural experience of the city Where is refuge for the pedestrian traveller, stroller. This does not have to be at the ex- the promenader, the city wanderer, the la- pense of symbolic or historic references, but neur, the urban voyager, the stroller, drifter, with average decibel readings of 62 dB at somnambulist? Convention, represented the core of the Square sentimentality can by Kennington Park and Russell Square, is hardly be afforded. for soft landscaping and the laying of paths that direct the pedestrian away from the ma- The development in transportation over the chines of noise; creating distance as much last 200 years, and all that this brings with it, as the situation might allow. has been ignored throughout the restoration project. As with many urban spaces; the Our proposal, our area of exploration and Coliseum, the Eiffel Tower; Russell Square thought, leads us to perhaps think otherwise. has become a busy roundabout. Compen- Our proposal is for the very opposite. In the sation for this progression in transport needs lee of the machine, if not quiet, is at least a 132 Laura Lewis & Harvey Ward Turner quieter place. In its very shadow is refuge! Let us for the moment conjure in the imagination what we might for ease of clarity call full-height vertical interventions across an open space, especially at the periphery. The boundaries, the physical enclosure (of Rus- sell Square for example) provide the occurrence of horizontal diffraction.

Fig. 4. Illustration: Location of quiet zones

If we consider for a moment what happens when sound energy travelling from its source reaches an intervention: Some of that energy is absorbed. Some of it is relected back. How much is dependent in part on the types of sound waves from which that energy is comprised and in part the physical characteristics of the intervention. The remainder spreads outwards until it reaches an edge; a turn of direction, where it responds by spilling over, not directly inward, or downward, but diffracting at an angle until it hits a ground and continues its outward journey from source to exhaustion.

Might this offer a quieter zone up against Fig. 5. Illustration: Horizontal and Vertical Diffrac- the vertical intervention? And might there tion be correspondingly less quite zones moving away from the intervention?

And if there are zones of variation, might The traditional approach to designing-in vi- these be given visualisation through mate- sual relief to these perhaps fairly long struc- rials so that the pedestrian passing through tures might be to provide breaks through or wishing to remain for a while, might which site-lines sit, and where pedestrians consciously make a choice about the sort pass through from one place to another. But of auditory experience they want to engage what if the placing of these breaks were gov- with. The focus for us is not the science; it’s erned not by a visual aesthetic, but an aural the idea, as designers, as conceptual think- one! ers who are always willing to explore every possibility. This again requires an act of open mind-

133 Aural Wallpaper and Music of the City ed imagination; to start to think of these tions of transparency, semi-transparency, breaks and the solid structure as notes and coloured, textured and patterned skins that the intervals which separate them in music! allow for changes in light conditions; that We might place these vertical breaks with react and respond to movement; that re- a view to creating an interaction with the spond to shadow as pedestrians pass by and aware passer-by, not visually alone, but au- through a space? Vertical structures as mem- rally too. branes clothed in surfaces that are not static, but ever changeable, surfaces that perhaps contradict the structure beneath? 7. Visualising the Concept An entire space may come alive to the activities of both the natural world and human The ‘Square’ becomes a vessel for slowing activity. These membranes may be varied so down and containing human activity. The as to include the potential for active engage- Urban Design Group reminds us that roads ment; a climbing wall, a bird wall, a basket- are corridors and squares are rooms; and ball wall; plants climb, shadows climb, light that research reveals pedestrians slow their falls and fades, colours brighten then pale, pace when entering and crossing a square surfaces relect brightly then dull; the physi- and then speed up again as they exit into a cal spaces between skins being constantly road. The removal of walls succeeds only divided and reformed by shifting condi- in widening corridors rather than enlarging tions. These sensory interstitial boundaries rooms. creating a seamlessness between notions of inside and outside. The idea of what com- In attempting to give visualisation in our prises the ‘pedestrian’ square might shift to minds eye to the concept being outlined, encompass pavements on the opposite side we all no doubt conjure an image of a laby- of the roads that deine the parameters of rinthine maze of walls as a low-rise exten- the square. sion of the surrounding built environment; a series of interconnecting brick rooms open In thinking about the Aural Wallpaper of to the sky. Open views across a space sac- the City, it’s characteristics and the mecha- riiced for a view across a room. Expansive- nisms that might be required to make cre- ness replaced by closed views. Multi-sen- ative and inventive use of it, we are lead to sory engagement not only connects us to re-adjust our view of other senses and how place, but awakens a wish to belong – to in addressing the one, we see possibilities dwell; as Heidegger says, “to feel inside a in the others. Through creative use of ma- place and to be at home.” He continues terials, visualisation can be given to ‘zones’ that human existence is inseparable from a of differentiated auditory experience so that sense of place; the spirit of a place. the aware pedestrian could negotiate their own auditory experience across a space. In this time of extraordinary material in- ventiveness, and without neglecting the au- In visualising the ‘zoning’ of aural spaces, ral integrity of design, we cannot ignore that we are led to consider the notion of turbu- any instrument or structural addition to a lence. Turbulence takes place immediately space has a visual implication. in front of an intervention and immediately after diffraction when both vertical and hori- What if, instead of vertical hard-landscap- zontal diffractions collide. ing consisting of heavy impenetrable and dense materials we were to consider ques- Turbulence always takes place immediately adjacent to an area of greatest calm. 134 Laura Lewis & Harvey Ward Turner

Further research leads us to investigate not How desensitised is our hearing when it is only the potential placement of physical required to engage and respond without un- boundaries but also other important condi- due focus, perhaps randomly, to such subtle tions. Decibel level readings reveal those encounters? For attentiveness “unlocks a conditions to have an effect on the outcome sphere of reality that no one suspects.” of the data. These include weather, volume at source, composition of wave frequency, How much control can be applied to such luctuations in sound level and distance; ad- an apparently uncontrollable energy? ditionally so too in regard to the nature of the intervention; its physical characteristics, And on the question of aural intervals; as dimensions, positioning and shape. pedestrians we move at a moderate pace. How effective and meaningful might these However there are some general proposi- intervals be, for, if the distance between tions that can be claimed: them is too small, the overspill (diffraction) from vertical edges may mitigate any per- A simple vertical intervention can reduce ceptible aural recognition of ‘difference’ decibel levels by 2 to 5 points. and further, if the interval is too wide, any sense of connection with the interval imme- Closer to the source is better for a clearer diately preceding may be lost. aural deinition of difference.

A ‘boxed’ area appears to hollow-out the aural effect (subtle echo). References

Heidegger, M, ‘Building Dwelling Thinking’ Greater distance from source, although translated by Hofstadter, A. in (1971) reducing the overall decibel levels, imme- Poetry, Language, Thought, Harper & Row, diately before and after intervention, also New York noticeably reduces the effects caused by Pallasmaa, J. (2005) The Eyes of the Skin: Ar- screening to a point where no noticeable chitecture and the Senses, John Wiley & difference is aurally apparent. Sons Ltd, Chichester, UK The human auditory apparatus is extraor- Sullivan, T. & Gill, D. (1975) If You Could dinarily sensitive and clearly differentiates See What I Hear, Harper & Row, New where machines for recognising sound- York level differences fail to respond. This is not just a question of decibel level, but is about www.green-space.org.uk qualities of impact and muteness and understanding; the knowing ear processing all it www.london.gov.uk receives through the repository of the brain. www.mayor.london.gov.uk It hears, it recognises, but then so too it understands! 8. Interim Conclusion

There are questions, many questions.

135 Aural Wallpaper and Music of the City

Biography

Harvey Ward Turner BA (Hons) MA. Fine Art, Visual Culture, Applied Arts (Architec- tural Metal Working). Mugstain Design. Lecturer in 3 dimensional design, North West Kent College (Spatial Design & Visual Stud- ies). 1995 Torridon Design. 1982 IDEAS spatial design.

Laura Lewis BA (Hons) MA. Architecture, Art History. Mugstain Design. The Univer- sity of Greenwich PGCE (NWK College) Ar- chitecture & Art History. 2002 Visual Mer- chandiser: The John David Group plc.

136 Designing a Notation for the Senses Dr Raymond Lucas University of Strathclyde

‘If you desire only to possess a graceful visual senses in our experience of urban accomplishment, to be able to converse spaces. We then intend to design tools to in a luent manner about drawing, or to allow for crafting urban environments to re- amuse yourself listlessly in listless hours, I spond to these other senses. cannot help you: but if you wish to learn drawing that you may be able to set down Understanding the role of the non-visual clearly, and usefully, records of such things senses is dificult, as there is at present no as cannot be described in words, either recording medium for the olfactory, gustato- to assist your own memory of them, or to ry, tactile or even aural environment which convey distinct ideas of them to people; is useful to the practice of urban design. In if you wish to obtain quicker perceptions any case, recording has a different aim from of the beauty of the natural world, and to drawing and notation. The reason for this preserve something like a true image of rejection of recording technologies can be beautiful things that pass away, or which understood through the following observa- you must yourself leave; if, also, you wish tion by Jorge Luis Borges: to understand the minds of great painters, and to be able to appreciate their work ‘The taste of the apple... lies in the contact sincerely, seeing it for yourself, and loving of the fruit with the palate, not in the fruit it, not merely taking up the thoughts of itself; in a similar way... poetry lies in the other people about it; then I can help you, meeting of poem and reader, not in the or, which is better, show you how to help lines of symbols printed on the pages of yourself.’ (Ruskin, J. 1971:25)[1] a book. What is essential is the aesthetic act, the thrill, the almost physical emotion that comes with each reading.’ Borges, J. L. Foreword to Obra Poética cited in Pal- Introduction lasmaa, J. 1996:6 [2] When using audio recording equipment, This paper is drawn from the work of the all one records is the sound that the micro- Multimodal Representation of Urban Space phone technology can pick up. Even when research project for the UK’s AHRC and using equipment that mirrors the position- EPSRC under the Designing for the 21st ing of human ears such as binaural micro- Century stream of projects. The aim of the phones, it is clear that many of the effects of project is to understand the role of the non-

137 Ray Lucas aural perception are not replicated. These factors by virtue of their denial or absence. differences may include memory or atten- Each of these qualities is nested within the tion functions of perception, meaning that artifact, coexistent with, and essential to situations such as the ‘Cocktail Party’ effect each other [3]. where one picks up on your own name being spoken across a noisy party are not fully replicated by recordings. ‘Because a plan is a drawing, with lines This all moves us away from a record- and angles subject to continuous varia- ing technology to a more prosaic solution: tion, the irst guess would be that it is drawing and notation (although this still technically a sketch. But on the plan constitutes a technology, of course). This is are measurements in words and igures. also important methodologically, as it places This suggests that we have here a com- our proposal irmly in the realms of creative bination of sketch and script. But I think practice rather than scientiic understand- this again is wrong. In the irst place, the ing. As such, we are not looking to collate drawing is used only to indicate the re- the responses of a wide variety of respon- lataive location of elements and measure- dents (although this is possible within the ments. Careful drawing to scale is merely system developed) in order to ind a com- for convenience and elegance; a rough mon understanding of a place, but to rely and distorted version with the same let- upon the observations of a designer in mak- ters and numerals, qualiies as a true copy ing informed decisions. There is a crucial of the most precisely drafted blueprint, role for community engagement of course, prescribes the constitutive properties as but this comes at a different stage of the de- rigorously, and has the same buildings sign process. as compliants... Thus although a drawing often counts as a sketch, and a measurement in numerals as a script, the particular selection of drawing and numerals in 1. What is Notation? an architectural plan counts as a digital diagram and as a score.’ (Goodman, N. Dividing up the various forms of inscrip- 1976:218-219)[4] tive practice is a dificult task, deining the difference between sketches, drawings, drafting, notation, diagramming and map- Nelson Goodman’s work on Languages of ping is an activity fraught with blind alleys, Art (a title that Goodman is somewhat em- problems of deinition and intent. Rather barrassed by, given the connotations of lan- than see each of these as a different subset guage as a term) describes in great detail the of inscriptive practice, I have come to un- distinction between scripts, sketches and derstand each as a potential property of any scores as creative activities. These deini- inscription, so that an architectural draw- tions are particularly useful in terms of ac- ing, for example, can be said to have the tivities and practices rather than completed, interplay of white space and line inherent crystalline objects [5]. to drawing, the instructional quality of notation, the scale and ruled quality of drafting, In Goodman’s system, sketches are work- and the pictorial representation of a sketch ing documents, but not in any language sys- all within the same set of marks on paper. tem, rather being in an internalised system Many other qualities can be found within without semantic or syntactic differentiation this drawing, and others can be said to be (Goodman 1976:192). It is the relationships

138 Designing a Notation for the Senses of the elements pictorially that are of prima- solution: it cannot exist without the creative ry concern in a sketch, and, unlike a score, practice being engaged in, as decisions and where some elements of the inscription are modiications are so open and constantly in redundant, none of the pictorial elements of lux that the temporality is inherent in the a sketch can be discarded as irrelevant. Fur- result. The speculative problem is absolute thermore, the sketch is a work rather than and has a right and wrong answer deined something that determines a later perfor- as the possible rather than multiple poten- mance. tial solutions, as is found in the creative process. In this context: ‘In short, the sketch–as a sketch–differs from the score not in functioning as a ‘the possible is only the real with the ad- character in a language of a different kind dition of an act of mind which throws its but in not functioning as a character in a image back into the past, once it has been language at all. The notational language enacted.’ (Bergson 1992:100) of musical scores has no parallel in a language (notational or not) of sketches.’ This project seeks to ind a notation for (Goodman 1976:193-194) the sensory experience of urban environments for these very reasons. Rather than to Score and notation are conlated by Good- draw the senses, we aim to produce scores man, who states that the score is a ‘character for the senses, scores that allow for creative in a notational system’ (1976:177). Scores replication through a common code or ru- are understood to have performances com- dimentary language. This is to allow for the pliant to them: scores are to be enacted and essential design activity of both understand- acted upon, suggesting that a notation is a ing and recording phenomenological expe- set of instructions. This performance is un- riences, and then to establish patterns from derstood to be an artwork in its own right, as these recordings that can be used to form is the production of the score, as Goodman new design solutions. cites Sir George Thomson’s views on experimental science: ‘You see no experiment can be repeated 2. Attention and a Taxonomy exactly. There will always be something different.... What it comes to when you for the Senses say you repeat an experiment is that you repeat all the features of an experiment The senses are not a given category, of which a theory determines are relevant. course, but abstractions that have become In other words you repeat the experiment deeply embedded in our thinking about as an example of the theory.’ (Sir George our bodies and the external world. Making Thomson cited in Goodman 1976:177). sense of these sensations is not surprising, of course, and many of the systems categoris- This recalls Bergson’s statements in The ing the sesnse agree on a number of funda- Creative Mind [6] (1992:100) regarding mental qualities. The fact that the sensory the essential difference between specula- modalities themselves remain up for grabs is tive and creative problems, stating that the a useful opportunity for our project of a nota- speculative problem such as a mathematical tion for the senses speciic to the experience formula has its solution present as soon as of the urban environment. This speciicity the problem is correctly and properly stated. makes the task possible in many regards, as The creative problem, by contrast, has the it narrows our concern substantially. This is time spent on the activity enfolded into the methodologically crucial, allowing a man- 139 Ray Lucas ageable set of sensations to be selected. place of spiritual repose. It always stands apart from the main building, at the end The alternative to this is the parable by of a corridor, in a grove fragrant with Jorge Luis Borges, On Exactitude in Science leaves and moss. No words can describe [7] where a ruler sets his cartographers to that sensation as one sits in the dim light make an exact map of his territory. The re- , basking in the faint glow relected from sulting map is so exact in fact that it covers the shoji, lost in meditation or gazing out that territory completely. Our task in nota- at the garden. The novelist Natsume Sose- tion is not only to record information, but ki counted his morning trips to the toilet also to edit it, allowing only what is relevant a great pleasure, ‘a physiological delight’ and useful. he called it. And surely there could be no better place to savor this pleasure than Taxonomy, listing and categorisation is it- a Japanese toilet where, surrounded by self a problematic activity, particularly as tranquil walls and inely grained wood, it speciies what, in many regards, cannot one looks out upon blue skies and green be speciied. It also divides the sensorium, leaves. which is experienced as a totality with corroboration and overlapping between sens- As I have said there are certain prereq- es. This artiiciality is not an insurmount- uisites: a degree of dimness, absolute able problem, however. The task is, in itself, cleanliness, and quiet so complete one an artiice that should be recognised and can hear the hum of a mosquito. I love understood rather than rejected or hidden. to listen from such a toilet to the sound This artiice allows for a sytematisation of of softly falling rain, especially if it is a the senses, a functional and operationalis- toilet of the Kanto region, with its long, ing system which facilitates further actions narrow windows at loor level; there one such as design. can listen with such a sense of intimacy to the raindrops falling from the eaves One such writer is the essayist and novelist and the trees, seeping into the earth as Junichiro Tanizaki in his classic work on Jap- they wash over the base of a stone lantern anese aesthetics, In Praise of Shadows [8]. and freshen the moss about the stepping Tanizaki takes on the notion of the shadow, stones. And the toilet is the perfect place inding its qualities throughout architectural to listen to the chirping of insects or the design, but also in terms of material quality, song of the birds, to view the moon, or to food, theatre and other arts. This approach enjoy any of those poignant moments that unites the sensorium, and borrows concepts mark the change of the seasons. Here, across modalities. As an essay on aesthetics, I suspect, is where haiku poets over the Tanizaki reminds us that the basis of an aes- ages have come by a great many of their thetic response (where it even exists as such) ideas.’ (Tanizaki, J, 2001:9) is a deeply encultured response to phenomena, and open to multiple approaches and variations in the concept of what is desirable or beautiful. This drive to the poetic in describing a total experience of space is a common response, ‘Every time I am shown to an old, dimly of course, and fulills certain of the require- lit, and, I would add, impeccably clean ments of communicating this experience of toilet in a Nara or Kyoto temple, I am im- being in space as an immersive experience pressed with the singular virtues of Japa- of being in space rather than on a surface. nese architecture. The parlor my have its This is a distinction made by Ingold [9] in charms, but the Japanese toilet truly is a 140 Designing a Notation for the Senses his work on perception, and is borne out ‘For him, nothing is invisible. He hears by architects such as Peter Zumthor [10] in the wind, the rain, storms; but if he con- describing the manifesto for his architecture siders a stone, a wall, a trunk, he under- as the creation of atmospheres. In this ex- stands their slowness, their interminable tended essay, a number of the challenges to rhythm. This object is not inert: time is our project at large are given form. not set aside for the subject. It is slow only in relation to our time, to our body, As well as these holistic approaches to com- the measure of rhythm. An apparently plete sensoriality, a number of texts draw immovable object, the forest, moves in upon one sense, particularly an alternative multiple ways: the combined movements to vision, which is given a place of priority, of the soil, the earth and the sun.’ (Lefeb- a place that is ripe to be usurped. The most vre 2004:20) likely candidate to overthrow vision is hearing. Sound is uniquely developed as a ield Lefebvre’s method encourages a certain thanks largely to the pioneering work of R aloofness, like an early detached ethnogra- Murray Schafer on the Soundscape. Schafer pher. The site of observation is suggested as is, of course, only the irst, and a ield of a balcony, with a good view of the area in sound design and appreciation of the urban question. Our method would critique this environment has developed across a variety part of Lefebvre’s rhythmanalysis, preferring of disciplines. Rather than give a survey of to place the notator in the action of the ur- this work by the likes of Blesser [11], Augo- ban environment. I would even suggest that yard [12], DeNora [13] and Bull [14], I shall the action of memory in recalling an event instead consider taking the aural as a start- soon after its happening would be prefer- ing point for the other senses. able to the aloof method proposed by Lefe- bvre here. Despite this problem, there is a This may at irst seem to be replacing the vi- great deal to recommend Lefebvre’s theory sual bias with another, but is intended pure- of rhythm. The phenomenological basis of ly as an exercise in thinking and perceiving. the work is clear, to the point of incorpo- Were the other senses to be considered in rating one’s own bodily rhythms into the terms of sound, a series of other qualities are process: an awareness of the heart rate and revealed. Foremost amongst these is the im- pumping of blood around the body, the ac- permanent and leeting nature of sensation. tion of breathing. Rather than ixed, total and permanent as vision might suggest, the senses (and I include There is a great deal more to say about seeing in this) are contingent to a large num- Lefebvre than we have space for here, the ber of factors such as season, weather, time concept of social dressage, for example, in- of day, social and cultural events, and many forms which gestures are encultured into a more temporal and rhythmical variables. city. This can be particularly important as in examples such as subway and metro sys- This focus on the temporal recalls the work tems where the spatial coniguration is very of Bergson once again, where everything similar from London to Paris, New York, can be understood through duration. It Moscow or Tokyo. The dressage of the par- also suggests a more useful theoretical text ticipants in these quotidian events are how- by Henri Lefebvre, Rhythmanalysis [15] in ever, completely different from one city to which Lefebvre posits rhythm as an alterna- another. tive concept to that of geometry. As a character, the rhythmanalyst is described thus: ‘Observe the street, from time to time, with some concern for system perhaps.

141 Ray Lucas

Apply Yourself. Take your time. You must write about out it more slowly, almost stupidly. Force yourself to write Note down the place: the terrace of a café down what is of no interest, what is most near the junction of the Rue de Bac and obvious, most common, most colourless.’ the Boulevard Saint-Germain (Perec, G. 1997:50)

the time: seven o’clock in the evening

the date: 15 May 1973 A similar method is explored by the writer Georges Perec in his essay The Street [16]. the weather: set fair As an exercise in perception, Perec asks us to ‘decipher a bit of the town’ (1997:52) and Note down what you can see. Anything to concentrate on the quotidian and obvi- worthy of note going on. Do you know ous, in order to ind deeper observations, how to see what’s worthy of note? Is there you must irst, ‘force yourself to see more anything that strikes you? latly’ (1997:51). Nothing strikes you. You don’t know how With these observational frameworks in to see. Name Mode of Attention Receptive Units Anatomy of the Activity of the Stimuli Available External Organ Organ Information Obtained

The basic General Mechano- Vestibular Body Forces of Direction of orienting system orientation receptors organs equilibrium gravity and gravity, being accelleration pushed

The auditory Listening Mechano- Cochlear Orienting to Vibration in the Nature and system receptors organs with sounds air location of middle ear and vibratory events auricle

The haptic Touching Mechano- Skin (including Exploring of Deformation of Contact with system receptors and attachments many kinds tissues, the earth, possibly and openings), configuration of mechanical thermo- joints (including joints, encounters, receptors ligaments), stretching of object shapes, muscles muscle fibres material states, (including solidity or tendons) viscosity

The taste-smell Smelling Chemo- Nasal cavity Sniffing Composition of Nature of system receptors (nose) the medium volatile sources

Tasting Chemo- and Oral cavity Savouring Composition of Nutritive and mechano- (mouth) ingested objects biochemical receptors values

The visual Looking Photo-receptors Ocular Accommodatio The variables of Everything that system mechanism n, pupilary structures in can be specified (eyes with adjustment, ambient light by the variables intrinsic and fixation, of optical extrinsic convergence structre muscles, as exploration (information related to the about objects, vestibular animals, organs, the motions, events, head, and the and places) whole body) Table 1: Gibson’s perceptual systems chart [17].

142 Designing a Notation for the Senses mind, I return to the various taxonomies derstanding and theory of the movement of of the senses, and in particular the work of the human body onto how it is represented. James Gibson in The Senses Considered as This is no different to the way in which any Perceptual Systems. This work is widely cit- form of inscriptive practice imprints some ed in Malnar & Vodvarka’s comprehensive form of accepted understanding onto what work on Sensory Design and offers a model it represents: no form of inscription is neu- of the senses which considers them as ac- tral. tive modes of attention. This rejects many of the assumptions of psychological studies One feature of Laban notation of particular of the senses, where experiments are con- interest is the effort and shape matrix. This ducted on passive subjects robbed of any is one small part of Laban[19] which is used context for the sensations experienced. This to depict qualities of a movement, where lack of context is essential for the scientiic the main notation scripts the direction and method to operate, but it misses several of speciic parts of the body in motion, the ef- the fundamental features of perception: that fort matrix tells the dancer more detail on a it is attentive and active, and that it is always given instruction. within a speciic context. We see in places and spaces, we perceive in the environment The matrix notation is particularly elegant and are always a part of it. and eficient as a means for giving this information, depicting a series of axes of opposed These attentive systems of perception are terms, the notator draws only the elements arranged slightly different to the traditional of the matrix required for that instruction. notion of ive senses we have in the West: Sight, Hearing, Taste, Smell and Touch. In- The irst attempt I made to design a notation stead, Gibson gives us the Basic Orienting for the senses drew heavily upon this system, System, Auditory System, Haptic System, establishing a matrix for each sense and re- Taste-Smell System and the Visual System. lating these phenomena to a plan drawing. Each is given a mode of attention, receptive The spatial extent of each sensation was de- units, anatomical details of the organ, the picted through a variation of Kevin Lynch’s activity of the organ, the stimuli available famous Imageability [20] symbols which and an account of what external informa- describe urban spaces in terms of paths, tion is obtained. nodes, landmarks, districs and edges (Lynch 1990:18)

This notation was tested with our advi- sory board, and met with mixed reactions. 3. Laban Notation, Deriva- Valuable lessons were learned through this tions from Effort & Shape Ma- process of design and testing, however, that lead to the development of the subsequent trices system. The matrix notation does, however, remain an option for development as it has One system of notation of particular inter- the beneit of being graphic in nature, with a est is Laban movement notation [18]. This inite range of variables that can be learned notation is most commonly used in the no- through use. The layering and relation to tation of modern dance and ballet, but re- other forms of description such as Lynch remains a contentious way of understanding mains at the heart of the system as a way for movement amongst professional choreogra- describing the essential qualities of urban phers, dancers and notators. This is due to space. Other tools such as Section draw- the notation’s strength in imposing an un- ings depicting volumes such as those found 143 Ray Lucas in Allan Jacobs [21], the serial drawing of record a route by taking a reading at either Gordon Cullen [22], the play of public and each trafic intersection or at speciic timed private space or even the Situationist Drift of intervals. The second notations are static re- Guy Debord [23]. cordings of a ixed places such as a square. Several sites around this place are recorded and plotted on a plan. 4. Radar Notations, Routes The notation progresses in the following order: and Sites Location: plot the site being recorded, The notation system itself is only one part whether a part of a route or a static po- of the process, of course. Ordering the per- sition. Details such as time, date and ception itself is also necessary, in order for weather may also be included. the best to be gained out of the diagram. The following is being tested with the collabora- Priority: draw a line on the chart corre- tion of groups of senior undergraduate and sponding to the priority given to that per- Masters students in a variety of disciplines ceptual system in this context. from architecture, urban design, product design, anthropology and sound design. Corroboration: indicate how the senses overlap. These workshops focus on the radar diagram method described above, but in a Temporality: indicate the repetition, sin- structured way. The notations were con- gularity, etc. of the observations. ducted in two main ways. First of these is to VISUAL AURAL TACTILE KINETIC THERMAL CHEMICAL

Dark High Pitch Static Strong Hot Weak

Bright Low Pitch Mobile Light Cold Intense

Saturated Quiet Rough Free Dry Stagnant

Neutral Loud Smooth Bound Wet Fresh

Perspectival Clear Light Indirect Natural Musky

Flat Reverberant Heavy Direct Artificial Putrid

Intimate Vocal Porous Level Ambient Floral

Vast Non-Vocal Resistant Graded Source Fruit

Solid Natural Hard Sustained Radiant Spice

Void Artificial Soft Quick Convective Resin

Detailed Attack Warm Crowded Constant Meaty

Blank Decay Cold Empty Responsive Oily

Table 2: Descriptor terms.

144 Designing a Notation for the Senses

Descriptor: use a word from the list given The next step is to place a descriptor word to characterise each of the six perceptual on each of the six perceptual systems em- systems: visual, aural, olfactory/gustatory, ployed by the notation. These are chosen tactile, thermal, kinaesthetic. from a restricted and carefully selected list of words for each sense. The terms are chosen for their clarity and lack of metaphorical content. This precision of language inds its By locating the site on a traditional draw- roots in Laban notation’s Effort and Shape ing such as a plan or section, the notation- matrices, where a very tight use of language al scheme can be understood as a layer or helps to describe quite complex movements. transparency added to traditional modes of Similarly, a lesser known system of move- depicting urban spaces. This is an important ment notation, Saunders Notation (Hutchin- step, as it identiies the process as part of the son-Guest 1989:xx). Additionally, names of traditional toolkit, rather than completely things causing particular sensations such as alien to it. Additional information such as trafic or wind may be added if the notator time, date and weather conditions are nec- feels it necessary. essary for the future usefulness of the record, as the sensory data vary widely depending The third step in the notation is the main upon the time of day or the season. graphic step: priority. This step is subjective by its very nature, but it offers a strong

Figure 1: Key to Sensory Notation

145 Ray Lucas picture of each environment as well as sug- what makes this trail unique in character. gesting immediate ways in which the envi- Similarly, the static locations can be re- ronment may be changed. This step consists viewed and understood, particularly where of deciding which senses are strongest, most a body of people have taken a record of the affective and prominent. The senses are then same place under similar conditions. ranked in order of priority. This is drawn in an order of priority rather than introducing These observations are collated, so that artiicial constructs such as the percentage patterns may emerge. These patterns are of the sensorium devoted to that sense. The understood in the same way as Christopher Radar chart is drawn with numbers from 1 Alexander’s Pattern Language with a differ- to 6, outside to inside. The highest prior- ent slant: the sensory experience of place. ity is placed at one, the least at six. There Of course, Alexander’s work has been de- is lexibility within this, of course, allowing ployed differently by a variety of academic some senses to be placed at the same rank disciplines over the years. One example is as each other, or the gulf between two per- the adoption of his work by computing sci- ceptual systems to be depicted as larger or ence as a model for how creativity and de- lesser as appropriate. sign works. This is a false picture, however, and is attractive to that discipline precise- The next, optional step, is to depict the ly because it is easily understood through corroboration between the senses by using computational models. Other uses have curved, dotted lines between the different included rather reactionary movements in senses. These lines can contain a variety of urbanism which use Alexander’s patterns as data about this relationship, but the main a justiication for pursuing a purely histori- thrust is to eficiently describe where these cist agenda, rejecting everything the 20th overlaps occur without overloading the dia- Century and Modernism had to offer. This gram. is not to devalue Alexander’s approach of course, as it certainly has its place and is The inal step recognises the temporality of of intense interest. A new pattern book is the senses, and adds indications to the main being assembled using the Sensory Nota- Radar diagram lines of the quality of time in- tion method, not as absolute models, but as herent to that sense. This can be persistent, suggestions and examples to be played with repetitive, singular, rhythmic or intermittent. and designed with freely, but in an informed This notation is not necessarily timed using way. Patterns will include public squares, chronological time, but rather recognises fountains, gardens, thoroughfares, boule- the phenomenological basis of the notation. vards, arcades, steps, subway entrances, The conceptualisation of time in this regard and many more. is experienced time rather than the clock time of the physical sciences. These patterns can be used as given or adapted freely as required by the designer. The diagrams are collected and analysed The patterns give help to designers looking in a number of different ways. The route no- to create urban spaces, offering short-cuts tations can be layered, showing the progress and opportunities for designing richer mul- along a path through transparency. This al- timodal environments. The notation can be lows the route to be understood in terms of used to record existing sites and diagnose how the senses change from one position problems with them, or offer rich descrip- along the path to another. This can aid in tions of desirable places for the construction identifying the prominent sensory stimuli of completely new sites. The toolkit shall on each route, where there are deicits, and be distributed in printed form and consist

146 Designing a Notation for the Senses of the Sensory Notation system and Sensory 11. Blesser, Barry and Salter, Linda-Ruth. Pattern Book [24] as well as detailed essays 2007. Spaces Speak, Are You Listening? on the importance of the senses in urban de- Experiencing Aural Architecture. Cam- sign. bridge Massachusetts: MIT Press.

12. Augoyard, Jean-François and Torgue, Henry (Eds). 2005. Sonic Experience: End Notes a Guide to Everyday Sounds. Montreal & Kingston: McGill-Queen’s University 1. Ruskin, John. 1971. The Elements of Press. Drawing. New York: Dover Publications. Augoyard, Jean-Françcois. 2007. Step 2. Pallasmaa, Juhani. 1996. The Eyes by Step: Everyday Walks in a French Ur- of the Skin: Architecture and the Senses. ban Housing Project. David Ames Curtis London: Academy Editions. Trans. Minneapolis: University of Minne- sota Press. 3. I have argued this in far greater detail in my PhD thesis, Lucas, R. 2006. To- 13. DeNora, Tia. 2000. Music in Every- wards a Theory of Notation as a Thinking day Life. Cambridge: Cambridge Univer- Tool. Aberdeen: Department of Social sity Press. Anthropology, University of Aberdeen. 14. Bull, Michael. 2000. Sounding Out 4. Goodman, Nelson. 1976. Languages the City: Personal Stereos and the Man- of Art. Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing agement of Everyday Life. Oxford: Berg. Company Inc. 15. Lefebvre, H. 2004. Rhythmanaly- 5. Again, this is considered in greater sis: Space, Time and Everyday Life. New depth with reference to the work on the York: Continuum. temporality of creativity by philosopher Henri Bergson in my PhD thesis (Lucas 16. Perec, Georges. 1997. Species of 2006). Spaces and Other Pieces. London: Pen- quin Books. 6. Bergson, H. 1992. The Creative Mind: An Introduction to Metaphysics. Andison, 17. Gibson, James J. 1996. The Senses M. L. Trans. New York: Citadel Press. Considered as Perceptual Systems. Bos- ton: Houghton Mifin Company, p.66 7. Borges, J L. 1999. A Universal His- tory of Iniquity. Trans. A Hurley. London: 18. I deal with this form of notation as Penguin. well as other movements in more detail in my PhD thesis (Lucas 2006). This includes 8. Tanizaki, J. 2001. In Praise of Shad- examples of Laban notation of scenes ows. T J Harper & E G Seidensticker from Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai, notation (Trans.). London: Vintage. as a script for a drawing, and an extended project looking at the Tokyo Subway sys- 9. Ingold, T. 2000. Perception of the En- tem, using Laban as a model for describ- vironment. London: Routledge. ing the experience of urban space.

10. Zumthor, P. 2006. Atmospheres. 19. Dell, Cecily.1977. A Primer for Move- Basel: Birkhäuser. ment Description Using Effort-Shape and

147 Ray Lucas Supplementary Concepts. New York: Biography Dance Notation Bureau Press. Ray Lucas is Postdoctoral Research Fellow 20. Lynch, Kevin. 1990. The Image of on the AHRC/EPSRC Designing for the 21st the City. Cambridge, Massachusetts: MIT Century project ‘Multimodal Representa- Press. tions of Urban Space’. This research is looking at developing new notational systems 21. Jacobs, Allan B. 1995. Great Streets. for urban design that respond to our whole Cambridge, Massachusetts: MIT Press. experience of space. This includes notations 22. Cullen, Gordon. 1971. The Concise for the different senses, movement through Townscape. Oxford: Architectural Press. space, the feel of space and more. The project intends to test these notations and to 23. See the wide literature on this, par- publish a design guide to encourage multi- ticularly: Sadler, Simon. 1998. The Situ- modality in urban design. ationist City. Cambridge, Massachusetts: MIT Press. Lucas recently worked as Postdoctoral Fel- low at the University of Edinburgh on a col- 24. Lucas, R. 2008. Sensory Notation laboration between Music and Architecture entitled ‘Inlecting Space’. The project ex- Handbook. Edinburgh: Flâneur Press. amined the capacity and extent of the human voice to transform and deine public spaces.

Lucas has a PhD research in Social Anthro- pology at the University of Aberdeen, and examined the role of notation and inscriptive practices such as drawing as cognitive processes. Prior to this, Lucas gained an MPhil by research at the Department of Ar- chitecture, University of Strathclyde in Filmic Architecture, examining the relationship between cinematic montage and architecture.

From January 2009, Lucas will be working on “Cultures of Legibility’, a research project based at the Departments of Architecture and Geography, University of Edinburgh. The project will examine migration and representation in Jakarta, Indonesia.

148 The Play’s the Thing Geoff Matthews Lincoln School of Architecture

1. Introduction 2. Conceptual context

For very understandable reasons phenom- The major hypothesis of the Sensory Ur- enological approaches predominate in the banism project uses the term ‘appeal’ to in- ield of sensory urbanism. This paper does dex a rich conception of aesthetic respons- not seek to add to that particular discourse. es. In the classical sense of ‘aesthetic’ the Rather it takes Rorty’s postmodernized Prag- visual is not privileged; stimulation of any matism as its starting point and develops a of the senses can elicit aesthetic responses. position on the role of multi-modal design The aesthetic calls to the intellect and not representation in the design process as a vice versa. ‘Appeal’ then appears an appro- means of admitting many voices and man- priate term to embrace the breadth of pos- aging multidisciplinary collaboration. sibilities entailed in relection on aesthetic responses. This paper will interrogate some of the concepts underpinning the project to help However, use of the term ‘convenience’ deine the scope of interest in multi-modal suggests a reductive ambition for the quali- representations. It will then explore a range ties of urban spaces; this is inadequate. So- of techniques and approaches developed cial difference gives meaning to much of ex- by artists and designers during the past ifty istence. To admit the richness of everyday years or so and comment on how they might practices urban space needs ambiguous, inform the question of multi-modal repre- relexive, liberatory and communicative sentation. In conclusion I will argue that qualities, which do not entail convergence we should develop a heterogeneous tool kit of means; they include the inconvenient. that adopts, adapts and re-invents existing Not everything can have a clear meaning methods because this will better serve our because people have very different percep- purposes during the exploratory phase(s) of tions. The ambiguous embraces what it any design project that deals with complex- means to be confused, annoyed, offended, ity. and even assaulted by the affordances of urban places. The more regulated the public realm the more likely it is that the excluded increase in variety if not visibility (Sennett, 1990, 150-68). In a perverse way the limi- nal is of greatest interest. To those excluded,

149 Geoff Matthews the space between what we attend to invites colonization, to those included it invites transgression (Woods, 1992). The relexive 3. Propositions nature of the urban environment reminds us that designers’ intentions are eventually Sometimes communication is about striv- countered by inhabitants’ behaviour, that ing for control, for stable meaning; some- place making can be too prescriptive; the times it is about deferring control indei- loose programming of space is not a crime nitely and allowing alternative meanings to unless it remains non-participative. In post- emerge. I offer two propositions. industrial, post-humanist discourse the value of self-enhancement has been added to Adequate representation allows control to those of free-expression and self realization be deferred indeinitely during the explor- (Gray, Mentor & Figuerda-Sarriera, 1995, atory, ‘divergent’ phases of a design process. 3). The liberatory motive associated with Bringing things under control is essentially radical humanism (Burrell & Morgan, 1979, a ‘convergent’ task of speciication and is 32-3) suggests that the best way to counter much less of a problem. Indeed, there will the human propensity for habitat destruction be no worthwhile speciication problem un- is to restore responsibility to the inhabitant less creative exploration successfully resists by making the experience of consequenc- reduction of the design to spatial and visu- es immediate and comprehensible. In this al terms. Speciication easily succumbs to way behaviour adapts to shape a more sus- good project management, i e in organising tainable environment and the environment conventional means of documentation and adapts to shape more sustainable behaviour. communication. In this context the communicative refers to the overarching concepts of luidity and re- By looking at the variety of ‘drawing’ tech- newable purposefulness. The dynamic re- niques commonly used in the creative dis- sponsive condition of an inhabited environ- ciplines, we can identify representational ment depends upon rapid, simple, largely tools that can be adopted, adapted and re- involuntary, networks of mutually regulating invented to meet the needs of urban design- forces that serve to sustain the environment ers. in dynamic equilibrium. In the confusion of urban existence pragmatics comes into play. 4. Methodology An uncritical notion of ‘convenience’ signals anaesthetic legitimacy, a license for the Collaborative exploratory designing in- senseless, insensible and inhumane. If re- volves a particularly dynamic process of description is required the term ‘liveable’ sense making. In pragmatic style, therefore, might be considered, although I will not design can be seen as a genre of ‘human- digress by doing so here. What I wish to ity’s ongoing conversation about what to do pursue is the representation of multi-sensory with itself’ (Rorty, 2007, ix). Design is not possibilities for urban space in the design a question of truth but of quality. Design process, something well within ‘the expand- is best at playing out the consequences of ed ield of drawing’ referred to by Elias and the ‘what if?’ type of question. Designers Vasconcelos (2008). But irst I will question concern themselves with exploring the real- the assumption that by adopting or adapting izable possibilities for change and commu- an appropriate method of representation we nicating their qualities and realisability. In bring anything under ‘control’. this limited sense design is prescriptive and,

150 The Play’s the Thing because it deals with the ambiguity and lu- how the design process functions through idity of things in the process of becoming, drawing and a range of necessary supple- representation works with metaphors rather ments in writing, speech and gesture. than absolutes. The most important facility offered by the iconic image is access to the rich array of associations that authors and audiences have in their minds. It can ‘point 5. Representional tools: towards original resemblances, whether of quality, structure or locality, of situation, or, towards a heterogeneous design tool kit inally, of feeling’ (Ricoeur, 2003, 224) but to arrive at some shared meaning everything I have selected work by artists, designers, must be played out in conversation. This choreographers and composers (but not ar- sense-making activity is interminable, how- chitects) hopefully to attend to the less obvi- ever, individuals and groups do not have an ous. The trajectory of many contemporary unlimited capacity to cope with representa- artist’s technique is rather unpredictable. tions. In practical situations complexity is Very often the ‘art’ is not in the mastery of contingently attenuated to some degree or particular media but in the invention, ilter- another; not only do we work with meta- ing and transformation of new means of ex- phor, these naturally agglomerate into work- pression. ing myths (Carter & Jackson, 1984, 523 & 528). The coincidence of synaesthetic compe- tences and programmatic interests produces Ashwin argues for a semiotics of design many interesting results. For example, Ralph drawing starting with the observation that Steadman’s expressive model of the set de- ‘iconicity does not provide a comprehen- sign for ‘Crashed Car’ utilizes unexpected sive account of drawing in relation to de- model-making materials to signal a layer of sign’ (1989, 201). Design drawing tends to sensory meaning that would be missing in a elaborate a hybrid sign system by combining more orthodox presentational scale model. elements of indexical, iconic and symbolic Its emotive functionality elicits haptic sen- quality. In design speciication drawing sations just from looking; one can almost tends to be conventional and monosemic in smell the accident (Goodwin, 1989, 187). intention. But design exploration is more broadly communicative and associated Another innovative technique achieves drawings are more or less polysemic. Ash- a more extensive sensory simultaneity. It win discusses drawing in terms of six func- involves layering disparate conventional tions of communication; it may have a refer- elements to produce a hybrid document. ential, emotive, conative, poetic, phatic, or In temporal terms Tom Phillips libretto for metalinguistic function or function in several ‘Othello’ does this to intensely poetic effect of these ways. Presentation (not representa- by combining musical score, script, stage tion) implies unambiguous and persuasive direction and visualization (Hall & Burnett, communication, a compromise between 1999, 8), yet it also succeeds in combin- referential and emotive functions combined ing referential and conative functions, and with the conative. The multi-functionality in relation to the original musical score, of design drawing, its dynamic polysemic a metalinguistic one. In spatial terms Lev qualities, and its hybridity as a sign system, Nusberg’s ‘Plan for Kinetic Environment for make a semiotics of drawing a complex but the Seaside Area of Odessa’ (1970) presents potentially subtle means of analysis. The an event landscape persuasively by insert- primary interest I wish to explore here is ing indications of movement, sound, texture

151 Geoff Matthews and smell into a conventional plan drawing Some theatre designers make extensive (Henri, 1974, 131-2). use of storyboards. Typically a sequence of sketches, that represent the whole stage as Sometimes the artist will subvert the con- seen from the best seat in the house, is anno- ventions of a drawing system to better tated with information about sound, smell, communicate an idea. For example, Juan movement, special effects and lighting. Bob Downey’s ‘With Energy Beyond These Walls’ Crowley inds that he gets a more collabora- (1971) connects the elements of an installa- tive response from those involved creatively tion like components in an electronic cir- in a production using storyboards rather cuit. Although referential in function and than a model. The sketch storyboard of the closer to speciication than presentation, ‘The Plantagenets’ (1988) shows how rapid the drawing is more openly polysemic than and dynamic the process can be (Goodwin, one might expect; it dispenses with coher- 1989, 55). Michael Spencer’s storyboard for ent perspectival space in favour of a looser ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ (1993) em- diagrammatic connectivity and combines phasises action and atmosphere (Burnette & visual representation of physical things, in- Hall, 1994, 60). Multifunctionality is appar- visible ields and sensory elements with de- ent in these examples as conative function scriptive annotation (ibid, 73-4). combines alternately with the referential and the emotive. Most theatre designers use model making to facilitating creative dialogue. The empty Model and storyboard facilitate devel- stage is recreated to scale and its interior opment of the overall stage design. Oth- used to develop ideas in full colour and er techniques are used to focus on detail. naturalistic detail. This iterative process in- Character development, for example, relates volves director, writer, actors, lighting tech- closely to costume, props and set decora- nicians and others directly in discussing and tion. For ‘Street of Crocodiles’ (1993) Rae manipulating physical content. Andrew Smith used close observation of rehearsals Storer’s design for the ballet Romeo & Juliet to ix characters and generate a sense of set- (1990) shows the result of collaboratively re- ting (ibid, 86). The annotated sketches are ining the orchestration of space, movement, emotive in the sense that they record the de- sound and light (Burnette & Hall, 1994, 70). signer’s aesthetic and intellectual responses; In the earliest stage of the process emotive they are phatic in that they signal to the function may predominate as the designer company that something designerly is hap- makes broad interpretative gestures with ex- pening. They are also metalinguistic insofar pressive materials but this quickly turns over as they supplement and clarify costume de- to a referential-conative function as ideas of signs and model details. The same interpre- structure, space, movement, light, sound, tation works for the ‘character bible’ Anna period feel, etc. begin to emerge. Richard Asp builds for each principal cast member Bidgland’s sets for Resident Evil were de- in a movie production. Each character in signed as composite structures and built in ‘The House of Spirits’ (1993), for example, is the hanger-like space of a ilm studio stage captured in a montage of textures, colours, (Anderson (dir), 2002). Simpler white-card patterns, fragrances, lavours, photograph- models were used to focus the team’s cre- ic images, found objects, and natural and ative attention on manipulating form, struc- synthetic materials (Ettedgui, 1999, 116- ture and space. Arguably their key function 17). The construction of these very speciic is metalinguistic because they supplement identities compares with the outcomes of and clarify ideas initially visualized in and psychographic studies. For example, the annotated on storyboards. design of the Bluewater retail complex was

152 The Play’s the Thing informed by an extensive programme of fo- use the system for recording and analysing cus groups designed to reveal the richness movement because very detailed aspects of of consumers’ lifestyles (Baker, 2000, 19- posture, dynamics and interaction can be 20). This created, in effect, a cast of prin- described. Labannotation embodies similar cipal characters with which the developers, principles. The key differences are that it retailers and marketers could orchestrate the uses a vertical three-line stave and a palette Bluewater experience. of geometric symbols (website: Labannota- tion). Both systems are available as software In Alison Chitty’s drawings for ‘Turandot’ packages. (1997) annotation refers to the embodiment of quite visceral sensory experience in the In the second half of the 20th century some design of physical elements (Burnette & composers were particularly inventive in Hall, 1999, 90). Welfare State’s community- dispensing with the regulated soundscapes based participatory methods similarly realise of the symphony orchestra and chamber en- the potential of place through the embodi- sembles. Stockhausen’s ‘Kontakte’ for elec- ment of site-speciic ideas. For example, in tronic sounds (1959), for example, explores ‘Fragile Gift’ the location, a traditional in- spatial distribution and (real and apparent) door market hall, informs a critical relec- movement of sound sources (Smith Brin- tion on the commercialisation of Christmas dle, 1975, 95). Improvisation and chance shopping (Burnette & Hall, 1994, 117). operations were important in some avant- garde work and this gave rise to innovative Conventional systems used in choreograph- notation. Morton Feldman’s ‘Intersection ing martial arts and dance can be by turns 1’ (1951) and Gyorgy Ligeti’s ‘Volumina’ openly polysemic and monosemic. They (1961-2) are examples of simpliied notation are very lexible when developing ideas for designed to create scope for interpretation movement and very precise when recording within a precise framework for the ensem- action as it happens and analysing move- ble (ibid. 67 &71). Some scores resemble ment captured on video. The Carter Fergu- abstract diagrams or maps and are more in- son system is a simple accurate way of plan- determinate still. J Levine’s ‘Parentheses’, for ning swordplay and hand-to-hand combat. example, harks back Renaissance part songs It is referential and conative. Four-column in layout and evokes the graphics of elec- tabulation, a list of letter codes and conven- tronic circuitry and set theory: associations tional annotation is used to describe two that are quite deliberate on the composers combatants’ movement and contact (web- part (ibid. 90). Guisepe Englert’s ‘Aria for site: Fightdirector). Tympani’ reads like the map of an eventful journey across the instrument’s membrane, Benesh Movement Notation and Labanno- which is precisely the intention (ibid. 83). tation are the two common notational sys- There is a clear connection here with Stans- tems for dance. The Benesh system uses a ield’s propositions for ‘physical scores for horizontal ive-line stave for each performer. engagement’ (2008). It represents the vertical division of the body into zones associated with the feet, knees, The concept of the ‘sound map’ is current hips, arms and head, and is favoured for in technical applications and Web 2.0 cul- choreographing classical ballet. Symbols ture. Colour-coded mapping of the noise representing speciic body and limb move- environment is a service available from orga- ments are supplemented with a range of ex- nizations such as Cambridge Environmental pression marks (website: Benesh). Anthro- Research Consultants (website: Noisemap). pologists, clinicians and physiotherapists The Danish Wind Industry Association pro-

153 Geoff Matthews vides an on-line design tool which calcu- areas signifying zoning of content, can be lates noise levels in and around wind tur- layered over the basic drawing to present bine arrays (website: Windturbine). There the experiential dimension of the design. are many participatory web-based projects In the design of the ‘Restoration and Con- based on the idea of hyperlinking location- servation’ exhibition at Ludwigsburg Palace speciic recordings to Google Earth maps (2004) Bertron, Schwartz & Frey utilized a (website: Soundseeker). One can, for exam- range of layering techniques to explore and ple, ind time-dated recordings of animals present the zoning of light, sound and hap- and ambient sounds (website: Wildsanctu- tics (2006, 95). ary), and linguistic surveys of dialects and regional accents (website: Soundsfamiliar). Some exhibits use smell for very obvious reasons, such as the Perfume exhibit pro- Finally I want to look at work by exhibi- duced by the Museum of Art and Design in tion designers’ because they often produce Hamburg in partnership with International multi-sensory, multi-media, communicative Flavours and Fragrances (Website: IFF). In environments. Neal Potter’s irst drawing for others, however, fragrance is ambient and the Agit Prop Train exhibit at the Museum designed to condition the audience in quite of the Moving Image (1988) is annotated in speciic ways. This is very dificult to do be- the top-right corner: ‘Evocative sounds of cause there are cultural differences in the the train running. Smells of the laborato- interpretation of smells. That Samsung’s ry. Train on rockers to simulate movement’ lagship electronics store, on the upper (Matthews, 2007, 29). The reference here to west side of Manhattan, smells like Honey- aural, olfactory and haptic elements broad- dew Melon is evidence of very subtle and ens the referential capacity of the draw- detailed brand design management (Trive- ing and limits its polysemic qualities. The di, 2006). In the ‘Scents of Space’ exhibit drawing represents at least three stages in (2002) Usman Haque speciically focussed a collaborative process. Initial discussion on the potential for communication through between designer, project director and his- the orchestration of fragrances in time and torical consultant inspired the exterior per- space. The drawings of the exhibit describe spective. The interior sketch, drawn on a a three-dimensional space within which separate piece of paper, was collaged onto each fragrance and duration of exposure the sheet much later; it adds detail to the exis presented using colour-coded blocks of periential aspects of the exhibit. A research- varying size and interval (Responsive Envi- er added the annotation during a creative ronments book XXXXXX). session. The techniques are simple and very adaptable. When associated with speciication, plan 6. Conclusion and elevation are conventional types of drawing. But they are also exploited in ex- Arguably exhibition designers, in exploring ploratory design in forms that progress from a dynamic, sensory and experiential idea of loose sketch to precise scale drawing. They communicative environment, contingently facilitate collaboration by allowing emotive acquire a rather eclectic range of creative and conative functions emerge as the con- design tools. This illustrates, I hope, poten- versational nature of the design process un- tial for sensory urban design; it offers the fa- folds. Sketches, photographs and symbolic cility for multidisciplinary collaboration, for elements, such as directional arrows signify- deferring synthesis and control, and allowing movement and coloured rings or tinted ing the process to play out its potential for as

154 The Play’s the Thing long as practicable. References

An all-encompassing conventional means Ashwin, C. (1989) ‘Drawing, Design and of representation is not possible or desir- Semiotics’ in V. Margolin Design Discourse, able. But it is useful to pursue a holistic and University of Chicago Press, 199-209. humanistic ambition in environmental design because pragmatically we do better by Baker, S. (2000) ‘Market Segmentation and remaining open to new ways of exploring Positioning’, Management Quarterly, Part 7 possibilities and communicating their real- April 2000, 17-23. izability. Bertron, A., U. Schwartz & C. Frey (2006) Francis Coppola once described being a Designing Exhibitions: A Compensium for ilm director as ‘one of the last truly dictato- Architects, Designers and Museum Profes- rial posts left in a world getting more and sionals, Basel: Birkhäuser. more democratic’ (Bahr & Hickenhooper, 1992). He also welcomed video camcorder Burnette, K. & P. R. Hall (1994) Make Space!: technology because he thought that ‘for once Design for Theatre and Alternative Spaces, the so-called professionalism about movies London: Theatre Design Umbrella in asso- will be destroyed forever and it will become ciation with The Society of British Theatre an art form’ (ibid.). These sentiments sum Designers. up the dilemma facing all creative practitioners involved in complex projects, on the ——— (1999) TimeSpace: Design for Per- one hand determining the place of creative formance 1995-1999, London: The Society leadership and on the other the place of dia- of British Theatre Designers. logue and participation. This can be con- strued in at least two different ways, as an Burrell, G. & G. Morgan (1979) Sociologi- argument in general between interdisciplin- cal Paradigms and Organizational Analysis, ary and multidisciplinary approaches and Heinemann Educational. individually between the comforting illu- Elias, H. & M. C. Vasconcelos (2008) ‘Ap- sion of control and the seduction of play. proaching Urban Space Through Drawing: The interdisciplinary approach focusses at- The Garden and The Neighbourhood,’ Sen- tention on the individual practitioner and sory Urbanism Conference, University of develops through the appropriation of theory Strathclyde, 8-9 January. and technique. It is healthy only insofar as Ettedgui, P. (1999) Production Design and creative direction is needed. The multidis- Art Direction, Crans-Près-Céligny: Rotovi- ciplinary approach, on the other hand, em- sion phasizes team building and is healthy only insofar as design must deal with complexity, Gleick, J. (1988) Chaos: Making a New Sci- i.e. the rational and non-rational, the large- ence, London: Sphere Books. scale and the interminable. In this context, co-operation is inadequate, collaboration is Goodwin, J. (1989) British Theatre Design: requisite, creative conversation in the sense The Modern Age, London: Weidenfeld & that Rorty recommends: admit many voices Nicolson. and follow pragmatic rules (1989)1.[1] Gray, C. H., S. Mentor & H. J. Figuerda-Sar- riera (1995) ‘Cyborgology: Constructing the Knowledge of Cybernetic Organisms’, in C.

155 Geoff Matthews

Gray (ed.) The Cyborg Handbook, London: Featurette on the DVD release. Routledge, 1-14. Bahr, Fax. & George Hickenhooper (dirs) Henri, A. (1974) Environments and Happen- (1992) Hearts of Darkness: a Filmmaker’s ings, London: Thames & Hudson. Apocalypse, documentary ilm, ZM Produc- tions. Jackson, N. & P. Carter (1984) ‘The Attenu- ating Function of Myth in Human Under- standing’, Human Relations, 37:7, 515-33. Websites Matthews, G. (2007) Neal Potter: Design Knowledge, Drawing and Process, e-book, Benesh: accessed 30 May 2008

Ricoeur, P. (2003) The Rule of Metaphor, Fightdirector: accessed 30 May 2008 London: Routledge. IFF: accesssed 21 December 2007 ——— (2007) Philosophy as Cultural Poli- tics: Philosophical Papers vol 4, Cambridge Labannotation: accessed 30 May 2008. Sennett, R. (1990) The Conscience of the Eye, London: Faber & Faber Noisemap: accessed 30 May 2008 Smith Brindle, R. (1975) The New Music, London: Oxford University Press. Soundseeker: accessed 30 May 2008 Stansield, K. (2008) ‘Physical Scores for En- gagement: Ariel (brass) and Object Scores,’ Soundsfamiliar: accessed 30 May of Strathclyde, 8-9 January. 2008

Trivedi, B. (2006) ‘Recruiting smell for the Wildsanctuary: accessed 30 May 2008 39. Windturbine: accessed 30 May ture is a Political Act, Architectural Mono- 2008 graphs No. 22, London: Academy Editions.

Filmography Biography

Anderson, Paul. (dir) (2002) Resident Evil, Geoff Matthews holds a doctorate in man- Constantin Film Production, Set Design, agement systems and sciences from Univer-

156 The Play’s the Thing sity of Hull and an undergraduate honours degree in interior design. He is a Fellow of the Chartered Society of Designers, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, and a Member of the Higher Education Academy.

He is a Senior Lecturer and leader of the masters programme in Design for Exhibition & Museums at Lincoln School of Architec- ture. His professional experience includes performance art, museum and exhibition design, museum collection documentation, and art direction for a publisher. His research is broadly in the ield of communicative environments and includes exhibition language, museum design organization, and sustainable exhibition design. Recent publications include: Neal Potter: Design Knowledge, Drawing and Process (2007, catalogue and biographical essay), ‘Friendly Chimeras: The Evolution of Critical Creative Practice in Exhibition Design’ (2007, The Role of the Humanities in Design Creativity conference paper) and Sustainable Exhibit Design: Guidelines for Designers of Small Scale Interactive and Travelling Exhibits (re- vised 2007, with Karl Abeyasekera, 56pp report).

157 Factor Analysis of the Pedestrian Number in a Downtown Area Using Visibility Indicators: A Case Study of the Sakae-South District, a Downtown Area of Nagoya Akira Ohta, Rim Meziani, Yuta Sugiura and Toshiyuki Kaneda Tokyu Land Corporation, Nagoya Institute of Technology and Nagoya City Ofice

1. Abstract Additionally, A GIS data from the planning section of Nagoya city bureau were used. In the Japanese downtown district especially in the age of “Urban Renaissance”, the making of turnout has become an important matter. For exploring the solution, 2. Research Background and the authors are trying a factor analysis of Objectives pedestrian number on each paved street on a holiday in Sakae south district, Nagoya, Creation and simulation of the “hustle and Japan, where the area of 400m x 800m has bustle” found at the heart of the world’s large many retail shops including several depart- cities is now a widely studied subject. For ment stores that showed eminent turnout. this study, factor analysis of the hustle and In our analysis, we use a visibility indica- bustle is important; the visibility analysis re- tor by applying Space Syntax Theory as a search of the UCL Group that approaches candidate factor, as well as other candidate such “hustle and bustle” or high pedestrian factors such as the accessibility from the activity from the viewpoint of spatial con- subway station and the space use intensity. iguration is well-known. Then, apply mainly a multiple regression analysis. Especially, when we make Visibili- In our research, based on a case study of ty Graph by using UCL’s Depthmap, we had the Sakae-South district, a thriving and dy- to consider the “high degree of space open- namic area in the heart of Nagoya City, in ness” in the case of Sakae south district, thus order to carry out factor analysis of the pe- we devised a kind of improved indicator of destrian activity in each pedestrian lane and the visibility. street, multiple linear regression analysis was conducted for the pedestrian number, We need a comparison among a wide using the following explanatory variables: variety of visibility analysis. This time the (1) accessibility to the nearest station; (2) in- authors preferred to deal with a Visibility tensity of land use (a loor-area ratio of com- graphs rather than the axial maps for the mercial and ofice space); and (3) a visibility convenience of time and data. From the lo- indicator. In addition, by using regression cal measures of the Visibility graph of Sakae equations, trial calculations were made to south district, the connectivity and the Iso- assess the impact of converting the whole of vist area were used in the Visibility analysis.

158 Akira Ohta, Rim Meziani, Yuta Sugiura and Toshiyuki Kaneda

Ohtsu Avenue into a pedestrian mall. a.m. to 9:00 p.m.) sectional pedestrian trafic volume measured at 61 points located in pedestrian lanes and streets. 3. Sakae-South District: a The data was created based on data from 12 surveys conducted between 1989 and Case Study 2005 by the Minami-Ohtsu Street Shopping District Promotional Association, and ad- Nagoya City has a population of 2,200,000 justments for the weather and missing data and in the city central area there are two were made; Fig. 2 shows a typical example main commercial centers: the areas around of a holiday with ine weather in 2005. The Nagoya Station and Sakae Station (Fig. 1). largest pedestrian number was found at a measurement point located to the west of the Matsuzakaya Department on the Ohtsu Avenue that runs north to south, with a total all-day trafic volume of 35,000 pedestrians; as a whole the Ohtsu Avenue recorded the highest overall pedestrian trafic volume.

Number of Passenger (thousand) X ★ Department Building

Figure 1: Location of Sakae South District

The Sakae-South district, the subject of the case study, is located to the southeast of Sakae Station and comprises 25 ha of commercial properties, surrounded by Hirokoji Street, Hisaya Main Street and Wakamiya Main Street.

In the area sandwiched in between Ohtsu Avenue and Hisaya Main Street and running from Hirokoji Street to Wakamiya Main Street, a row of eight department buildings can be found. In this area, there are two stations, Sakae Station, which has a daily passenger throughput of 108,000, and Yaba- cho Station with 27,000 passengers (as of 2006).

An indicator of high pedestrian activity Figure 2: All-day number of pedestrians. used in this research is the all-day (10:00

159 Factor Analysis of the Pedestrian Number in a Downtown Area Using Visibility Indicators

4. Creation of Visibility Indi- was assessed and the total number of grid squares that can be seen from a grid square cators containing a measurement point was considered to be the visibility indicator of that 4.1 Summary of Visibility In- point. In DEPTHMAP this concept is called ‘connectivity.’ dicators

This research particularly focused on spatial coniguration as a primary factor of high pedestrian activity. Space syntax theory con- 4.3 Speciic Calculation of a ceived by Hillier is one of the methods to Visibility Indicator in an Open analyze spatial coniguration, and it seeks to establish quantitative benchmarks for acces- System Space sibility in urban spaces. Our research used This section describes speciic procedures. the concept of visible sectors called ‘Isovist’ Firstly, by using GIS data, the surface of in this theory. Isovist refers to the total area the urban area was divided into pedestrian visible from a single point and this is deined lanes, screens and others. by such factors as screens and borderlines that will be described later. A pedestrian lane is considered to be: a pavement between a city block borderline In this research, in order to clarify a rela- and a road; a pavement around a public tionship with the pedestrian number that park; and an entrance of a subway. Vacant indicates high pedestrian activity on a pe- ground created due to the setback of a destrian lane, any area of pedestrian lane building, parks and paths in a park are not located in an isovist sector was used as a categorized as pedestrian lanes. visibility indicator that explains a contribu- tory factor of high pedestrian activity on the A screen is considered to be: a wall, hedge, pedestrian lane. fence and an entrance to an elevated road, all of which are 1.5m or more in height. When there is a screen, it is assumed that a pedestrian lane located beyond the screen 4.2 Method for Measuring a cannot be seen. The category others, refers Visibility Indicator to parks, vacant ground, trees, fountains, and elevated roads that do not restrict vis- For the measurement, DEPTHMAP, soft- ibility. ware developed by UCL, was used. A grid For conigurations of the ground, especial- was laid out with one-meter intervals on a ly, for a vertical drop, the following assump- map and any grid square where more than tions were made: half of the area is occupied by a pedestrian lane was marked as a pedestrian lane. The heights above sea level in the district vary between 12.5m at the highest and 7.5m If there is no screen and no borderline beat the lowest; however this difference of el- tween a marked grid square and another evation is not taken into account. marked grid square, it was assumed that both grid squares were visible to each other Outside the district, a contour line of 1.5m and the number of visible grid squares was or higher is a borderline, and any area be- counted. The visibility of all grid squares yond this line cannot be seen.

160 Akira Ohta, Rim Meziani, Yuta Sugiura and Toshiyuki Kaneda

have good visibility. This is particularly noticeable on Wakamiya Main Street, which has the widest pedestrian lane in the district measuring 10m on one side, where the visibility indicators were the highest, and also along the three main thoroughfares, Ohtsu Avenue, Hirokoji Street and Hisaya Main Street with pedestrian lane widths of 4m, 6m and 6m respectively, where high visibil- Figure 3: The Visible Range from the District ity indicators were also conirmed.

5. Factor Analysis of the Pedes- trian Number, Taking into Con- sideration Visibility Indicators 5.1 Summary of Other Ex- planatory Variables

As other explanatory variables this section describes accessibility from the nearest sta- Figure 4: Visibility graph of the study area (a) in base tion and the intensity of land use. With re- case, (b) in pedestrian mall gard to accessibility from the two subway stations, Sakae Station and Yabacho Station, the walking distance from the nearest exit of the nearer station to the measurement point 4.4 Examination of Visibility was used. Sector For the intensity of land use, loor-area ra- In igure 4(a), we show the measurement tios of both commercial and ofice space results of the visibility sector. The darker the were used. The main use for each building color, the larger the area of pedestrian lane and each loor was regarded as representa- visible from the measurement point. The tive use, and a total loor area for these two lighter is the color; the smaller is the area of categories of use in a block was calculat- visible pedestrian lane. The sections that are ed, and the result was then divided by the not pedestrian lanes are uncolored. block area to ind a loor-area ratio by use. The data was taken from “Data on Present The igure shows that the streets with wider Usage of Buildings 2006” published by Na- pedestrian lanes and roadways have a larger goya City. In a case where a road bordering visibility indicator. Possible reasons for this a measurement point has a central divider, result are that the visibility indicator depends the loor-area ratio of the block that is adja- upon the area of a pedestrian lane, and an cent to one side of the road was used, and unobstructed view that gives depth; a wid- if a road does not have a central divider, the er pedestrian lane often has a greater area; average value of the loor-area ratios of both and a street with a wider roadway tends to side blocks that border the road was used.

161 Factor Analysis of the Pedestrian Number in a Downtown Area Using Visibility Indicators

5.2 Selection of Explanatory amined, accessibility to the nearest station X1 (-0.341) was the strongest and it can be Variables perceived that the closer to a subway station from a measurement point, the larger the pe- In the procedures, as other candidate ex- destrian number at that point. This was fol- planatory variables, the intensity of land use lowed by intensity of commercial land use (total loor-area ratio, area for commercial X2 (0.260), intensity of ofice land use X3 use on the ground loor) and pedestrian lane (0.184), and visibility indicator X4 (0.139), width were prepared. When a correlation and it can be seen that at those points with matrix was created, the correlation between a higher ratio of commercial and ofice loor accessibility from the nearest station and the area to site area, and higher visibility of intensity of land use (commercial use, total pedestrian lanes, the pedestrian number is loor-area ratio, and building-to-land ratio of high. The order seems to be indicative of the commercial use on the ground loor) were relative strength of these factors. However, -0.786, -0.749 and -0.763 respectively. The a t-test showed no signiicant difference at correlation between commercial use and the 5% level for any explanatory variable; total loor-area ratio in the intensity of land a possible reason is the small number of use was 0.942, the correlation between to- samples. tal loor-area ratio and building-to-land ratio of commercial use on the ground loor Regression Standard Regression T P T-Test was 0.898, and the correlation between Coefficients Coefficients commercial use and building-to-land ratio Accessibility -24.960052 -0.340815 -1.98489 0.05206 of commercial use on the ground loor was Visibility Indicator 0.328639 0.138604 1.27462 0.20771 0.840. Each of the correlations was strong; Commercial Land Use 686.315117 0.259769 1.48235 0.14385 therefore’ in order to avoid multicolinearity, Office Land Use 1728.229606 0.183600 1.69653 0.09534 only the intensity of commercial land use was adopted and the total loor-area ratio Table 1: Multiple Linear Regression Analysis and building-to-land ratio of commercial use on the ground loor were rejected. Pedestri- an lane width also showed a strong correlation with the visibility indicator, which was 6. Test Calculation for Convert- 0.739; therefore, it was rejected too. ing the Whole Ohtsu Avenue into a Mall

We used Equation 1 to make a forecast of 5.3 Examination with Multiple the pedestrian number. Trial calculations Linear Regression Analysis were carried out for the case of a whole roadway section of Ohtsu Avenue, the main Multiple linear regression analysis was thoroughfare that passes through the case conducted to derive multiple linear regres- study district from north to south is convert- sion equations (Table.1) and their applica- ed to a pedestrian mall (Fig. 4 (b)). bility was examined. In this case, the visible sector expands; The multiple correlation coeficient of the therefore, based on the increase of X4 (vis- regression equation with four variables was ibility indicator), the increase of Y (the pe- 0.611 and the coeficient of determination destrian number) was calculated. When we was 0.373. When standard regression coef- examine the distribution rate obtained by di- icients of explanatory variables were ex- viding the pedestrian number at each point

162 Akira Ohta, Rim Meziani, Yuta Sugiura and Toshiyuki Kaneda by the total pedestrian number at all points, case of no change in the pedestrian number the distribution rate at each point changes in the whole district, there was a uniform after conversion to a pedestrian mall. drop of 4% in sections where pedestrian lanes are invisible, and there was a maxi- By using the change in the distribution rate, mum increase of 13% at those points where the rate of increase of the pedestrian number the mall can be seen; and in the case of a was calculated at each point for two differ- 20% increase in the pedestrian number in ent scenarios: no change in the pedestrian the whole district, there was a 15% increase number in the whole district; and a 20% in sections where pedestrian lanes are in- increase in the pedestrian number in the visible and a 36% increase at those points whole district due to conversion to a mall. where the mall can be seen.

With no change in the pedestrian number For visibility analysis, many reports have in the whole district, in sections where pe- been presented for closed system spaces and destrian lanes are invisible the pedestrian it has been considered that such analysis is number dropped by a uniform 4% and at not suitable for application to open system points where the mall can be seen, the pe- spaces; however, by establishing borderlines destrian number increased to a maximum of the research enabled the application to an 13%. With a 20% increase in the pedestrian open system space. This is a key characteris- number in the whole district, in sections, tic of the research. where the mall cannot be seen, the pedestrian number increased by a uniform 15% In addition, for a visibility indicator, con- and at points, where the mall can be seen, nectivity attaches great importance to an the pedestrian number increased to a maxi- unobstructed view, and regardless of the dis- mum of 36%. tance, all points within a visible sector are regarded as equal. However, in reality, from the perspective of human vision, objects at a distance look smaller and objects that are 7. Conclusion closer look larger; therefore, a future project is to create an indicator that takes into ac- With the Sakae-South district in Nagoya count the actual distance from a point. City as the subject, the research analyzed factors that have an effect on high pedestrian activity. As a result, it can be considered the main factors that affect the pedestrian References number and create the hustle and bustle of Sakae-South district are in order of impor- Batty, M. (2001) Exploring isovist ields: tance: accessibility from the nearest station, space and shape in architectural and urban intensity of land use (loor-area ratio for morphology, Environment and Planning B: commercial and ofice space) and the visi- Planning and Design, Vol. 28, 123-150. bility indicator. However, it cannot be stated that the results of the regression equations Desyllas, J. and Duxbury, E. (2000) Planning are statistically signiicant. for movement: measuring and modeling pedestrian lows in cities. RICS Conference, With regard to the forecast where the London, 2000. whole street was converted into a mall by the application of an equation, the results Hillier, B. and Hanson, J. (1984) The Social of trial calculations were as follows: in the Logic of Space, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 163 Factor Analysis of the Pedestrian Number in a Downtown Area Using Visibility Indicators Minami-Ohtsu Street Shopping District Pro- Biographies motional Association (1989-2005), Survey for Pedestrian Trafic in Sakae-South District, Akira Ohta: Master Course Student, Urban Nagoya, Japan (in Japanese). Planning Laboratory, Nagoya Institute of Technology. Meziani R. and Kaneda, T. (2007) Toward Further Application Of Visibility Analysis -In Rim Meziani: Doctor of Engineering (2006, The case of Ghardaia, The Tenth Internation- Nagoya Institute of Technology), Post Doc- al Conference on Computers in Urban Plan- toral Fellow, Urban Planning Laboratory, ning and Urban Management (CUPUM), Nagoya Institute of Technology (2006). Iguacu Falls, Brazil, July 2007. Toshiyuki Kaneda: Doctor of Engineering Turner, A., Doxa, M., O’Sulivan, D. and (1988, Tokyo Institute of Technology), Asso- Penn, A. (2001) From isovists to visibility ciate Professor, Urban Planning Laboratory, graphs: a methodology for the analysis of Nagoya Institute of Technology (1996). architectural space, Environment and Plan- ning B: Planning and Design, Vol. 28, 103- 121.

Turner, A. (2004) Depthmap 4: A researcher’s handbook. Bartlett School of Graduate Studies, UCL, London.

164 Pictorial Fictions: A Borgesian Reading of Guillermo Kuitca’s Sonorous Geog- raphies and Opera Houses Malca Mizrahi Bartlett School of Architecture

1. Introduction Kuitca’s mattresses bring a tactile aspect to the representation; they make the paintings How do imaginary cartographies convey present both to the eye and to the touch. narratives and reference memory, excluding However, this comfort zone vanishes as the any allusion to the familiar? To address this result of a tension between the territory of question this paper re-reads Kuitca’s bed- the bed, private space, and the territory of map paintings and his recent architectural the map, socio-political space, colliding in drawings of opera houses collected in the the same piece. This paper examines this series ‘Acoustic Mass’ (2002–05). tension, reveals its cultural recurrences, and shows how a memory of place is evoked Initially led by the sound and resonance of by contributing towards a de-territorialized the name of a place, Kuitca creates a private cultural identity. Finally, it discusses the and intimate cartography by rearranging change of scale that led to the deployment spatial relations of distant places over con- of architectural space in the series ‘Acoustic jectural maps. Excluding his own known ter- Mass’, and how space is revealed as sensory ritory from the series, the Argentine painter experience in these later paintings. avoids any familiarity of place or visual reference and, in this way, imaginary cartogra- In the context of my investigation on the phies painted over child-sized beds become transformation of the idea of space in con- ‘black holes’ illed only with sounds. temporary visual arts and architecture, Kuit- ca’s recent paintings are relevant because Inluenced by Borges’s ictional devices to they are explorations in space, place, nar- create an imaginary geography without spatial rative and memory. In the irst of the series or temporal continuity, the bed-map series pro- analysed here, cartography is manipulated duces itineraries that do not take us anywhere; by subtly transforming the most common- instead it uses the map to depict displacement. place forms of maps, the street map and the By looking at how these failed navigational road map into an imaginary collection of instruments create a Borgesian itinerary, I will dysfunctional navigation tools. In one paint- explore the relationship between unfamiliar ing, for example, all names of major cities geographies and the representation of a ic- are replaced by the name of a single town tional spatio-temporal order; and how, by sub- belonging to another country; in another, verting the principles of cartography, a ‘narra- the names of the cities in one country are tive of emotion’ is portrayed. interpolated into a fragment representing an

165 Malca Mizrahi entirely different nation, and in the instal- two apparently ixed places on the map. His lation Untitled 1992 European road maps movement has a trajectory which is not only are painted onto mattresses that become a spatial but temporal because it has duration. metaphorical image of spatio-temporal voy- The passing of time, both at the place he left aging, placing them in the realm of iction and at the place of arrival, is also consid- and imagination. While there is no internal ered, for neither origin or destination are narrative to the maps, their reading invites passive places, ‘they are an intertwining of the viewer-voyager to imagine one, turning ongoing trajectories’, and when he steps out the bed-map paintings into a territory to re- of the train he becomes entangled in the sto- think the notions of place, experience and ries that began before his arrival. To open up memory. I start here looking at them as spa- space to this kind of imagination is to think tio-temporal tools, to show how their spatial space and time simultaneously, Massey says; aspect includes time. it is not travelling across space-as-surface but across a multiplicity of stories. Move- Although other art critics and writers have ment here is a process of change, and here already traced Borgesian references in Kuit- is not a place on a map, it is an intersection ca’s paintings, I will deine here where that of trajectories and of stories of place, ‘… inluence resides and what its effect is. The Every here is here-and-now, and space has analysed paintings will be read not as illus- time within it.’ The map we imagined when trations of the literary but as visual works in- we embarked on our journey is a represen- luenced by those spatial ideas and devices tation of our trajectory, and captures time with which Borges imagines space and acti- and space. vates the iction. From the idea of a map as an intersection The second series discussed here, ‘Acoustic of spatiotemporal trajectories, I propose Mass’, examines his painting as investiga- another journey, an epic one through an tions of space and language. I will show in unknown territory where the line of the tra- what way a change of scale, the inclusion of jectory is traced on Afghanistan (1990). The the body and the incorporation of architec- time of the journey is unknown, but it has tural references act as place-making tools. duration. Unlike other paintings I will dis- Even though the spatial container itself is cuss later, Afghanistan still suggests a collec- generally absent, the paintings transform tion of coherent trajectories. It was painted the opera houses into images of resonance; before 9/11, and at the time the place did they portray the event of music taking place not have the connotations it has now. in the concert hall, materializing visually an audio-spatial experience. The bed-map series, including the maps of Europe and Asia, represent ‘a kind Oriental- ism, but in reverse’, the painter says. As a result, the series evokes the unknown, what 2. The map as a representa- is distant and different: they are a collection of sonorous geographies which do not in- tion of both time and space clude anything familiar. For the painter, ‘the in one names in Afghanistan or The Song of the Earth are just names, pure topography, pure Doreen Massey’s essay, Some Times of geography: ’the places didn’t represent any- Space, invites us to imagine an everyday thing I knew, saw in ilms, nor read in books; journey from Manchester to Liverpool, and they are just sound and resonance’. Led by to picture the voyager travelling between sound, the quality that is sought in the map

166 Pictorial Fictions is not only visual but sonorous, eroding any tions to a mixture of existing and invented reference to the familiar to achieve abstrac- texts, and the use of many of Borges’s real tion. friends as characters in the plot. If in Borges, maps, encyclopaedias and the names of real San Juan de la Cruz, a pictorial iction: The people and places are the way to persuade map as a failed navigational instrument the reader of the veracity of his stories; in Kuitca’s paintings names are there to dislo- Kuitca’s interest in cartography is shared cate, to subvert the ictional character of the with Borges: ‘The map is one of the most maps. By creating a mixture of real places fascinating forms of spatial representation’, and ictional geographies, the collection of he says. San Juan de la Cruz is the paint- painted maps supports invention through ing where the map subverts the principle the juxtaposition of reality and iction in the of cartography, transforms the geography, same way as Borges achieves verisimilitude and turns into the opposite of a navigational through ictional intertextuality and false at- tool. It is the instrument for getting lost: its tributions to real people. purpose is not to identify where you are, but to show where you are not. Here the tra- The second device is what Beatriz Sarlo jectories are organised as if one place is all calls ‘mise-en-abîme’, a spatiotemporal pat- places: the city of San Juan arbitrarily re- tern applied to both narrative and spatial de- places all major cities of Poland, suggesting sign. Borges’s ‘mise-en-abîme’ builds upon a terrifying journey in which all roads return a spatial paradox that lies on the superior- to different points but which are the same ity of images over reality, a baroque type of place. The labyrinthine itinerary of San Juan space. In her essay ‘Tropes of Fantastic Lit- de la Cruz (1992) is also a recurrent spatial erature’ she explains how this type of spatial characteristic of Borges’s stories. The image paradox compels us to experience ininity of the map is the representation of a world as in a inite space; according to the principle organised and complete as Borges’s ‘Death of endless inclusion, it modiies our belief and the Compass’ (1942) for example, but in the truth of our perceptions and sets a also as nightmarish. Moreover, Kuitca’s tension between what we can conceive map is also trespassed by a referential ab- logically and what can be concretely, ma- erration, i.e. the constant recurrence of the terially or sensorially perceived. In Borges’s same place, and represents visually Freud’s Tlön there is no spatial continuity, space is uncanny: ‘…after having wandered about by deinition discontinuous, and a place for a time without enquiring my way, I sud- or an object in space is never the same if denly found myself back in the same street, considered from the point of view of time. where my presence was now beginning to ‘Identity, according to this conception, is un- excite attention. I hurried away once more, imaginable, because no substance extends only to arrive by another détour at the same its being through time’. The painting San place yet a third time. Now, however, a feel- Juan de la Cruz, as the structure of an imagi- ing overcame me which I can only describe nary geography with no spatial or temporal as uncanny…’ continuity, proposes a visual presentation of a geography where space is discontinuous, Two more ictional devices are there in the where the same place can appear in a map paintings that suggest Borges’s inluence. again and again, transgressing the concept The irst is the use of the Borgesian method of identity: as objects and places multiply of verisimilitude. In the story ‘Tlön, Uqbar, in Tlön, the city of San Juan multiplies in Urbis, Tertius’ (1949) for example, verisimil- Kuitca’s map. itude is achieved by combining false attribu-

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3. Material tension in Argentine culture, for playing with opposites was the strategy that emerged from the Giuliana Bruno in Atlas of Emotion says Borgesian game to achieve originality. that the art of mapping is a function of ictional imagination. She explains how in Kuitca’s installation Untitled (1993) where road maps of Europe have been imprinted 4. Architectural language and upon used mattresses, ‘the sequential layout the body as tools of place of the map-inscribed mattresses in an architectural space entices us to share a private making bedroom fantasy’. She continues, ‘the space is suspended and frozen, as if something has The ‘Acoustic Mass’ series, a pictorial rein- just taken place or is about to happen; no terpretation of opera houses’ plan drawings one is lying on the beds. But the maps do and interior views, presents a different ap- speak of a iction–an arresting architectural proach to the practice of place-making in tale. This is a story written on a bed, inscribed painting. Three elements contribute to it: the in the fabric of a room, layered on the geo- body, scale and the reference to built space. logical strata of used mattresses...The map The body here is not present as igure but as haunts the mattress like a stained memory. a sensory tool. It tacitly adds a dimensional It is a residue, a trace, a living document… reference to space and reveals the theme: It absorbed a story… It recounts the tale of the immersive expression of experience. In what was lived, or unlived on it… ‘Acoustic Mass’ the body is listening to the concert, it is experiencing space and sound: Like a ilm, the bedroom map retains and the painter inhabits the space depicted. explores “folds” of experience. It charts the private inner fabric of our mental land- John Berger’s essay ‘Studio Talk’ argues that scape… The mattress-map is a complex nar- painting is a visual translation of experience, rative, a nocturnal chronicle… It belongs a tool to make place: he deines it as an ex- to the realm of dreams and their interpreta- tension of a presence or the consequence of tions’. an action, and here the words presence and action refer to the body. In ‘Steps Towards The mattresses bring physicality and a tac- a Small Theory of the Visible’ he afirms tile aspect to the representation; they make that the conscious experience of inhabiting the paintings present both to the eye and space is what painting is about: ‘Painting to the touch. However, this comfort zone is an afirmation of the visible which sur- quickly vanishes when we approach them, rounds us and which continually appears as the result of a tension between the territory and disappears. Without the disappear- of the bed, private space, and the territory of ing, there would perhaps be no impulse to the map, socio-political space, or ‘the space paint’.’. This impulse to paint exists to make of others’ colliding in the same piece. On permanent the experience of seeing, to ex- one hand, the mattresses incorporate prox- press through form and colour the effect imity to the piece: the body making known that the act of seeing has upon the painter. its presence through the stained, used beds. Even abstract paintings, he continues, like On the other, the accurately painted maps ‘a late canvas by Rothko represents an illu- bring the notion of distance into the work, mination or a coloured glow which derived interposing it between evoked places and an from the painter’s experience of the visible’. absent body. Thus, by juxtaposing proximity ‘Acoustic Mass’ presents this impulse of per- and distance, they re-create a tension rooted manence, the series expresses through form

168 Pictorial Fictions and colour the effect that the act of listening terns that do not suggest dynamism or dra- has upon the painter. In a similar manner, ma per se. Imagining the experience of the Borges’s ‘The Aleph’ is the story that tells space that geometry suggests, i.e. the space the experience of seeing oneself inhabiting perceived when the concert hall is illed by a paradoxical space. Therefore, and as a re- music, is what induces the idea of spatial sult of the necessity to make experience per- drama. Equally to Borges’s characters fac- manent, both stories and paintings are here ing spatial paradoxes, Kuitca’s paintings are to prevent experience from disappearing in experiential accounts, and both visual and Berger’s sense. literary expressions attain lyricism through the representation of experience.

Finally, space in these paintings is powerful Scale is the second element that contributes because it is present to the eye and absent to to the practice of place-making. In ‘Acoustic the touch, the canvass is an empty space to Mass’ the pictorial image emerges now from be illed with the potentiality of every por- a manipulation of architectural symbols: the tion sensed or perceived. In particular the seats in the concert hall. Their size places paintings Untitled 1 and Untitled 2, both the body in space, and space is there not as painted in 2004 and part from the same container, but as the event of music taking series ‘Acoustic Mass’, can read as a mul- place in the hall, as an image of resonance. tifaceted and aural account of built space, By inventing a pictorial language that con- where their geometry is not related to a de- sciously borrows signs and symbols from ar- construction of the elements that conigure chitectural codes, built space is present as space, but to a phenomenological account experience. Its coniguration is not a decon- of the space perceived. structivist composition, but an arrangement aimed to visualize the perception of sound. The paintings transform the halls into visual accounts of an audio-spatial experience, and the rearrangement of the architectural geometry is used as the means to do it.

Tangentially, Zaha Hadid’s early paintings are examples of a similar exploration on experience. It is not dynamism of form what she was after as their visual distinctiveness comes not only from the manner in which the shapes were composed to inform a particular language, but also from the effect that geometry applied to a spatial object has upon the user. Hadid’s language is distinctive in that it relects the emotional effect that the experience of built space produces in the user. There are striking similarities between Hadid’s early paintings and Kuitca’s ‘Acous- tic Mass’ series for the work of both painters renders space as a pictorial composition of experience. The architectural language in Kuitca’s paintings develop geometrical pat-

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References Kuitca, G. (2006). Hans-Michael Herzog in Conversation with Guillermo Kuitca. Zur- Berger, J. (2001). The Shape of a Pocket. ich: Hatje Cantz. London: Bloomsbury. Kuitca, G., & Cook, L. (1994). Iterations: Berger, J. (2007). Berger on Drawing. Cork: Letters Guillermo Kuitca – Lynne Cook. In Occasional Press. Burning Beds: A Survey 1982-1994 (pp. 14– 21). Amsterdam: Contemporary Art Founda- Bergson, H. (1988). Matter and memory. tion. New York: Zone; London : Distributed by MIT Press. Massey, D. (2003). Some Times of Space. In S. May (Ed.), Oliafur Eliasson: The Weather Borges, J. L. (1957). Discusion. Buenos Ai- Project. London: Tate Publications. res: Emece Editores. Sarlo, B. (1993). Jorge Luis Borges: A Writer Borges, J. L. (1970). The Argentine Writer on the Edge. London ; New York: Verso. and Tradition. In Labyrinths: Selected Sto- ries and Other Writings. Harmondsworth: Tuan, Y.-F. (1977). Space and Place: The Per- Penguin. spective of Experience. London: Edward Ar- nold Borges, J. L. (1970). Labyrinths: Selected Sto- ries and Other Writings. Harmondsworth: Penguin.

Borges, J. L. (1998). Fictions. London: Pen- guin.

Bruno, G. (2007). Atlas of Emotion: Journeys in Art, Architecture and Film. New York: Ver- so.

Canaparo, C. (2000). Imaginacion, mapas, escritura. Buenos Aires: Zibaldone.

Elliott, D. (Ed.). (1994). Argentina, 1920– 1994: Art from Argentina. Oxford: Museum of Modern Art.

Herkenhoff, P. (2002). La Pintura de Guiller- mo Kuitca. In Guillermo Kuitca: Obras 1982–2002 (pp. 21–63). Madrid: Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Soia.

Kuitca, G. (1994). Burning Beds: A Survey 1982-1994. Amsterdam: Contemporary Art Foundation.

Kuitca, G. (2003). Guillermo Kuitca. Obras 1982 / 2002. Madrid: Museo Nacional Cen- tro de Arte Reina Soia. 170 Pictorial Fictions

Biography

Malca Mizrahi is an architect and writer. She graduated from the Faculty of Architec- ture, University of Buenos Aires and has a Masters Degree in Architectural Design from The Bartlett School of Architecture. She is currently undertaking graduate research at The Bartlett, working with contemporary art practices which engage with the production of space and architecture.

She taught architectural design at the Uni- versity of Buenos Aires and at The Bartlett School of Architecture at Diploma Level. She practiced architecture in Buenos Aries, Madrid and London, where she worked for Zaha Hadid Architects, being the lead designer for The Glasgow Museum of Trans- port. Her writing and visual work explores the production of space from an interdisciplinary approach, interweaving visual and literary strategies of ictional construction; it has been exhibited in London, Venice, Madrid, Rotterdam, Vienna, Sao Pablo, San- tiago de Chile and Buenos Aires.

171 Adjacency, Permeability & Inter-Visibility: micro scale spatial analyses tools for revealing the private - public space relationship and its impact on urban safety Akkelies van Nes Department of Urban Renewal and Management, Faculty of Architecture, Delft University of Technology

1. Introduction clear that a building’s degree of exposure to neighbours plays a role on where burglar- Research on urban environment by means ies take place (Shu, 2000). When revealing of space syntax methods tends to focus on present design practice, the demand for pri- macro scale spatial conditions. However, vacy in combination with a demand for high micro scale conditions should not be ne- quality dwellings in urban central areas glected. In a research project on space and seems to neglect the spatial possibilities for crime, it became inevitable to pay attention social interaction with their vicinity on an to the interdependence between the macro urban micro scale level. Up till now, spatial as well as the micro scale spatial conditions. tools for measuring the topological relation- For this purpose, spatial analyses methods ship between private and public space were were developed and tested in the Dutch missing. towns Alkmaar and Gouda. The application of these analyses tools shows clearly that micro scale spatial relationships have impact on street life and crime distribution 2. The Private-public Space in urban areas. Relationship and Urban Liv- As various studies have shown, the spa- ing tial coniguration of a city’s street and road net affects people’s natural movement pat- During the last two decades, living in cen- terns and the distribution of shops and retail tral urban areas has become popular in Eu- (Hillier et. al. 1998) and the geographic and rope. This kind of “urban renaissance” has temporal distribution of crime and anti-so- contributed to an increase of estate and cial behaviour (Hillier and Sahbaz, 2005). property prices in inner city areas. Several However, the spatial relationships in these people seek for urban areas with high social, studies are mainly calculated on a macro cultural and spatial diversity, short distances spatial level. from dwellings to work, leisure and cultural activities, and to use all the opportunities a Little research is done so far on the ur- city has to offer (Rogers, 1999). ban micro scale level when it comes to the spatial relationship between buildings and Many recent urban renewal policy docu- streets. The few conducted studies make it ments propose to intensify existing city and

172 Akkelies van Nes town centres instead of creating new out variations of urban functions in new areas. of town settlements. The idea is that high However, the degree of inter-connectivity diversity and density of various kinds of and the topological shallow public-private land use, functions and cultural activities interface is often forgotten. will contribute to vital lively urban areas and economic growth. As stated in most policy documents, the density of the built mass should be high without loosing good 3. Micro Spatial Relation- living qualities (Nota Ruimte 2004:71, Rog- ers 1999:45). The compact city is used as ships a model for urban renewal for enhancing A method describing micro scale spatial growth in existing centres instead of urban variables in urban studies aims at deining sprawl for promoting sustainable develop- the inter-relationship of buildings or pri- ment. How this must be realised is, how- vate spaces and adjacent street segments. ever, never demonstrated in recent policy The focus is on how dwellings relate to the documents. street network, the way buildings’ entrances What is striking is how project developers constitute streets, the degree of topological promote new housing areas in urban central depth from private space to public space, areas. In their glossy brochures, full of pic- and inter-visibility of doors and houses tures of traditional urban street life with a across streets. As Jane Jacobs and Jan Gehl large variation of cafés and individual small argue, many entrances and windows facing shops and enterprises, they sell it as “ur- a street is one formula to ensure urban live- ban living.” Often the intention is to create liness (Jacobs, 2000; Gehl, 1996). The chal- lively and diverse urban areas. However, lenge is to quantify these kinds of spatial when it comes to the inal product, the ur- relationships. Only then it will be possible ban street life inside these areas is missing to gain a genuine understanding on the spa- – even though the integration of the street tial conditions for vital street life and urban net is high. safety. The topological spatial relationship between 4. The Method private and public space and its impact on urban life is a forgotten aspect in contempo- In a research project on space and crime rary urban design and planning disciplines. in Alkmaar and Gouda, an opportunity was Architects tend to emphasise the feeling of provided to register various spatial relation- privacy within the context of modern living ships between private and public spaces in their design projects. Often an explana- (López & Van Nes 2007). In each town one tion can be found in the individualisation local area was chosen and studied in detail. process of human beings during the last 60 These areas are more or less comparable years in the western society. There seems to when it comes to their function, size and the be a need for high degree of privacy when large variation of their social composition living together with others. However, when of dwellers and architectural composition the city itself offers high degree of anonym- in terms of a large mixture of various hous- ity, then one can ask whether it is necessary ing types. The local areas contain boroughs or not hiding one’s dwelling entrance and with homogeneous building types as well windows away from public streets. Urban as areas with a mixture of several types. In project developers build with high density or total 1.168 street segments were observed a high loor-space-index and propose large and 25 different spatial features registered

173 Adjacency, Permeability & Inter-Visibility for each segment. The results of the micro where the entrances to each apartment are spatial registrations were put in a database connected, while others have a closed main together with various macro scale variables entrance where visitors have to use a call- derived from the space syntax analyses of ing system. During registration the degree the street and road net and the number and of permeability was used. Where a lat’s characteristics of residential burglaries and front door or main entrance was permanent- thefts from cars for each street segment. ly locked and provided with a doorbell or calling system, it was registered as a private space from thereon. When lats have open main entrances, the number of semi-private spaces was counted up to the apartments.

Figure 1: Picture of the local areas in Alkmaar (left) and Gouda (right). Source: Google Earth.

There are several ways of analysing spatial conigurative relationships between building entrances and the street network. An easy way is to register the topological depth between private and public space. This can be done as follows: one counts the number of semi-private and semi-public spaces one has to walk through to get from a private space to its public street. If an entrance is directly connected to a public street, it has Figure 2: How the topological depth from en- no spaces between private and public space. trances (top) and degree of constitutedness (below) Then the depth is equivalent to zero. If there is calculated is a small front garden between the entrance and the public street, the depth value is one since there is one space between the closed private space and the street. If the entrance is located on the side of the house and it has a front garden or it is covered behind hedges or fences then the topological depth of the entrance has a value of two. Figure 3: Example of a dwelling located to a traditional street (left) and a dwelling located on an Entrances from back alleys covered behind upper walk-way in a lat (right). In the traditional a shed have a value of three. It is the topo- street there is a direct connection between the pri- logical steps between the street and the private home and the public street. A stranger passing through one’s front door is perceived as a source of vate spaces inside homes that are counted. safety. Conversely, in the case of the upper walk- Entrances into lats can be represented in way, there are many semi public and semi private several ways. It all depends on the degree of spaces between the home and the street. A stranger permeability between the private space and passing through one’s front door is perceived as a the street. Some lats have upper walkways source of danger.

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Each side of a street segment is registered Figure 4 shows some examples on consti- separately. There are many streets where en- tuted and un-constituted streets. The two trances are directly connected to the street entrances on the top are constituted streets. on the one side, while there is a lat with In both cases the entrances are located only an upper walk gallery on the other side. If at one side of the street. The example on the a street segment’s side has several depth left is a street dating from 1600 and the ex- values between private and public spaces, ample on the right is a street from the 1970s. the average value is used. The diagram in Both two streets below in igure 5 are un- igure 2 (top) illustrates various types of rela- constituted. No entrances are directly con- tionship between private and public spaces. nected to these streets. The example on The black dots represent the private spaces, the left is a street located in a high rise lat while the white dots represent semi-private area from the 1960s. One has to go into the spaces. semi public side streets in order to reach the lats’ main entrances. Regards the example A street’s degree of constitutedness de- on the right, dating from the 1990’s, all the pends on various degrees of adjacency and apartments are located adjacent to the street. permeability from buildings to public space. Even though the street is highly visible from When a building is directly accessible to a all the apartments’ windows, all entrances street, then it constitutes the street. Con- are located at the buildings’ backsidesand versely, when all buildings are adjacent to a from the underground parking garages. street, but the entrances are not directly accessible, then the street is un-constituted. A Figure 5 visualises the difference between street segment is constituted when only one constituted and un-constituted streets in entrance is directly connected to the street. Gouda. Un-constituted street segments are If the entrance is hidden behind high fences marked with a grey colour, while the con- or hedges, or has a large front garden, or stituted ones are in black. Most intruded located on the side of the buildings, then homes (presented as dots) are entered from the street is deined to be un-constituted. un-constituted street segments. The points The diagram in igure 2 (below) illustrates of entry into dwellings are marked with a the differences between constituted and un- line from the street or back alley to the dot. constituted streets. The number and density of entrances are not at issue. The degree The more entrances connected to a street, of constitutedness is about the number of the higher the probability that someone entrances connected to a street divided by comes out from a private space into public the number of buildings located along that space. However, high density of entrances street. connected to a street does not always imply high inter-visibility. There is a distinction in the way entrances constitute streets and in the way they are inter-visible to each other. The way entrances and windows are positioned to each other inluences the probabil- ities for social control and street life. Figure 6 shows some diagrammatic principles on the relationship inter-visibility and density of entrances.

In Alkmaar and Gouda the percentages Figure 4: Example on constituted streets (above) and were grouped in 100%, 80%, 60%, 40%, un-constituted streets (below). 175 Adjacency, Permeability & Inter-Visibility

20% and 0% inter-visibility for each street segment. The density of houses and entrances was registered separately. Thus, two buildings with two entrances facing towards each other indicate 100% inter-visibility of doors. Conversely, a street segment with high density of entrances on only one side of the street segment and no entrances on the other side is deined to be 0% inter-visible. High density of entrances directly facing a Figure 6: Diagrammatic principles on the relation- street segment at only one side can be an ship inter-visibility and density of entrances indicator for street life, but is not necessarily a suficient condition for crime prevention. A strong correlation was found between a street segment’s inter-visibility and the risk on residential burglary (L´opez & Van Nes 2007).

The street form describes the mode of trans- Figure 7: Examples on 0% inter-visible streets. When a burglar is inside these fences or hedges, he port suitable for the street as well as the spa- can operate without being noticed by neighbours or tial possibilities for a perpetrator’s escape. In people in the street. line with Shu (Shu, 2000), street form was categorised as: through carriage ways, cul- de-sac carriage ways, pedestrianised street, cul-de-sac driveways, throughfootpaths, cul-de-sac front footpaths and cul-de-sac back alleys.

Figure 8: Statistical diagrams.

5. Combinations of Micro and Macro Spatial Measure- ments

A combination of various micro spatial measurements makes it possible to gain Figure 5: A visualisation of the constituted and quantiiable spatial data for testing on socio- un-constituted streets in Gouda. economic data and provide understanding on the spatial conditions for safe and vital urban areas. For example, a street with few connections to its vicinity (macro scale analyses) can still be full of social activities if a high density of entrances constitutes the street and when there is high visibility

176 Akkelies van Nes between public and private spaces (micro trol, and entrances are hidden away from scale analyses). The reverse can be seen in streets and visible neighbours. un-constituted streets with a low number of entrances and low inter-visibility, but where Urban areas located close or adjoining to the connections to other streets are high. main routes tend to have entrances directly Independent of cultures and architectural connected to public streets. The streets are styles, micro spatial measurements make frequented by visitors as well as by inhabit- it possible to describe the spatial set up of ants. The inhabitant wants to be a part of the built environments on a local scale level. urban street life. Often dwellers contribute to street life by sitting outside on a chair or As the results from the spatial analyses in the staircase in front of their homes. From Gouda and Alkmaar show, both micro and their windows, dwellers keep an eye on macro spatial variables are highly inter-de- what is going on outside. In many integrated pendent for de-scribing areas’ degree of live- areas, inhabitants like to contribute to the liness (López & Van Nes 2007). Especially urban living by displaying their interiors to the topological depth of a street segment in the view of passers by. relationship to its nearest main route gives a detailed description of the spatial set up of The more segregated a street segment is, the area. Most micro spatial variables turn the more mono-functional the adjacent out to be related to the macro scale vari- buildings tend to be. Topological deeply able local angular analyses. This variable located street segment usually only have a identiies the main routes through cities and residential function, since ofices, shops and shows strong correlations with the micro- public buildings tend to locate themselves scale variables. The following results were along the main routes. The semi-private obtained (igure 8). segments are among the topological deep- est and segregated streets. Row housesand The further away a street segment is from lats tend to be located along topological the main routes net, the greater the topologi- shallow street segments, while maisonettes, cal depth between private and public space. vertical separated dwellings and detached Along the main routes through urban areas, and semi-detached houses are located at most entrances are directly connected to the the areas edges. street. When changing direction two times from the main routes, the average topologi- The further a street segment is away from cal depth for entrances is 2 while it is 3 in all the main routes, the lower the values of spa- street segments that are located more than tial integration and constitutedness. Homes six topological steps from the main routes. located along unconstituted streets deeply located inside urban areas with low inter- Visitors usually frequent main routes, while visibility from windows tend to have a high only inhabitants frequent highly segregated risk of being burglarised (L´opez & Van Nes streets in which gives neighbourhoods a 2007). The un-constituted back alleys tend desolated atmosphere. Dwellers inside to be the most segregated street segments. these areas often prefer to protect their private life from insights from neighbours. When the streets are too much occupied by neighbours and there are almost no visitors 6. The Urban Street Plinth around, the social control from neighbours can be too present. Therefore curtains and Micro spatial relationships play a crucial high hedges are used to prevent social con- role in the socio-economic life of human

177 Adjacency, Permeability & Inter-Visibility beings. Often the concept “bringing back city debate. This is not only important for the human scale” is used in urban policy urban studies, but also for the design and making. It is referred to the metrical proper- planning of our cities. ties of space. Maybe a more genuine understanding on urban vital street life can be pro-vided through a topological approach on urban micro scale level? In particular, References urban renewal projects, modern housing areas and new large-scale urban develop- Alford, V. 1996. “Crime and space in the ment projects often tend to lack adjacency, inner city”. Urban Design Studies,No. 2, pp. permeability and inter-visibility between 45-76. buildings and streets. This has negative effects both on street life and degree of safety Gehl, Jan. 1996. The life between buildings: of these areas. using public space. Copenhagen: Arkitek- tens Forlag. High value on the loor-space-index is not always a condition for safe and lively streets. Hillier, Bill. 1999. “Centrality as a process: A “vertical city” like Hong Kong has several accounting for attraction inequalities in de- examples of new housing projects not well formed grids”. Urban Design International, connected to the street. Even though the vol. 4, no. 3 and 4, pp. 107-127. number of apartments is high, there is little street life at the street plinth (Hwang 2006). –––––––––––1996, Space is the machine, Often stacking apartments can contribute to Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. vertical sprawl, but it seems to depend on Hillier, B., Penn, A., Hanson, J., Grajewski, how these lats’ entrances are connected to T., and Xu, J. 1993. “Natural movement: or, the street. coniguration and attraction in urban pedes- However, the degree of inter-connectivity trian movement”. Environment and Plan- and the topological shallow public-private ning B: Planning and Design, 1993, volume interface is often forgotten. All these activi- 20, 29 - 66. ties depend on how the spatial conigura- Hillier, B. and Sahbaz, O. 2005, “High tion is on the plinth or built up street sides. Resolution Analysis of Crime Patterns in Therefore, there is a need to bring micro Urban Street Networks: an initial statistical scale spatial relationships on the research, sketch from an ongoing study of a London policy making as well as the design agenda borough” in: A. van Nes (ed), Proceedings in the urbanism discipline. Space Syntax. 5th International Symposium, As the study of 1.168 street segments clear- Delft: TU Delft, Techne Press. ly shows, the micro spatial conditions of the Hillier, B. and Hanson, J. 1984. The So- street segment are inter-related to the macro cial Logic of Space, Cambridge: Cambridge spatial conditions of the cities’ street net- University Press. work. The deinition and operationalisation of the micro scale conditions is, however, Hwang, I. S. Y. 2006. “When does stack- still in a preliminary phase and an area that ing become vertical sprawl?”, in: Mander, can be improved upon in the near future. U, Brebbia, C A & Tiezzi E, The Sustainable At least, some concepts useful in urbanism City IV. Urban Regeneration and Sustain- are introduced and bring signiicant aspects ability, Wessex: WIT Press. into the urban sustainability and compact

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Jacobs, Jane. 2000. The Death and Life of Great American Cities, London: Pimlico. Acknowledgements López, M. J. J. 2005. “The Spatial Behavior of Residential Burglars”, in: A. van Nes (ed), I want to thank Manuel López for his co- Proceedings Space Syntax. 5th International operation for the research project space Symposium. Delft: TU Delft, Techne Press. and crime in Dutch built environments, the police ofices from Alkmaar and Gouda López, M. J. J. and Van Nes, A. 2007. for providing crime data, and the Politie & “Space and crime in Dutch built environ- Wetenschap for the research funding. ments: Macro and micro scale spatial conditions for residential burglaries and thefts from cars”, in: A. Sema Kubat (ed), Proceed- ings Space Syntax. 6th International Sympo- sium. Istanbul. Biography

Van Nes, A. 2005. “The burglar’s percep- Akkelies van Nes researches and teaches tion of his own neighbourhood”, in: A. van for the International Master Course at the Nes (ed), Proceedings Space Syntax. 5th Department of Urbanism, Faculty of Archi- International Symposium. Delft: TU Delft, tecture, TU Delft, in the Netherlands. In ad- Techne Press. dition, she has her own irm “Space Syntax Norway”. In 2005 she was the chairwoman –––––––––––2002. “Road building and Ur- for the 5th International Space Syntax Sym- ban Change. The effect of ring roads on the posium. At present, she develops new spa- dispersal of shop and retail in Western Euro- tial analyses tools in a research project on pean towns and cities”. Doctor Scientiarum space and crime, sponsored by the Dutch theses 2002:28, Department of Land Use Police. and Landscape planning, Agricultural Uni- versity of Norway. In 2002 van Nes received her PhD at the Department of Land Use and Landscape Roger, R. 1999. Towards an Urban Renais- Architecture at the Agricultural University sance, Urban Task Force. New York: E & FN of Norway. She graduated at The Bartlett Spon. School of Graduate Studies, University Col- lege London in 2000 and at Oslo School of Shu, C.F. 2000. Housing Layout and crime Architecture in 1993. She worked for 5 years vulnerability. PhD thesis,Bartlett School of as a planner in Drammen and Asker munici- Graduate Studies, University College Lon- palities and at the Public Road Administra- don. tion in Akershus province.

VROM, Ministerie van 2004, Tussen woning en wijk. Een straattypologie voor Nederland, publicatienummer 01-04/VROM4008, Den Haag 2004.

VROM, Ministerie van 2006, Nota Ruimnte. Ruimte voor ontwikkeling, Den Haag, Min- isteries van VROM, LNV, V en W en EZ, Den Haag 2006.

179 Night City and “Schizophrenia” Julien Richard Charles University in Prague, Czech Republick

“Many of the surrealists were nightwalk- pm, you’re walking alone in the street... Sud- ers, specialists in an exercise through denly your hear steps behind you, someone which they laid their own particular claim is running. A dose of adrenalin spills into to the city“ (Krauss, 1981, p.13 as cited in your body. Yet, nothing more will happen. Zardini, 2005). What would it be if it was happening at 11 am? Absolutely nothing, not even a dose of adrenalin, because you wouldn’t even realize that someone is behind you.

In this example, the place is the same, the person as well, but something between this person and this place has been modiied. Except the fact it is day or night, the perception seems to be the link between the human being and the place.

This paper attempts to examine through a behavioural geographical way how the ive senses and perception set horizons in human experience and the resulting „sense-scapes“ at night. It aims through this geographical approach and through an ethological approach of schizophrenia to show how there seems to be a relation between man at night and the schizoid.

“Antonin Artaud, well-known surreal- According to the geographer Yi-Fu Tuan, ist, was a dissociated and hallucinated perception is deined to be „both the re- schizophrenic” (Heuyer, 1968, p.109)*. sponse of the senses to external stimuli and purposeful activity in which certain phe- Being at the same place at different times, nomena are clearly registered while oth- whether it is the day or night, makes you ers recede in the shade or are blocked out feel the place differently. Imagine it is 11 (Tuan, 1990, p.4).“ Also he continues by

180 Julien Richard saying that „much of what we perceive has In the lighted night, the human eye is either value for us, for biological survival, and for in scotopic vision or in mesopic vision, but providing certain satisfactions that are root- never in photopic mode. Mesopic vision is ed in culture (ibid.).“ a combination of photopic vision and scotopic vision, in low lightning situations. It appears clear that a keyword of perception is sense, not limited to the ive classic By saying that Man is predominantly a visu- senses, but also according to the sensitivity al animal, Tuan afirms that the human being of each to perceive for example changes in is more dependent on sight than on the oth- humidity or in atmospheric pressure, or also ers senses to locate himself in space (Tuan, with an acute sense of direction, as explains 1990, p. 6). Moreover, people “equipped“ Tuan (ibid., p. 6). But the most obvious with the ive senses probably fear the most change between day and night is the con- the loss of sight rather than another one. trast between lightness and darkness. This is Our “visualocentrists“ contemporary West- perceived by means of our eyes. ern societies seem not to reverse the trend.

Day is directly associated with lightness, The geographer Paul Rodaway afirms it: night with darkness. At day-time, our perception of the place is essentially visual, “To be blind is to be lost in space, it is as- sight is the main sense. In daylight indeed, sumed“ (Rodaway, 1994, p. 119). the sensitivity of the human eye is highly capable, and technically called photopic vi- Between night and day, the most obvious sion. It allows us to see the original colors contrast occurs in the visual perception. As of the light. our eyes get at night less information, we get less information to locate ourselves in space. In the dark, the sensitivity of the human eye Without sight we loose our marks and with- is slightly different and called scotopic vi- out marks we are subject to panic. To avoid sion. Scotopic vision does not enable color panic, we will concentrate ourselves on our sensors, we thus only perceive brightness others senses in order to locate again. image, which consequently means that we do not see as far as during day time. Once “In total darkness sight is useless. The blind deprived from our main sense, we tend natu- have no use for eyes“ (ibid., p. 107). rally to rely more on our other senses. In cit- In order to not give in panic without sight, ies however, since the apparition of artiicial man tends to be overconcentrated on his lightning during the 19th century (Schlor, others senses. Urban lightning reduces but 1998), the contrast between day and night doesn’t erase this phenomenon. This signi- is less lagrant. ies that through our senses, whether it is “Even the night, traditionally a time of night or day, we perceive differently. Con- darkness [...] has slowly been colonized cerning these others senses, the further quo- by the eye. We have been able to cross tation describes well what is happening: the frontier of darkness with the help of „[...] only through darkness, through the artiicial lightning, which offers us an il- temporary blindness produced by the fad- lusory sense of security. So dependent are ing of the light that enables sight, are we we on vision that it is only by prolonging able to recapture the experience of the it into the night that we feel secure in our other senses. In the darkness, noises are ability to understand and control our sur- suddenly ampliied, odours are intensi- roundings“ (Zardini, 2006, p. 44). ied, and we even rediscover the sense of

181 Night City and “Schizophrenia”

touch“ (Zardini, 2006, p. 45). paper, or wood […] The fundamental nature of the sense of touch is brought home Taste as well is ampliied. It is one major to us when we relect that, without sight argument of blind restaurants where people a person can still operate with a high de- have dinner in a total darkness, their food be- gree of eficiency in the world [...]“ (Tuan, ing served by blind waiters. But this example 1990, p. 7). doesn’t concerns directly the night lâneur we are. Concerning hearing, a city at day- Unfortunately, touch remains a sense of time is more known for its noise than to be high proximity, and restricts our ield of ac- quiet. Of course, this depends on where we tion. are. It seems is very hard, even impossible to trust this sense when located in an urban „[...] on occasion the senses may give area, except for people who have the expe- conlicting information and so undermine rience, like the blind. The blind are highly clarity of environmental perception“ sensitive to the masking of sounds and the (Rodaway, 1994, p. 36). confusion of myriad sounds, especially in complex soundscapes such as a city street Finally, except tactile sense which allows us [...] (Rodaway, 1994, pp. 103-104). to perceive only close to the body; in urban areas, our others senses, smell and hearing, At night, time of rest and relative quiet, one when not confused by many kinds of para- can then think that our sense of hearing is sitic factors like trafic noise or a higher at- more trustworthy. However according to the mospheric pollution, remain obsolete when further quotation in Yi-Fu Tuan’s Topophil- it is about to locate ourselves in space, es- ia (1990, p. 9), it seems to be wrong once pecially concerning distance and direction again. because they do not allow the precision one can have with sight or touch. At least from a „[...]a world that seems to have lost its point of vue of a non-blind person. dynamism appears less demanding and nervous; it induces a feeling of detach- Tactile sense appears then to be the only ment and peace, as happens in a pleas- sense that can inform us precisely on our lo- ant way when the sounds of the city are cation, at both night and day. Unfortunately, mufled […]. But soon the silence, the se- touch remains a sense of high proximity, vere loss of information, induces anxiety, and restricts our ield of action. We just said dissociation, and withdrawal in the deaf“ that in order to locate our body in a place, (Knapp, 1948, pp. 203-222 as cited in we tend then to be overconcentrated on our Tuan, 1990). other senses and try to build either from our memory of the place or from our imaginary Smell, as well as hearing is deinitely not of the place which is rooted in our culture, trustworthy to get located in space. A deli- both regarding the degree of habit and ex- cious smell of freshly baked bread indicates periences to that place. there might be a bakery in the vicinity of where we are. However we are not informed „While the night comes to the city, remov- of its distance. At last, tactile sense appears ing dust from its remembrances and its to be the only sense which can inform us phantasms, each of us is able to indulge precisely, at both night and day, in order to in singular associations“ (Bureau, 2005, locate ourselves in space. p. 119)*.

„blindfolded […] a man can nevertheless The same author mentions then, tell the difference between plastic, metal,

182 Julien Richard

„[...] the cold and pasty night of the of its territory, particularly where the sight is homeless sleeping on the pavement, the not clear. Our senses play tricks on us and night illed with the nice smell from the we get contradictory signals. Some of them backup kitchen of a restaurant, the stu- come from our territory, others are totally dious night of the student dreading the unknown. At night, our senses create then exam, the pert night of clubs and pubs, parasites on our territory. the frightened night of the one who hugs the walls, the long and somnolent night of We have introduced the notion of imagi- the night watchmen, the boisterous night nary concerning the perception of night ter- of the party man, the conniving night of ritory. It has also seemed to us interesting gangsters and murderers, the reassuring to go into detail about mind mechanisms night of closed shutters […]“ (ibid.)*. relating to territorial perception at night. The perception being the link between man and place and is deined to be both the response of the senses to external stimuli and purposeful activity. Our territory at night is retracted and threatened by the unknown. Deleuze and Guattari deine this unknown by „chaos“ and use the example of the child striken by fear in the dark singing a melody in order to reassure himself. By singing, the child creates territory in the „chaos“.

“He walks or stops according to the song. Lost, he shelters himself as he can, or inds his bearing as best he can with his little song . This (the little song) is like the draft On account of our sensory limitation and of a stable and calm centre, stabilizing mislead at night, space appears more sub- and calming, within the chaos“ (Deleuze jective than its diurnal counterpart and is & Guattari, 1980, p. 382)*. as a consequence subject to a more fertile imaginary such as wonderment, fear or ag- This example illustrates well the fact that at gressiveness. Night is full of symbolisms in night, the child as well as any other human, every culture around the world. The huge are looking for a known territory. Sami peo- amount of resources in literature, cinema, ple, also known as native scandinavians, due mythology, music, photography [...] sounds to the particular length of the night under as an evidence of this sensory limitation and these latitudes had a very developed sensi- mislead. tivity towards the night. They had ceremo- nies linked with the obscurity which were „The city that is revealed to us at night is perceived like intervals where time and the more abstract place in which unexpected order of the world were stopped. During the vistas of streets, parks, buildings, or de- period of darkness, the Samis tried to reaf- tails emerge, while familiar ones sudden- irm their existence and to forget their fragil- ly vanish“ (Zardini, 2006, pp. 44-45). ity by asserting life by means of feast and all its excesses, against the forces of death At night, our sensory ield tends to shrink (Vigard, 1992, p. 99-100). and to work in a beam of proximity. Retract- ing our territory, its frontiers come nearer. Here once again, an other way to create The individual comes closer to the frontiers territory in the “chaos”. Indeed, the ceremo- 183 Night City and “Schizophrenia” ny is for Samis what is the little song for the As a consequence, the individual enters child: a way to create at night territory in the in territory conlict with himself, he is at the unknown. The human behaviour at night same time landlord and intruder of his ter- is a question of territory. At night we feel ritory. All of this results a territorial duality more threatened mainly because our senses explaining a strange behaviour of the schiz- create „parasites“ on our territory. We get oid, a feeling of fear or aggressivity and a contradictory signals: some are known and non-certitude to control his thoughts (ibid.). remind us our territory, others are totally un- A non-certitude to control our thoughts, fear known and thus appear threatening. and aggressiveness, this remind us the case of man at night. We can so notice that this “I don’t want one touching me, I grum- man has a similar behaviour to the schizo- ble if one enters into my territory [...] It’s phrenic individual. about to keep at distance the forces of chaos knocking at the door“ (Deleuze & That would enlighten us about shrinking Guattari, 1980, p. 395)*. territory, contradictory signals and moving frontiers. These causes of disorder are the Territoriality, as explains the geographer John same in both cases for schizoid and man at R. Gold (1980) is a central principle of etho- night: conlict of territory or territorial dual- logical theory. Considering the ethological ity. Causes and consequences are the same. point of view, unknown signals appear clearly We can then think that disorders endured by threatening. António Bracinha Vieira (1974) the schizoid and the man at night are from in his ethologic approach of schizophrenia the same family. notices that the schizophrenic individual has a conlict of territory similar to the behaviour Schizophrenia is deined to be a long-term of an animal whose territory retracts and who mental disorder involving faulty percep- feels threatened by intruders. The schizoid tion, inappropriate actions and feelings, and gets contradictory signals which can belong to withdrawal from reality into fantasy and de- his territory, some are known and reminds him lusion. his territory, others are totally unknown to him and thus appear threatening. He acts like if an The man at night seems to be subject to a unknown vector was moving incessantly the kind of schizophrenia. frontiers of his territory. Indeed, the paranoid delirium and the dissociation are components of the discordance, which is itself a fundament of schizophrenia. Schizophrenia is a delirium. Thus, the man – human beings – delirate places at night? Jan Patocka (1975), philosopher, deines (as cited in Halik article, 2001) that the night is an other horizon of sense that doesn’t impose to man and to the world the rationality, seen as a source of power and manipulation.

He lets us think that night could be a world that is worth it. Wouldn’t it be good to try adapting nocturnal spaces in a different way than diurnal spaces which means developing buildings and spaces in function of our nocturnal abilities?

184 Julien Richard

hearing loss. Psychomatic Medicine, 10, 203-222

Krauss, R. (1981). Nightwalkers. Art Jour- nal, 41(1), 33.

Patocka, J. (1975). Kacírské eseje o ilosoii dejin, Praha, Czech Republic: Oikoymenh.

Rodaway, P. (1994). Sensuous Geogra- phies. London, UK & New-York, NY, USA: Routledge.

Schlor, J. (1998). Nights in the Big City: Paris, Berlin, London 1840-1930. London, UK: Reaktion books.

Tuan, Y.-F. (1990). Topophilia. New-York, NY, USA: Columbia University Press.

Vieira, A. B. (1974). De l’évolution de la schizophrénie considérée comme conlit territorial. Acta psychiatrica Belgica, 74, 57- 79.

Vilgard, C. (1992). Peurs et humour dans l’imaginaire lapon. Paris, France: Institut References d’ethnologie.

*Bureau, L. (1997). Géographie de la nuit. Zardini, M. (2005). Sense of the city; an al- Montréal, QC, Canada: L’hexagone. ternate approach to urbanism. Baden, Swit- zerland: Lars Müller Publishers. *Deleuze, G., & Guattari, F. (1980). Mille plateaux. Capitalisme et schizophrénie 2. *All necessary translations have been done Paris, France: Les éditions de minuit. by the author of this paper.

Gold, J. R. (1980). An introduction to behavioural geography. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. Biography

Halik, T. (2001, August). Muz premysle- Julien Richard, is currently a PhD candi- ni a odhodlani; Jan Patocka, 1.6.1907 – date at Charles University in Prague in the 13.3.1977. Tomas Halik, Clanky a eseje. Department of Social Geography at the Fac- Retrieved December 14, 2007 from http:// ulty of Natural Science. His main research www.halik.cz/clanky/muz_premysleni.php interests are in urban, social, behavioural geography and in geophilosophy. *Heuyer, G. (1968). Les troubles mentaux; étude criminologique, Paris, France: PUF.

Knapp, P. H. (1948). Emotional aspects of

185 Beyond the visual: the “moral geographies” of sensory urbanism Robert Rogerson and Gareth Rice Department of Geography, University of Strathclyde

1. Abstract bvre (1991) we reiterate the importance of ‘spatial practice’ as a key tenet running right he relationship between moralities and ge- through the urban ‘design control’ process. ography can be traced back to the late 1980s Secondly, we put forward ways in which when ideology and imagination were used subsequent multi-modal representations to engage with particular social groups as of urban space might act as a rejoinder to ‘outsiders’ from mainstream society (Philo questions raised by the ‘moral geographies’ 1987; Sibley 1991; Valentine 1997; Crad- literature. In conclusion, we build upon our dock 2000). Increasingly, however, the spe- observations to argue that a consideration ciic term ‘moral geographies’ has become of ‘moral geographies’ offers one way to aligned with a more general ‘moral turn’ unlock the multimodal qualities associated (Smith 1997; Lee and Smith 2004) across with a progressive sensory urbanism. the social sciences to raise a number of questions about the relationship between Urban Renaissance and the design of public (and semi-public) spaces. In examining 2. Introduction this relationship, scholars with an interest in ‘sensory urbanism’ have made some In this paper, we seek to contribute to the headway in acknowledging the non-visual developing debates over how the city can be aspects of the built environment. Previous sensed through multiple sensory modalities. work includes research on ‘soundscapes’ We start with three positions. First, sensory (Smith 1994; Raimbault and Dubois 2005; dimensions have percolated unevenly into Zhang and Kang 2007), ‘semiotics’ (Gottdi- areas of research into the design of space(s). ener 2003) and ‘atmospherics’ (Wakeield Sometimes this is because of the relative and Baker 1998; Smith and Burns 2001). absence of sensory aspects of space, sometimes because such dimensions challenge In this positional paper, we contribute to the basis of control of space, but at other the ield of ‘sensory urbanism’ in two main times even when at the heart of research ways: exploring the connections between agenda, there has not been developed whose representation of space, and whose suitable research methodologies. Second, modalities are ‘desirable’ as part of the de- multi-sensory research has created opportu- sign process of public spaces. Firstly, drawing nities for alternative ways of conceptualis- on the theoretical apparatus of Henri Lefe- ing of space-place relations, including the

186 Beyond the visual need to draw on other theorisations beyond dynamic, relational (intersensory - or mul- those traditionally underpinning urban de- timodal, multimedia) and often conlicted sign. And, third, greater attention has to be nature of our everyday engagement with the given to questions of moral geographies to sensuous world”. In other words, the senses gain an understanding of the multimodal are theorised as mediating the relationship qualities of spaces. between mind and body, idea and object, self and environment (both physical and so- In working with these positions, this paper cial)” (Howes, 2006, 122). is divided into ive parts. The irst outlines some of the key points of sensory research, Sensory research has also percolated into illustrating briely some of the diverse ways many studies of places and spaces, includ- in which sensory dimensions have been ing in the design of such spaces unevenly. absorbed into contemporary areas of ur- The following illustrate some of this uneven- ban design. Second, we turn to summarise ness through three examples – selected to (equally briely) some of the geographical show some of the challenges mentioned debates over space:place which could con- above. tribute to clarifying the contemporary en- twining of space and place in the sensory a) Design and public spaces literature. Third, and taking one approach, we draw on Lefebvre’s notions of represen- As nodes and landmarks, public spaces tations of space to offer some alternative have long since been at the centre of ways of thinking about sensory urbanism, city –through time viewed as means by before suggesting how strands from debates which to navigate through the city (Lynch, on moral geographies can enrich the study 1960), as connections between buildings of sensory urbanism. Finally, and primarily (Bentley et al., 1985), as residual spaces as a point to open further dialogue, we raise left behind by the socio-spatial fragmen- some issues to shape the future direction of tation of the city (Sennett, 1994), or more such research. recently as sites which enhance and represent the tolerance and social cohesion of the city (Miethe, 1995).

3. Trends in Sensory Research b) Governance and sensory control In the last few years there has been a welcome shift away from sensory research be- The visual dimensions too continue to ing the narrow preserve of psychologists have most impact in other ways of ‘view- and neurobiologists to include contribu- ing’ space. The visual remains the chief tions from disciplines as varied as architec- register through which governance of the ture, history, anthropology and geography city is registered (eg. CCTV, trafic lows, amongst others. Such multidisciplinarity has direction signposts) and where there are largely relected a recognition that the sen- other sensory registers these are compara- sorium (the sensory apparatus or faculties tively light touch and often expressions of viewed as a whole) is a social construction release from the controlling aspects of the and not merely to be understood through visual (Amin and Thrift, 2002). In the past individual behaviour and sensory respons- soundscapes of the city have often eluded es. As Howes (2006, 115) expresses it, the the visual and thus too been outside of the current interest acknowledges that “sensory controlling reach of governance. Sounds studies approach themselves emphasize the are uncaptured by the silent lens of the

187 Robert Rogerson and Gareth Rice CCTV camera, absent from the descrip- 4. Space and place in sensory tive signs to (visual) sites and areas. But research on soundscapes has highlighted research the creeping control reaching its tentacles into this sphere (DeNora, 2000). The use Deining and engaging with the concepts of music to shape buying moods and the of place and space continue to provide a consumption experiences, the sounds major challenge right across the social sci- projected into the public spaces of clubs, ences but it is geographers in particular have pubs and cafes as they spill out onto the sought to distinguish between them suggest- pavements and sidewalks, the design of ing that they are ‘related but distinct con- sites to elevate (or minimise) the chat- cepts’ (Hubbard, 2005, 41). Crucial here is ter from customers and users (eg internet the tradition of humanistic geography that cafes; eating spaces in bookshops) have emphasises the ‘sense of place’ or a largely gradually changed the control and gover- unselfconscious feeling of belonging to one’s nance of space. place immanent in different in different settings. This deinition of place is supported by Paasi (1986, 111) who states that: c) Soundscapes and sound ambient envi- ‘[In this way] place is based on the lifeworld ronments and everyday actions of the individual. It is a perpetual, personal interpretation of the The challenge to ocular-centricism has in- meanings emerging from time-space specif- cluded the rapid growth in auditory stud- ic situations in one’s everyday practices.’ ies, including acoustic ecology, cultural studies and musicology research. In hu- In other words the concept of place en- man geography, since Smith’s (1994) in- ables one to depict the context – to speak luential relections on the soundscapes speciically about sensory urbanism – in of social, political and cultural life, re- and through which the multimodal qualities search has progressed – covering not only of urban space are experienced. links between music and space (Smith’s initial call) but more widely musical lis- By contrast space tends to refer to larger tening practices and the timing and spac- territorial units including regions and na- ing of memory (Anderson, 2004), music tions. For scholars including David Harvey and citizenship (Revill, 2000) and music and Henri Lefebvre space is implicated in practices transgressing hegemonic spati- the production and consumption of wider ality (Kong, 1995). social relations. In his history of space Lefe- bvre (1991) implies that conceiving (design- Such brief accounts can, of course, be ing) space as absolute reinforces the repro- contested and do not represent the diver- duction of revitalised abstract space (i.e. the sity of activity being undertaken. Rather, space of capitalism). In other words, space each has been chosen to illustrate how that emerges under urbanisation is intimate- sensory dimensions have often been add- ly linked to the city building process that in ed to conventional areas of analysis in turn has implications for associated sensory urban design and architecture or where experiences (both perceived and lived). In novel (as in soundscapes research) have sum, spaces are not places but neither can tended to call on traditional methods of places be spaces (see Hubbard, 2005). analysis. As the call for papers illustrates, sensory urbanism has given more emphasis on ‘space’

188 Beyond the visual

– both in terms of its relative location, and consciously” dramatized interplay of relay its experiential components. In seeking to points and obstacles, relections, references, further clarify the terminology deployed and mirrors and echoes…’ (p. 210). He goes on also as a starting point for greater discussion to suggest that the perceptual relations of over the nature of space:place relations in ‘sensory-sensual space’ circumvent social opening new avenues for research, we offer relations proper in the relations of produc- here a brief resume of how, from a geograph- tion. On the basis of this circumvention, ical perspective, different notions of space Lefebvre subsequently argues that there is a and place have emerged. It is the approach need to decode ‘sensory sensual space’ as of Henri Lefebvre thinking – that is one that ‘one layer or element in the stratiication and we wish to highlight today. This approach interpenetration of social spaces’ (p. 212). has oft been cited as representative of the neo-Marxist accounts of space:place rela- As a means of decoding ‘sensory-sensual tions. Under this ontology, ‘abstract space’ space’ Lefebvre (1991) proposes a concep- has colonised social life through spatial tual triad (see below) that we suggest may practices and representations of space and also be useful for critically engaging with it is through resistance and (re-)capturing of multimodal qualities of the urban design such spaces in opposition to the colonising process. Lefebvre suggests that because tendencies of capitalism that place (con- ‘sensory-sensual space’ tends to establish crete space) can be signiied. Let’s explore itself within the ‘visible-readable sphere’, this further. it ‘…promotes the misapprehension of aspects, indeed the dominant aspects, of social practice: labour, the division of labour, the organization of labour and so on’ (p. 5. Theoretical framework: A 211). However, by the same token if ‘sensory-sensual space’ does not recognize its Lefebvrian approach own non-visual sphere then other representations of the multimodal qualities of urban In this section we suggest that Lefebvre’s space may not be achieved during the design idea of the city as a ‘place of encounter’ of- process (see Raimbault and Dubois, 2005; fers a useful launch pad from which to ask Zhang and Kang, 2007). Notwithstanding, critical questions about sensory urbanism we want to suggest at this stage that Lefeb- and the multimodal qualities associated vre’s conceptual triad is potentially instruc- with the actual design of city spaces. For tive for deepening our understanding of sen- us, a Lefebvrian approach does not simply sory urbanism: involve delving into the hidden abode of space itself but rather goes beyond the fe- Representations of space – associated with tishisms of observable appearances (the vi- the ‘order’ that deines the relations of pro- sual) to trace the inner dynamics of sensory duction, including planners, bureaucrats urbanism. and architects. This space is always abstract since it is conceived rather than directly The work of French theorist Henri Lefeb- lived. What is of particular relevance to vre (1901-1991) and his reading of Marxism sensory urbanism here is the ways in which have been picked up and popularized right the design of ‘public’ spaces has the poten- across the social sciences (see Gottdiener, tial to but doesn’t always satisfy 1993; 2000; Merriield, 1993; McCann, 1999; Unwin, 2000). In his seminal text The Production of Space Lefebvre (1991) deines ‘sensory-sensual space’ deined as ‘an “un- Representational space – space that is di- 189 Robert Rogerson and Gareth Rice rectly lived: ‘it is experienced through the 6. Moral geographies and complex symbols of its inhabitants and users’ (Lefebvre 1991 p. 33). Representa- sensescapes tional spaces are linked to the clandestine or underground side of social life through Notwithstanding the inluence of Lefebvre’s the works of artists, ilmmakers and others conceptual triad he was a protean character who have the potential to construct counter who was often criticised for inconsistencies discourses thus opening up the possibility to in his terminology and, a lack of concern for think differently about space (see also Mc- racial and gendered relations in the city (see Cann, 1999). McCann 1999; Gottdiener, 2000; Merriield 2000; Unwin 2000). In view of these criti- Spatial practice – everyday routines and cisms Thus in the remainder of this paper, experiences that ‘secrete’ their own social we tentatively offer some further discussion spaces. These routines and routines and of what moral geographies and Lefebvrian experiences could also be non-visual as in thinking can bring to sensory urbanism. the case of soundscapes (Smith, 1994). The key to understanding spatial practices is to At its heart, moral geography can be ex- recognise that while planners and architects pressed simply as “the idea that certain peo- designate urban spaces to be used in par- ple, things and practices belong in certain ticular ways, individuals’ perceptions may spaces, places and landscapes and not in induce them to use the very same urban others” (Cresswell, 2005, p128). We suggest spaces in different ways. that moral geographies reveal three key areas: We suggest that Lefebvre’s (1991) conceptual triad above offers a theoretical starting In the geographical and sociological de- point for the analysis in the ield of sensory bates, particular social groups deemed to be urbanism. In identifying the built environ- ‘out of place’ include children (Valentine, ment as a (separate) second circuit of capi- 1997), the homeless (Creswell, 1999) and tal - the primary circuit being the industrial disabled (Kitchin, 1998). Moral geographies production commodities and marketing - , assist through the ways in which such pro- Lefebvre’s conceptual triad contains ele- duction of dissonance is imagined spatially. ments of both structure and agency (see At the heart of much of geographical re- Gottdiener, 2000) meaning that sensory ex- search in that area is about “the way that periences in the city can be analysed along visions of landscape are connected with with the design and planning of urban space ideas of appropriate behaviour that consti- itself. We contend therefore that Lefebvre tute ‘citizenship’. A moral geography begets (whether implicitly or explicitly) offers one moral citizens” (Cresswell, 2005, p129). In way to represent the multimodal qualities to other words it is not suficient to know what be achieved during the design process. On a is noise, and the level of such noise which more general level sensory urbanism might makes the sound ‘annoying’, but also how be represented by the interaction (and con- such sounds are shaping (positively and licts) between ‘imagined’ representations of negatively) the sense of moral acceptance/ space (global) and ‘lived’ representational disruption. spaces (local).

Who deines morality? Analysis of social and spatial justice has expose the ‘moral’

190 Beyond the visual to be a particular set of suppositions about a) What are the codes (and in turn the de- people and place that serves some form of sign codes) which capture the sensory rep- vested interest and through this any genu- resentations of place and what are the re- inely moral geography is constantly subvert- lationships with other sensory components? ed for particular purposes and groups. Whilst soundscape research, for example, has offered a corrective to the imbalance in the past on visual aspects of place, it has also created new boundaries in its analysis. 7. Moving forward the re- In particular the focus on ‘noise’ (and especially its negative connotations and associa- search agenda tion with trafic) has unhelpfully constrained analysis. What then can a moral geography approach and Lefebvrian conceptualisation of spatial whose morality, and whose sensory no- representation add to our understanding of tions are privileged? Such questioning in- sensory urbanism? We offer a number of cludes asking about the basis of the search possible avenues and research questions; for an apparently rigorous system of mea- each of which we see as starting points for surement of sound (noise) to give credence further cross disciplinary dialogue. to the (moral) judgement of being unaccept- able and an annoyance, and then justiica- First, these approaches challenge the notion for the interventions made by others . tion of a ‘singularity’ to the positive senses- Further, should communities have inputs to cape and caution against the search for the the designing process – and if so does this identiication of desirable sensory compo- reinforce existing prejudices (eg. divisions nents. Just as there is a diversity of repre- on basis of religious sensory symbols, age). sentations on ‘noise’ and what contributes positive attributes of a sound ambient en- how can space be represented at a gen- vironment, there remains a risk across all eral level and what methods of capture can sensory urbanism research of an underlying be employed to assist our understanding of assumption that either a suitable balance these dimensions of space? And embedded can be achieved between such perceptions in this is a deeper question of which the or that a judgement can be made on what privileging of the ‘urban scale’ appropriate. is acceptable. In focussing on moral geographies and spatial practices, the search for Together, these reinforce the potential rich- such a singular position is questionable. ness of viewing the city through multiple Further, such approaches open up spaces to sensory nodalities, but at the same time explore what is absent from (rather than the highlight the journey still to be taken. unwanted presences of) sensescapes – and also highlight the (often marginalised) views of citizens. References Second, we suggest that by eliding Lefebvr- ian and moral geographical spatial notions Amin, A. & Thrift, N. (2002) Cities: reimag- emphasise needs to be placed on the inter- ining the urban. Cambridge: Polity relatedness of sensescapes with other non- auditory dimensions of space and place and Anderson, B. (2004) Recorded music and in turn raises fundamental questions for fu- practices of remembering. Social and Cul- ture sensory urbanism. These include: tural Geography, 5, 3-20

191 Robert Rogerson and Gareth Rice

Bentley, I., Alcock, A., Murrain, P., McGlynn, London and New York: Taurus. S. & Smith, G (1985) Responsive environments: a manual Sevenoaks: Butterworth Kitchin, R. (1998) Out of place, knowing one’s place: space, power and the exclusion Craddock, S. (2000). ‘Disease, social iden- of disabled people. Disability and Society, tity and risk: rethinking the geography of 13 (3), 343-56 AIDS’. Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers 25(2) 153-168 Kong, L. (1995) Music and cultural politics: ideology and resistance in Singapore. Trans- Cresswell, T. (1999) Embodiment, power actions, Institute of British Geographers, 20, and the politics of mobility: the case of fe- 447-59 male tramps and hobos. Transactions, Insti- tute of British Geographers, 24, 175-92 Lee, R. and Smith, D.M. (Eds.) (2004). Ge- ographies and Moralities: International Cresswell, T. (2005) Moral geographies. In Perspectives on Development, Justice and Atkinson, D. et al. (eds.) Cultural geography: Place. Blackwell Publishing, MA. a critical dictionary of key concepts. IB Tau- ris, London. pp. 128-34 Lefebvre, H. (1991). The Production of Space. Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishing. DeNora, T. (2000) Music in everyday life Cambridge: CUP Lynch, K. (1960) The image of the city MIT Press, Cambridge MA:. Dubois, D., Guastavino, C & Raimbault, M. (2006) A cognitive approach to urban sound- McCann, E. (1999). Race, protest, and pub- scapes: using verbal data to access everyday lic space: contextualizing Lefebvre in the life auditory categories. Acta Acustica, 92 U.S. city. Antipode 31(2), 163-184 (6), 865-74 Merriield, A. (1993). Place and Space: a Gottdiener, M. (1993). A Marx of Our Time: Lefebvrian reconciliation. Transactions of Henri Lefebvre and the Production of Space. the Institute of British Geographers, 18, Sociological Theory, 11, 129-34. 516-531

Gottdiener, M. (2000) Lefebvre and the bias Miethe, T. (1995) Fear and withdrawal from of academic urbanism: what can we learn urban life. Annals, American Academy of from the “new” urban analysis? City, 4(1), Political and Social Science, 539, 14-27 93-100 Paasi, A. (1986). The institutionalization of Gottdiener, M. (2003). Recapturing the Cen- regions: a theoretical framework for un- ter: A Semiotic Analysis of Shopping Malls. derstanding the emergence of regions and In Cuthbert, A. (Eds). Designing Cities. Criti- the constitution of regional identity. Fennia cal Readings in Urban Design Oxford: Ox- 164(1), 105-146 ford University Press. Philo, C. (1987). ‘Convenient centres and Howes, D. (2006) Charting the sensorial convenient premises: the historical geog- revolution. Senses & Society, 1 (1), 113-28 raphy of England’s nineteenth-century idiot asylums’. Working Paper No. 3 Department Hubbard, P. (2005). Space/Place. In At- of Geography, University of Hull. kinson, D., Jackson, P., Sibley, D. & Wash- bourne, N. (Eds.) Cultural Geography: A Raimbault, M. and Dubois, D. (2005) Urban Critical Dictionary of Key Concepts. I.B. soundscapes: experiences and knowledge. 192 Beyond the visual Cities, 22 (5), 339-50 Biographies

Raimbault, M. and Dubois, D. (2005). ‘Ur- Dr Gareth Rice, Lecturer in Human Ge- ban soundscapes: Experiences and knowl- ography, recently completed his doctoral edge’. Cities 22(5) 339-350 research on the production and consumption of new retail environments examined Revill, G. (2000) Music and the politics of through the lens of the Buchanan Galleries sound: nationalism, citizenship and audi- Shopping Centre in Glasgow. His research tory space. Environment and Planning D: interests include role of music and ilm in Society and Space, 18, 597-613 deining place and space, as well as con- Sennett, R. (1994) Flesh and stone London: ducting research on urban economic regen- Faber & Faber eration.

Sibley, D. (1981). Outsiders in Urban Soci- Dr Robert Rogerson, Senior Lecturer in ety. Oxford University Press, UK. Human Geography, conducts research on sustainable communities. He is currently Smith, D.M. (1997). ‘Geography and ethics: leading the ESRC programme of ‘skills and a moral turn?’. Progress in Human Geogra- training in sustainable communities’ and is a phy. 21(4) 583-590 leading expert on the role of voluntary sector and community building. He has been Smith, P. and Burns, D.J. (1996). ‘Atmospher- involved with the regeneration and renewal ics and retail environments: the case of the of the Gorbals in Glasgow, and has been ad- ‘power aisle’’. International Journal of Retail visor to Scottish Parliament, Scottish Enter- Distribution Management 24(1) 7-14 Smith, prise and city councils. S. (1994) Soundscape. Area, 26 (3), 232-40

Unwin, T. (2000). A waste of space? Towards a critique of the social production of space. Transactions of the Institute of British Geog- raphers, 25, 11-29.

Valentine, J. (1997) Angels and devils: moral landscapes of childhood. Environment and Planning D: Society and Space, 14 (5), 581- 99

Wakeield, K.L. and Baker, J. (1998). ‘Excite- ment at the mall: determinants and effects on shopping response’. Journal of Retailing. 74(4) 515-539

Zhang, M. and Kang, K. (2007). ‘Towards the evaluation, description, and creation of soundscapes in urban open spaces’. Envi- ronment and Planning B: Planning and De- sign 34 68-86

193 Physical Scores for Engagement: Aerial (Brass) & Object Scores Kirsty Stansield Duncan of Jordanstone, University of Dundee

1. Introduction sory engagement can be performed rather than represented. The performativity of these This paper proposes that a discussion of spaces is achieved not only by the spatial the representation of the “multimodal” qualities of those environments, but also by qualities of urban space be replaced with the interpersonal relationships which evolve a study of the performativity of these same in the shared experience established in the “multimodal” factors. Enacted mediation, or installations, each person’s movement ef- the performativity of multi-sensory space is fects the sounds created by someone else. outlined as a more appropriate approach to The art works presented are thus consid- consider what takes place when people en- ered as physical scores for engagement. This gage with space based on a more sensory model of a physical score will be addressed form of engagement. in a moment, but irst performativity as an alternative to the representation of physical Representation is the re-presentation of space will be outlined in more detail. material or an artefact outside of its original context. In politics this is the act of speaking on behalf of somebody else, or in visual art it is the representation of a scene or artefact 2. Representation v Perfor- rather than the scene or artefact itself. Per- formativity is the presentation of this mate- mativity rial through action, it re-iterates its context In terms of the design or creation of multi- rather than re-creating or describing it. Rep- modal space, the act of representation and resentation presents somebody else’s per- its removal from its original context, risks spective, whereas performativity is the thing being a form of disengagement. It is a step itself, which presents itself and exists in that away from dialogue between the people in- moment. volved, those designing spaces and those “aerial (brass)” and “Object Scores” are that the spaces are being designed for. Per- two interactive sound installations which formativity, on the other hand, and its con- establish tangible propositions to an audi- stituent need to act in the present moment ence by inviting them to create sound by encourages engagement. In other words it their movement within the installations. This can promote a more participatory and dia- examples are used to demonstrate how sen- logic approach to the design of space.

194 Kirsty Stansield

A study of the performativity of multi-sen- would concern issues of framing, composi- sory spaces is thus shaped by the people that tion and perspective. It is proposed, there- perform or inhabit these situations them- fore, that a study of the performativity of the selves. The close interconnection of context multi-sensory aspects of space, rather than and behaviour of the ‘audience’ when con- a study of its representation, more suitably sidering how a space operates affords the relects the multi- and trans- dimensionality more lateral associations of multi-sensory of sensory experience. No experience of the experience. In place of representation, a senses exists in isolation. The effectiveness study of the performativity of space and our of the multi-modalities of space lies within sensory experience of it could provide alter- the experience of those who participate, native insights into how the senses can help and indeed those who shape and form those mediate people’s engagement with space. very experiences. In the examples presented in this paper the performative exploration of the sonic sense brings a number of factors to the fore regarding the improvised, participa- 3. Performativity tory nature and sociality of space.

Performativity is used here, not only in a theatrical sense, as people implicitly ‘perform’ in a more conventional way in the 4. A Physical Score installation work discussed here; but also performative in that it speaks of its wider so- The model of the “physical score” is simi- cial and political context. Take the example lar in concept to the graphic or visual scores of the act of listening, for example. Unlike used within avant-garde musical improvisa- the optic sense we have no ear lids, “we are tion from the mid to late 20th century, in- condemned to listen” (Schafer 2003), yet cluding the work of composers such as Earle not everyone’s ears are open to true listen- Brown, Cornelius Cardew, and The Scratch ing. Hearing is a cognitive and unconscious Orchestra, for example. Their graphic scores activity whereas listening is the conscious are intentionally open to interpretation by attention given to hearing. We must con- the musicians performing the works mean- sciously focus on some sounds and not on ing each will differ with every performance others or else there would be cacophony. of the work. This is a performative act, it engenders the present moment and relects the wider phys- Earle Brown describes his scores as: ical and social context of the person who is listening. “a “synergistic” interaction of the composer’s concept, the graphic score, the In addition, a discussion of the performa- performer’s realisation, and the audi- tivity of a situation or an occurrence “as” ence.” (Brown 2004 p190) performance, establishes a line of questioning in which we can ask who is performing, how does this differ from their normal course of behaviour, what factors effect this performance, is anyone directing the performance, who is the audience for this per- 5. Score as Analytical Model formance, and what are they performing? (Schechner 2006) In contrast, with regards to Considering the environment as a physical representation, a similar line of questioning score for the creation of sound suggests a

195 Physical Scores for Engagement different form of engagement with our urban or context, group of musicians etc, and will and domestic spaces - one which affords a therefore never be the same twice. Indeed, more exploratory, interpretative and active John Zorn states he wants to work with the way of inhabiting the built environment. experiences that people bring to the situation, and by creating an appropriate and A conventional musical score represents interpretative system for engagement - a set a predeined musical event which is ixed of parameters in effect, the rest will follow in advance to some degree by the compos- (Zorn 2004). The more politicised Cardew er. Of course musicians may still interpret “rejected the traditional score for support- some elements of how the piece is played, ing a hierarchical division of labour that re- but what is played is deined in advance. quired performers to subject themselves to This more conventional type of score can the will of the composer” (Cox and Warner be considered a kind of blueprint which 2004). Both Zorn and Cardew proposed that has the end result inscribed within its form. the process of rehearsal familiar in musical This is analogous to an architectural blue- performance be replaced by one of training, print, which while responding to its context which implies the process of preparing for and brief, and being open to negotiation something which is not entirely known. between a client and the architect, it none- theless deines an “expert” and somewhat While the graphic score is representative of singular vision in advance of being placed a musical or sonic idea in the irst instance, in its inal context. its output can be said to be distributed through the relations it establishes within A visual or graphic score, on the other the physical and social setting in which it hand, deines a context for the event to be inally exists. In short, its inal form evolves performatively realised. It requires the mu- through the deeper and active engagement sician to interpret the material provided by of the people involved in its creation through the composer. The ‘structure’ might be pro- a process of improvisation. This improvisa- vided by visual stimuli, such as a collage or tory process dissolves the notion of a sin- drawing, or a more clearly methodological gular author (Bailey 1992) as it becomes a system for the musicians to apply, such as shared and communal experience which is is the case with John Zorn’s piece Cobra. reliant on a heightened awareness of others, While the composer’s ideas are represented and a heightened auditory sense. in some form, the nature of those forms is deliberately open, either as in The Scratch A parallel form of practice within archi- Orchestra’s “scratch books” which com- tecture which is based on relations rather prise collages, drawings, text etc, or, as John than form is Christopher Alexander’s Pattern Zorn’s Game Pieces which use iling cards Language (Alexander, Isihikawa et al. 1977). comprising scenes, sounds and instructions. Alexander’s Pattern Language encourages a A graphic score is essentially interpretative type of active and participatory engagement and sets a more dialogical process in ac- involving a process in which people can be tion – a conversation, in fact, between the directly involved in designing the environ- original intention of the composer, the mu- ment in which they will live and work. The sician, between the musicians themselves language has been developed out of local and between the musicians and the audi- building traditions and provides a frame- ence, and of course between the musicians work which people can shape and adapt to and the space in which they are performing. their own situation. The interpretation of that material evolves over time in response to a particular space

196 Kirsty Stansield

6. Aerial (brass) & Object Scores and a choreographer to explore the performative creation of sound within the hybrid Aerial (brass) & Object Scores demonstrate domestic and institutional space of a hos- how relations between people, and between pital. These studies were introduced to the people and their environment can be enliv- participants as a conversation without using ened in an aesthetic and creative manner words, and very quickly the participant be- through the creation of sound. gan to engage with the sonic sculptures on a number of levels – through the physicality of The two interactive sound installations re- visually arranging the objects like a still-life, quire an audience in order for the work to through the manipulation of the objects to be realised. The space is silent without an control and create sound, and inally what audience. People generate and create sound transpired to be the overriding motivation while moving around the installation space. for engagement was the sociality this pro- As more than one person moves around the cess afforded between the participant and space, their movement effects the sounds be- the choreographer. The tacit experience of ing created by another person. This implicit doing, the performativity of non-verbal com- performance is realised through a process of munication, and the shared process of inter- non-verbal communication, as people col- preting physical objects by creating sound laborate and improvise together both soni- meant other relations were established and cally and spatially. deepened.

Their mediation is tempered by distinct In response to this work with elderly peo- spatial and social factors, such as counter- ple, the installation Object Scores was de- balance, shifts in weight, a heightened sense veloped. This focused on hand movements of listening and an awareness of others. In around an oversized table structure which other words, the physicality of these envi- acted as a bridge similar to that of a cello, ronments is represented through active sen- to two piano wires stretched through its sur- sory engagement and through a process of face. This installation was a further explo- non-verbal communication. People chose ration of how sound can mediate people’s not to speak in these environments. The relationship to physical form. shared and intuitive generation of sound established an intuitive process of non-verbal communication and collaboration between the people engaging with the installation. 7. Conclusion

The installation Object Scores developed The installations outlined here present out of a participatory project working with physical propositions to an “audience” - a frail elderly people living in a continuing physical score, similar in intention to the care ward in a hospital in Glasgow. A series graphic scores employed by The Scratch of studies were carried out with participants Orchestra or Earle Brown. These physical to explore how sound can mediate people’s propositions intentionally present interpre- relations to each other and in response to tative situations, not only in an aesthetic intimate physical form. A prototype suite of sense, as all art is considered interpretative interactive sonic sculptures, or “sound ob- at least at the point of reception, but in a jects” were made which when moved, ex- more dialogic sense in which the objects posed to light or had applied pressure, con- themselves are not the intended end result. trolled sound samples held on a computer. Instead the relationships generated within Studies were carried out with participants these environment are the desired outcome.

197 Physical Scores for Engagement

The performativity of these relations encourages a move away from a singular author of a situation, requiring a more participatory approach similar to that carried out with the elderly people living in the hospital ward. In this way, consideration of the performativity of multi-modal space accommodates the key concerns of how physical space shapes human relations while simultaneously taking into consideration how human relations shape those same physical spaces.

References

Alexander, C., S. Isihikawa, et al. (1977). A Pattern Language: Towns, Buildings, Con- struction. New York, Oxford University Press.

Bailey, D. (1992). Improvisation Its nature and practice in music. London, The British Library National Sound Arhive.

Cox, C. and D. Warner, Eds. (2004). Audio Culture: Readings in Modern Music. New York &London, Continuum.

Schafer, M. (2003). Open Ears. The Audito- ry Cultural Reader. M. B. Bull, Les. Oxford, New York, Berg: 25-39.

Zorn, J. (2004?). The Game Pieces. Audio Culture: Readings in Modern Music. C. Cox and D. Werner. New Yok & London, Con- tinuum: pp196-200.

Biography

Kirsty Stansield is PhD researcher at the School of Television and Imaging, Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art & Design, Uni- versity of Dundee.

198 Stockholm, Slowly, Still Naomi Stead University of Technology, Sydney

The urban tourist has a quite particular recent innovations in writing space, place, sensibility, mode of behaviour, and way of and experience, in testing a new mode of seeing and sensing the city. This is often the representing the city. result of mediation and negotiation between tourist media, speciically the tourist map, It is nine o’clock in the morning on Satur- and the actual lived terrain. But this gap - day the ifteenth of December, 2007. The lo- between an abstract cartographic represen- cation is Stockholm. The temperature is zero tation, and an embodied sensory experience degrees centigrade, which I know because - is not the void or lacunae it is sometimes you have just excitedly pointed it out, on made out to be. In fact it is sketched through the thermometer mounted outside the din- and mediated in a number of ways - through ing room window. It would be possible to the taking of photographic records, through specify the barometric pressure as well, and the commercialised regulation of the tour- the wind speed, but that would be pushing ist gaze, and through the materiality of the the point, as though this technical detail map itself, as an artefact, one which tears, could convey a certain facticity, as though smudges, frays, and becomes worn with speciicity itself offered truth, veracity, veri- use. similitude. But of course that’s not what we are about here, not at all. This paper proposes to use experimental writing practices to attempt a new mode of I am feeling delicate. We were up talking representing and narrativising urban expe- late into the night, catching up, and since rience, between map and territory. Written we haven’t seen one another for a long time from the point of view of an embodied, re- the conversation was rollicking, kaleido- lexive tourist, it will also be an experien- scopic; we were delighted with being here, tial and impressionist observation of tourist in this strange cold place, now. I was drink- behaviour in practice. Using both the writing red wine. We talked about Sydney, our erly form and scholarly content of Eeva Joki- hometown, about its reputation as a beau- nen and Soile Veijola’s seminal essay, ‘The tiful, supericial, libertine city, well suited Body in Tourism,’ as a point of departure, to the mores of international tourism. We and drawing upon the author’s own experi- talked about how hot it is there now, how ences as a tourist in the city of Stockholm, people will be engaging in the minor trans- the paper will attempt to bridge between the gression of minor taboos – excessive drink- theoretical discipline of tourism studies, and ing, sex, shopping. We know a number of

199 Naomi Stead people from here who are on holiday there looking at them. But for today we are leav- right now, including the colleague whose ing the books in the bag, we are going out apartment we are borrowing for the week- to walk and talk and be tourists ourselves. end. It’s obvious what they are doing there: We are taking just one essay with us: Veijola escaping the cold, they have gone to expose and Jokinen’s ‘The Body in Tourism’, heavily and revel in their own bodies, to be tourists annotated and underlined, dog-eared and in a place where there is less of a discrep- beginning to escape from its staples, it is ancy between the comfort of the lesh and the touchstone for what we want to do here, the condition of the world. and thus something to be kept close, used as another kind of guidebook and map for the You were more moderate than me last day’s rambling discussions. night, and now you are as full of beans as I am feeling blurry. I swallow some painkill- In their paper Veijola and Jokinen imagine ers and we talk about how to spend the day. taking their scholarly texts with them to Mal- The point of meeting here in Stockholm is to lorca, destination for a particularly Scandi- discuss this paper we have agreed to write navian ritual of package tourism, taking the together, to give in Glasgow in January; to texts there, ‘to see what they would tell us plan it out and talk it through, but also to in the time and space of tourism, instead of walk around and be tourists ourselves in the here, in the time and space of sociological city that is its subject. I plod into the bath- discourse [2].’ I had an idea that we might room. reverse their trajectory, going from a beachy summer in Sydney to the winter urbanism of While I brush my teeth you are poking Stockholm, to reinscribe the touristic body through the bookshelves, pulling things out and its senses in the city. Admittedly this and reading at random. You quote Alexis does not seem too promising, on the face of Pontvik, it, in this climate – swaddled and wrapped, we might seem to be exactly the mobile eye The ability of cities to speak to the senses on a stalk that tourism theory supposes. The varies. Stockholm’s frigid beauty is well pre- principle of prophylaxis, installing a barrier served. The missing sensuality reveals a ma- between the (vulnerable, warm) body and terialistic mentality. Built form in Sweden is the (harsh, cold) world would seem to bring for the most part seen as “property,” a ques- a level of numbness, of literal anaesthesia, tion of so many square metres [1]. the loss of sensation. But I am enthusiastic about a phenomenology of cold, of the ice But, you ask loudly over my tooth scrub- and frost that is so novel and exciting to us bing, is there really a ‘missing sensuality’ both. You tuck Veijola and Jokinen’s essay here? Isn’t it a bit too easy to equate cold into one coat pocket and the tourist map with frigidity, with a lack of sensation, feel- into the other, and we prepare to leave the ing, desire, just as it is too easy to equate apartment. heat with rampant hedonism? I emerge, clean-mouthed, and am pondering a re- The sky is a dull low grey, the light dim. sponse when I am stopped short by the sight There is no sign of sun, or of snow. Step- of your suitcase, lying open on the loor, ping out of the lobby we are suddenly and next to the couch where your sheets are still shockingly submerged in cold. It is strangely scrunched. This suitcase is stuffed full of the intimate, its chilly ingers reaching down the books you have brought to inform our think- neck and through the folds of your coat. It ing: theoretical texts and cultural analyses, doesn’t seem enough to say it is cold, the urban studies and sociology and tourism abstraction of that, its bald lack of evoca- theory. I feel a queasy lurch of anxiety just 200 Stockholm, Slowly, Still tion. And anyway, to the Swedes this doesn’t written representation, about the conven- even rate, zero is quite warm. But for me it tions of academic writing as themselves an is a shock, this cold which is so much more object of examination. We could seize the enveloping than you could ever suspect irst person pronoun, attempt to render the from looking out through the window of a scholarly text opaque and explicitly con- warm and tightly insulated apartment, the structed, rather than the (supposedly) trans- strange double-glazed silence of which gives parent, unmediated and universal voice of a feeling of absolute distanciation from the the third person monologue text. But I have world. To someone from another climate, it fallen silent. This is new work for me and seems like such cold should be something I’m nervous, it seems that there are so many you could see from afar, or smell, or taste, ways to get it wrong: too self-consciously not the strangely abstract quality that you clever or cute, too contrived or too icti- know by looking up the weather forecast on tious, too fruity or too trivial. the internet. My nose immediately begins to run. We pass a young father wheeling a child completely wrapped up in a puffy red suit, We start to walk, turning right on Asoga- only the face visible, and that face is also tan towards the area south of Folkunsgatan red, and emits a piercing wail. I think about known as SoFo. the vertiginous feeling I suddenly had yes- terday when a colleague referred to her I notice that the cars sound different here – ‘winter coat.’ Where I come from that is a they are itted with tyres that will grip on ice, tautology; every coat is a winter coat. It was which make a continuous clicking, crush- disorienting to realise that here there is a ing sound as each small metal stud hits the whole gradation of coats, a phenomenology road surface. We cross Gotgatan and pass of gloves and mittens, distinctions between vendors setting up a stall to sell Christmas ‘good’ hats and ‘bad;’ a culture of cold that trees, and through a farmers market, smoked is strange to us. meats, bread, cabbages. I am wearing two jumpers, a jacket, and I have prepared a self-conscious little a long woollen coat, as much clothing as I speech for you about my preliminary ideas have ever worn in my life. I feel like a deep- for the paper, and begin haltingly: it seems sea diver, or an astronaut. Fine motor skills to me there is a hinge between the delib- are lost and small tasks become clumsy. I erately constructed subjectivity of feminist have to turn my whole torso to see whether writing practice, the rise of an ‘agency of a car is coming, or to speak to you, walk- mapping’ in critical cartography, and the ing beside me. Bodily gestures are exagger- thread of tourism theory which focuses on ated. But I also enjoy the monastic aspect, embodiment, both of people doing tourism of walking, hooded; the bowed head, the and people observing and theorising them. clasped hands. The many layers do not al- My idea for our project is to reinsert and re- ways prevent sensation – for instance the present the sensory elements that oficial feeling of the thermal leggings beneath my cartography, and tourism theory, both tend jeans has a strangely prosthetic effect, as to omit, but which remain in traces in both though I have a new layer of hypersensi- tourist maps, and in experimental icto-crit- tive fabric skin. While some of the faculties ical writing. My speech peters out; it’s too tend to be mufled – it is hard to really smell early for this kind of talk. But you are nod- the city in this climate – others are intensi- ding encouragingly, and add that we could ied. So is my attention to the sensory organs think about questions of form and genre in themselves - I have never been so aware of

201 Naomi Stead my nostrils, for instance, or the tops of my like to read tourism theory, but I also like to ears. The ingers come to seem like delicate be a tourist, to do tourist things in all their leshy anemones that could snap off in an grotesquery and commodiication. I am not instant. I shoot a sidelong glance at you, so only distanced and detached; I am also an mufled that you are almost unrecognisable. enthusiastic amateur. I like postcards and You have tucked your neck down into your snow-domes, and not just ironically, for their scarf like a roosting chicken, but your eyes value as jokey kitsch. You nod, and add: we are still visible, and they look startled. are both women (we ponder how strange and radical is it to actually specify this). We I see that, like me, you have dressed up for are both also architects, trained in a primar- the day’s activities – we are conscious that ily visual mode of representing the world, a our usual casual-scruffy clothing would im- strictly disciplined regime of aesthetic taste. mediately mark us out here as tourists, and without admitting it have each attempted We begin to climb the long hill at the East- camoulage. We have avoided certain sar- ern end of Sodermalm, between ive storey torial giveaways: hiking boots, gore-tex apartment buildings, advent candles in ev- jackets, backpacks. Your camera is slipped ery window. We turn right up a set of slip- unobtrusively into your pocket. I try out pery timber steps towards the Soia Kyrka a provocation, quoting Jody Berland, ‘[l] and its surrounding park. There is frost on ike everyone, I have travelled, and like ev- the oak leaves on the ground, a thin lichen eryone, I hate tourists [3].’ You don’t miss tinges the tree trunks an extraordinary shade a beat, retorting immediately with: ‘[t]he of bright green. Everything is still, there is tourist is an unenviable igure: ugly, inau- not a bird, not a squirrel to be seen; we ind thentic, desperately out of synch [4]’. I try ourselves lowering our voices. The trees are a sucker punch with Chris Rojek and John stark black linear patterns against the sky, Urry, that ‘the mere sightseer has come to with the occasional darker knot of a nest. be universally denigrated, as someone who We compare the silhouettes of the different is necessarily supericial in their apprecia- tree species – the birch has the inest lin- tion of peoples and places [5]’. You snort. ework, the greatest contrast between branch We agree to move slowly, in deference to and twig. We wander around the park for a my sore head, and to look for a café where while, watching people with their dogs. A we can have a coffee and consult the tourist woman in a pink furry hat talks to her ridge- map. back in Swedish. You ind a frozen puddle and stand on its surface with a look of glee, We are both feeling a little dislocated, bouncing lightly to hear it crack, to see the through the simple mechanics of turn- bubbles move beneath the surface. ing the seasons upside down, cars driving on the other side of the road, jetlag, being A piece of paper blows past in the wind, surrounded by a language we don’t under- and I stop it with a stamp of my foot. On it stand. We pause for a moment to situate is written a passage by Jane Rendell, which ourselves, to plot out the coordinates of our I cite: subject positions. You go irst: you are middle class and educated; you know some of There is a kind of thinking that corresponds the streams and bayous of theory, you lean to walking, one that follows an itinerary, towards the analytic and the deconstructive, keeps up a certain pace and remains in con- you know the scholarly conventions well stant motion, moving from one thing to an- enough to risk trying to bend them. You also other, engaging only in passing; the external have a roving eye. I follow on from this: I world acts as a series of prompts for more

202 Stockholm, Slowly, Still philosophical musings. The spatial story acts ing gauche and embarrassed, wishing it was as a theoretical device that allows us to unless conspicuous, thinking about my sheep- derstand the urban fabric in terms of nar- ishness in using a map in public. It should rative relationships between spaces, times, indicate autonomy, being orientated, plot- and subjects. The notion of ‘spatial stories’ ting a conident path in time and space. But can be connected to surrealist wanderings, really it just seems to advertise vulnerabil- to the situationist derive as well as to more ity, that you are unanchored, that you don’t recent theoretical ideas about nomadology know where you are. My thermal leggings [6]. begin to feel hot and itchy in the warmth.

This sounds pretty good to us both, so we A passing waitress looks over my shoulder take our spatial story along a winding path at my map and, balancing a pile of plates in through the old quarter of cobbled streets one hand and a stack of glasses in the other, and timber houses, painted in the distinctive observes that it is now commonplace to as- Swedish red oxide. One of the windows over- sert that maps are not neutral artefacts. They head opens and a woman leans out, shaking direct and persuade, she says, they advertise a white sheepskin rug vigorously from side and cajole. But, she continues, shifting her to side, then disappearing inside again. We weight casually to one hip, who would ever are walking carefully on the rough cobbles, expect a tourist map to be entirely com- wary of twisted ankles. You stop to pat a cat, prehensive, entirely ‘truthful’ or unbiased? which regards you with grave suspicion. You Implicit in the tourist map is the idea of an ask me about the question of tense, whether edited view, that it does not show ‘all’ of we should be present, as though we are ac- the possible places or routes, but only the tually here, now; or past, dawdling behind ‘best’ or ‘most interesting’ ones, as deined ourselves, hanging on our own coat-tails; or by tourist operators with clearly and evi- even projected forward, so we pursue our dently vested interests. I am staring at her, future-perfect selves, following our own impressed. She goes on, arguing that tourist trail of breadcrumbs through the city. Is it maps provide a valuable case of a knowingly happening, you ask? Did it happen? Might and acceptedly subjective map – if it is true it happen? Is this based on a true story, or that ‘[m]aps simplify the world somewhat in what? I can’t answer these questions. I am the way a heavy snowfall does [7],’ she cites thinking of the peculiar space of academic Robert Harbison, then a tourist map shows conferences, how it couldn’t be further from the world after a particularly heavy fall – the world of tourism. The conference exists highly abstracted, simpliied, with all of the in a kind of timeless no-place of ghostly and extraneous detail of the lived city blanketed bodiless minds, wafted together, in spite of over. She concludes: in tourist maps it is not the actual effects of halitosis, bad coffee and interesting to work at revealing omissions or rumbling stomachs. This condition is usu- ‘lies’, since that is the very stuff of which such ally only reversed at the conference dinner, maps are made. What is far more revealing under the inluence of alcohol, when bodies is to understand what exactly is at stake in intrude again. Time passes. We keep walk- their partiality. With this she retrieves a pre- ing. cariously balanced teaspoon and waltzes back to the kitchen. We come across a café and enter, both of us temporarily immobilised as our glasses I return to contemplating the map, and fog up in the warm interior. You go to the notice that you have already started to an- counter to order while I spread out the ‘Wel- notate it with dots and crosses and cryptic come to Stockholm Map’ on the table, feel- acronyms. You come back with the coffee

203 Naomi Stead and a pair of ciabattas, chevre and walnut between the sensory experience of an urban and honey; you know my taste. You suggest tourist and a local, and why has the local that we take it away, eat as we walk, since experience of the city been so privileged? the pace of the argument is dragging, slow- You seem to take this as a cue, and dutifully ing the pace of the narrative here. I have quote Walter Benjamin, ‘The supericial in- begun to perk up, the painkillers are begin- ducement, the exotic, the picturesque has ning to work. But as you lay a inger on the an effect only on the foreigner. To portray a map and begin to trace the ‘sights’ you have city, a native must have other, deeper mo- planned for us today, I slide immediately tives – motives of one who travels into the back into lethargy. My sluggishness has a past instead of into the distance [9].’ But perversely liberating effect – I throw aside that’s a case in point! I say excitedly, waving my customary touristic conscientiousness, my coffee in a gloved hand. The ‘native’ oc- my sense of obligation to the must-see list. cupant is seen to have access to the true and I don’t want to see the sights today, I say, real place, beyond appearances, because of even if Lippard is right in saying that ‘anxi- their haptic attention to it over time, and es- ety is a basic condition of tourism, for there pecially through a distraction that renders can never be as many minutes in the day as the place familiar on the level of bodily ex- there are sights to be taken in. The turns not perience. The tourist, on the other hand, has taken may haunt us to the point of casting a neither time nor distraction. But why does pall over the whole trip. We will probably that mean that the literature has deprived never be back; there are no second chances the tourist of having a body at all? And any- [8].’ What about working against that, I ask way, I splutter, what’s so wrong with the ‘su- – what could be more radical than a bor- pericial inducement’? ing account of an aimless tourist experience? You look sulky, but we agree to head You whip out the ‘Body in Tourism’ essay in the general direction of the centre, and and answer through Veijola and Jokinen: that see what happens. That is enough of a des- the literature of tourism theory has placed a tination, enough of a narrative impetus. We large emphasis on vision, on technologies of struggle back into our outer layers and sidle sight such as photography, and on the notion out the door. of the tourist gaze as appropriative and con- suming. But, as you argue that they argue, You are navigating, consulting the map, this often occurs at the expense of the other while I am happy to follow vaguely along, senses, and of the body as the site and locus looking around, eating my sandwich. We of these senses. On the one hand this exclu- are overtaken by a woman dressed in high sion of the lived body is highly counterintui- black boots, walking purposefully, towing tive, given that the point of much (perhaps a wheeled suitcase that makes a complex even most) actual tourist activity is precisely percussive music as it crosses the cracks the pleasures of the lesh. But then, at the and the seams of the footpath. An old man same time, it is not at all surprising, given walks slowly on the other side of the road, the general banishment of the body (in its carrying a plastic bag of walnuts. I begin to apparently speciic, ‘feminine’ corporeal wonder why there is such a lack of scholarly materiality) from academic discourse, in fa- work on urban tourism. Is it because the city vour of the abstract, supposedly ‘masculine’ is such a complex and layered entity, that it universal intellectual faculties of the mind. is hard to distinguish the tourists from the lo- You argue that tourism theory has tended cals, that the boundaries between them tend to skip over the actual subjects and objects to blur in the crowd? I try out some rhetori- (and especially the bodies) of tourists, en- cal questions on you. What is the difference gaging in a classically dry treatment of the

204 Stockholm, Slowly, Still topic in the name of rigour and scholarship. wool forming inside. Since you keep stop- To approach tourist practices, behaviours, ping to take photographs I take the ‘Body in and theory from the point of view of those Tourism’ from you and walk ahead, striding who are actually doing it, then, is a radi- down the hill. cal project. Veijola and Jokinen are assisted in this by gender theory, one of the few es- I read as I walk, not looking where I am go- tablished ields in which the body is not ex- ing. The essay is structured around a brilliant cluded or ignored, but is made central, in its artiice, that after the authors have travelled relation to identity, existential phenomenol- to Mallorca they ind there, on vacation, ogy, sexuality, and affect. So, I say slowly, in a whole panoply of tourism researchers, light of that, and after Judith Butler, perhaps watching each other watching the tourists, we might think of tourism, like gender, as ‘a but also engaging in the classic rituals of corporeal style, an “act,” as it were, which this kind of package holiday – sunbathing is both intentional and performative, where (and getting sunburnt), drinking (and getting “performative” suggests a dramatic and con- drunk), lirting (and being lirted with). Vei- tingent construction of meaning [10]’? You jola and Jokinen, in their icto-critical nar- shrug. We continue to walk. Time passes. rative, engage in a number of conversations (not to say altercations) with the assembled We emerge from the residential quarter onto scholars, taking issue with various aspects a high terrace overlooking the distant islands of their work, and exposing in particular the of Skeppsholmen and Djurgard. There is a thing that is glaringly missing from the liter- ine layer of tiny stick-like ice crystals on the ature: an account of actual corporeal bodily benches, we spend some time examining it, experience. I look back and see that you are wondering if this might be a falling frost. A amusing yourself with your foggy breath – ferry slides slowly by across the water. Two blowing long plumes of it into the air. The other women are already there, looking at digital temperature gauge on the Gondola the view, and as we pass by I overhear one reads minus two degrees. A lot of people of them remark that she has been reading are wearing very tight jeans, slung low, and Carol Crawshaw and John Urry, that slim-itting jackets. I feel a shudder of empathetic cold just looking at them. My nose is Sometimes tourism seems to be understood running again. A cold tear slides unnoticed, as little more than the collection of disparate half way down my nose, before I brush it and unconnected sights which are given an away. objectiied form in travel brochures, postcards and photographs. Furthermore, the I ponder why I am so charmed by this essay, promotion and practice of collecting sights its self-deprecating tone, and the intimacy can dominate the very pattern of travel, of the conversation between its two author which is often organised to facilitate leeting protagonists. It skips between genres – now views of spectacular scapes [11]. a diary, now a travelogue, now an argument, now a gossipy chat in a bar. I like the way it She seems to know what she’s talking collapses distinctions between ‘high’ abstract about. I glance covertly to see your reaction, theory and ‘low’ corporeal embodiment, be- but you are iddling with your own camera, tween incisive analysis and the trivial mo- oblivious. It is windy up this high, and as we ments, the ‘social dressage’ of actual tourist start down the long slope towards Slussen experience – the sunburn, the hangover, the the cold is coming up through my shoes. My faux pas, the lirtation, the dance. It wields hands feel very dry inside my gloves, my in- the sharpest of critical sensibilities, but with a gertips playing idly with the small pills of touch as deft and light as a pickpocket’s.

205 Naomi Stead

I linger on the bridge, looking over. The wa- move too slowly, they stop often and unpre- ter is black, and highly relective. It is impos- dictably, they walk on the wrong side of the sible to tell how deep it might be. Glancing footpath and stand on the wrong side of the back I see that you are jogging to catch up escalator. They get in the way. Tourism seems with me. The light has become perceptibly to bring out the misanthropist in you. duller, the mud is laced with a white crust. Sometimes you can only tell there is ice on You are looking up, above eye level, like the footpath because the surface changes the well-trained architect that you are. I from matte to gloss. You catch up and point am tired and cold now, and walk looking out the powerful atmospheric effect of the downward like a beachcomber, as though seagulls’ cries. We only know European ‘botanizing on the asphalt [12]’. Apart from birdsong from ilms, where it is used delib- the usual cigarette butts and dog turds the erately to evoke a particular type of atmo- footpath is strewn with small tea-bag-like spheric mood – black birds are aural short- sachets of snus, a peculiarly Scandinavian hand for threat, sea gulls signify loneliness way of taking nicotine, where you tuck the and desolation. It all feels very portentous little packet of tobacco up against the gum when you come across such a soundtrack in beneath your top lip. Presumably then when real life, and we look around warily. it is inished you toss it on the ground, and now that I come to look at it there is a lot of We enter Gamla Stan, the old town, and spit down there too, and a lot of the small- walk up and down the crooked back alleys, calibre gravel they use here to stop you slip- peering surreptitiously into the windows. ping when it is icy. It is a canvas of detritus My telephone rings and it is my father, call- and grit, formlessness, of matter out of place. ing from a warm late evening in Adelaide, You follow my gaze downwards, and ask me to ask me about Christmas presents. Really whether it is a speciic anti-aesthetic sensi- I would like a methodology for Christmas, bility that inds pleasure in a picturesque di- but I don’t say that. We wander through the lapidation and decay, or is it that the ugly streets until we ind a market and watch the and banal have come to seem more authen- pony rides, a fat little Shetland stamping tic than the spectacular and beautiful? I say grumpily along in a wild cloud of mane and that in any case these days it seems an em- forelock. Two women walk along swinging barrassing cliché to be seen photographing a small boy between them, laughing with a sewer access pipe cover, even more than a delight. I buy us each a cup of glogg, load- ‘legitimate’ sight, as though caught trying to ing them up with extra sultanas and cinna- sneak into the house of authenticity through mon, and we drink this exceptionally sweet the back door. and alcoholic mix standing up at a high table, watching the people. Swilling the last We reach Sergels Torg and the House of slurry around the bottom of my glass, I dare Culture. It is packed with people, playing to say that it all seems rather authentic. I no- chess and reading newspapers, sociably, in tice that your cheeks are pinker than usual, the warmth. It is impossible to tell who is a but whether from my dangerous statement tourist and whom a local. We travel up the or the alcohol I don’t know. We leave the escalators, somewhat melancholy, climbing markets and walk on. to the top loor to look out over the city. The light has faded into a dim blue twilight, even The main drag of Drottninggatan is thronged though it is only 3 o’clock in the afternoon. with crowds, and you say irritably that tour- We stand close to the glass, looking down ists don’t seem to know, or care about, the at the city. I ask aloud what we’re actually patterns of urban pedestrian etiquette – they going to do for this paper, whether we are

206 Stockholm, Slowly, Still any closer than we were when we started, tory, and Criticism of Architecture (NeTH- what is the plan and the point of it all. I say CA), Brussels, 2007, p. 7. that I’m not sure the category of ‘tourist’ is even useful in an urban context, or perhaps 5. Chris Rojek and John Urry, ‘Transfor- whether everyone exists on a scale of being mations of Travel and Theory’, in Touring a stranger. The things we have done here to- Cultures: Transformations of Travel and day – walk around, take photographs, drink Theory, ed. Chris Rojek and John Urry, p. coffee – are very similar to the things we do 7 in Sydney all the time. I wonder whether this is why urban tourism studies is itself 6. Jane Rendell, Art and Architecture: A a kind of terrain vague within the broader Place Between, I.B. Tauris, London, 2006, discourse of tourism, an ill-deined gap in p. 188. the wider ield, since in the city tourists 7. Robert Harbison, Eccentric Spaces, Al- are almost indistinguishable from everyone fred A. Knopf, New York, 1977, p.127. else. There is a pause. We are both silent, looking down. You pull out and unfold the 8. Lucy Lippard, On the Beaten Track: tourist map, which is frayed now, starting to Tourism, Art, and Place, The New Press, tear from the edges, rupture at the corners. New York, 1999, p. 10. I think to myself that, in use, maps are not really so lat. They are scrunched and folded 9. Walter Benjamin (Benjamin 1981: and refolded and written over. They make 194.) Gesammelte Schriften. Band III. a new origami city every time they are re- Kritiken und Rezensionen. Frankfurt am folded into a new coniguration. You gather Main: Suhrkamp. up this delicate concertina and we turn to descend the escalator and go home. 10. Judith Butler, Gender Trouble: Femi- nism and the Subversion of Identity, Rout- ledge, new York, 1990, excerpt reprinted in Ann Cahill and Jennifer Hansen eds., End Notes Continental Feminism Reader, Oxford, United Kingdom: Rowman & Littleield 1. Alexis Pontvik, ‘Memento Metropolis Publishers, 2003, p. 44. Italics in origi- in Stockholm 1998’, Memento Metropo- nal. lis: An Art Exhibition About The City and The Memory, exhibition catalogue, Stock- 11. Carol Crawshaw and John Urry, ‘Tour- holm, 1998, p. 246 ism and the Photographic Eye’, in Touring Cultures: Transformations of Travel and 2. Soile Veijola and Eeva Jokinen, ‘The Theory, ed. Chris Rojek and John Urry, p. Body in Tourism’, Theory, Culture and So- 178 ciety, vol. 11, 1994, p. 125. 12. Walter Benjamin, Charles Baudelaire: 3. Jody Berland, ‘Travelling Correspon- A Lyric Poet in the Era of High Capitalism, dence: Notes on Tourism’, Border/Lines, trans Harry Zohn, Verso, London, 1973, vol 12, Summer 1988, p. 9. p. 36. 4. David Vanderburgh and Hilde Heynen, ‘Itinerary’, in Tourism Revisited: Interna- tional Colloquium on Architecture and Cities # 2, The Network for Theory, His-

207 Naomi Stead

Biography

Dr Naomi Stead is a Senior Lecturer in Ar- chitecture at the University of Technology Sydney. She is presently undertaking a postdoctoral fellowship at the Advanced Cultur- al Studies Institute of Sweden, with a project on architectural criticism. Her research interests include the history and theory of museums, intersections between art and architecture, and experimental writing practices in architecture. Recent essays have been published in the anthology Critical Architecture, ed. Jane Rendell at al, Routledge, London, 2007, and the anthology Architecture and Authorship: Studies in Disciplinary Remedi- ation, ed. Katja Grillner, Rolfe Hughes and Tim Anstey, Black Dog, London, 2007.

208 Nothing More than Feelings: abstract memorials Quentin Stevens Bartlett School of Architecture

Introduction ily through relatively passive, distant reception of, and relection upon, visual repre- This paper examines large-scale abstract sentations: depictions of the victims and the public memorials where visitors’ experi- tragic events, and symbolism which repre- ence is focused on senses other than vision. sents feelings and attitudes toward them. It centres on visitors’ behaviour at two con- This study focuses instead on the varied temporary public memorials: the Lady Di- ways that visitors physically engage with ana memorial fountain in London’s Hyde the memorial objects. The abstract forms Park (ig. 1), and Berlin’s Memorial to the of the Diana memorial and the MMJE shift Murdered Jews of Europe (ig. 2). The Lady the focus of attention from the representa- Diana Memorial is a ring-shaped fountain tional to the sensory content of landscape, approximately 60m across, set in an inclined and from the artwork to the visitor. At most lawn landscape. The water lows down from memorials, visitors’ behaviour is respectful- the highest point around both sides of the ly limited to slow walking, standing, kneel- ring within a low concrete channel (ankle- ing and laying tributes. In contrast, a very to knee-high), in a stream varying between wide range of activities occur at these two 10cm and 3m in width, to a wider pool at sites, some of which are quite unexpected. the bottom, from where the water is pumped Rather than feelings of loss, grief, mourning, back to the top. The Memorial to the Mur- or guilt - feelings which are connected to dered Jews of Europe in Berlin (hereafter a person or event being commemorated - MMJE) is an unfenced two-hectare ield of people’s actions at these two memorials ap- 2711 grey concrete stelae (thick rectangular pear to respond to feelings such as curios- columns) of varying heights set in closely- ity, fear, delight, comfort, and excitement. spaced rows on an undulating paved ground These feelings are themselves stimulated by plane. a wide range of physiological sensations afforded by these settings. These visually abstract memorials are very different to memorials of earlier decades, in In these two abstract memorials, the visual their form and also in terms of how people message is intentionally reduced to almost experience them. Much writing about pub- nothing, and the designs carefully manipu- lic memorials focuses on their symbolism. late visitors’ senses of hearing, touch, tem- A majority of memorials have ‘spectacular’ perature and kinaesthesia. The intensity and forms. Viewers’ feelings are affected primar- variety of sensory stimuli presented by these

209 Quentin Stevens memorials have two important consequenc- These two memorials are open, public es for visitors’ experience and their feelings. landscapes which many people come across Firstly, the experience is not as carefully incidentally and unexpectedly. The memori- composed as with memorials that are pre- als are not tall, or located on key, dramatic, dominantly visual. These settings provide axial sites. Both frontality and vision shape the body with continuous and varied senso- people’s movement and their sense of pur- ry distractions, rather than framing focused, pose (Tuan 1977, Goffman 1959); these re- static and protracted ocular attention. Sec- lations help visually prominent memorials ondly, sensations other than vision, being to gain prominence in the public imagina- relatively unmediated, are experienced dition and to thereby shape society’s values. In rectly as either pleasurable or unpleasur- these two cases, many people do not even able, but not interpreted relexively. Most notice they are at a memorial. The MMJE visitors’ actions appear hedonistic rather has no boundary. The memorial spreads out than mournful. However, the physical quali- into the surrounding streetscape. The stelae ties of the MMJE, combined with its lack of around the site perimeter are lat, level with representational detail, also create physio- the footpath, effectively ‘underneath’ it. logical feelings of discomfort, coninement, Passers-by thus initially walk over the memo- disorientation, isolation, deprivation and rial; everyday public space overlaps sacred instability which are intended to produce space. As people move further into the site, a sense of apprehension. The remainder of the ground slopes downward and the ste- the paper will explore in detail these two lae become taller; visitors’ bodies gradually themes of distraction and performativity. become more immersed within the mass of the object. The Diana memorial sits within a continuous park landscape. In contrast to the nearby Albert memorial, it is not set apart as an obvious object of reverence. The Diana memorial has a low physical proile, and does not draw attention to itself.

Distraction Richness of Stimuli

The Diana memorial and MMJE lack the The Diana memorial fountain’s concrete careful spatial ordering which is common channel has a lot of geometric variation for memorials that are predominantly visu- along its length: its depth, width, slope, al, where symbols are presented in speciic, angle, complexity of surface, and texture. conscious hierarchies, sequences and other This sculpts the water low into many dif- spatial and graphical relationships. People ferent shapes and speeds: hard, soft, fast, become aware of these memorial objects in slow, smooth, rough, splashing upwards. different ways. The changes in the water’s low also create a wide range of stimulating sounds: water

bubbling, cascading, eddying and rippling. The memorial’s design allows visitors to eas- Incidental Sensation ily move close and touch the fountain with various parts of their bodies. The wide, lat

210 Nothing More than Feelings concrete edge invites sitting and walking Vision tends to comprehend the world as into the fountain. People immerse their bod- complete, ixed images. Tactile sensations ies to feel the water’s coolness. They enjoy remain leeting, spontaneous and partial: feeling their own body moving in the water, harder to control, and less focused. The whether walking, or sitting and dipping their body is constantly exploring new feelings of hands or kicking their legs. Visitors playfully touch. explore the water’s various material properties by feeling the current, splashing friends The gaze keeps the world at a distance, and (ig. 3), trying to hold back its low, carry- this tends toward abstraction and spectacu- ing and pouring it with containers, and even larisation. Touch is spatially and temporally tasting it. immediate, richly detailed and intense.

Visitors’ bodies are also constantly receiv- Touch constantly perceives in a state of ing a richness of multisensory stimuli at the distraction. This can lead to shock experi- MMJE. The site’s undulating topography and ences which may stimulate a wide variety fragmented ground surface make visitors of desires. aware of their bodily motion, forcing them to actively manage their stride. Inside the me- Touch is embodied: to touch is to be morial, views and sounds of the surrounding touched. Being physically close to the envi- cityscape grow fainter as one moves deeper ronment and to other people leads to high and lower between the concrete masses. levels of involvement. Visitors often yell loudly to test the memo- More than just perception, touch is also a rial’s reverberation or sound absorbency, or form of action which can transform the ac- slap the stelae with their hands: they pro- tor, the setting, and the meanings of objects. duce audible perceptions for themselves Vision remains passive. and others. Memorial imagery, by contrast, is typically ixed and designed only for re- For all these reasons, touch is profane; it ception. The surrounding concrete mass of escapes socialised frames of reference and the MMJE stimulates a haptic sense of en- reverence. The irst three of these charac- closure, from a slight increase in air pres- teristics of sensation – ephemerality and sure against the skin. The stelae also radiate dynamism; closeness; distractedness and and absorb a lot of heat. This is a property capacity to shock - apply not just to touch, felt unconsciously on the skin of visitors, but but also to other senses, especially hearing. their awareness is displayed by inquisitive Such ways of feeling have a very different touching of the stelae, and most obviously relation to memory, and thus drastically al- by the many people who lie sunbathing on ter a memorial object’s prospects for com- top of warm stelae, or sit in their deep cool memoration. shadows on hot days. At traditional memorials where experience Latham (1999) provides a useful critique of is mostly visual, visitors are generally very the limits of vision in design, by examining passive and distant. They slow down and try Benjamin’s writings on the tactility of urban to ‘make sense of’ images, connect them to- experience. Latham explores how people gether into a logical narrative, by relecting perceive objects and meanings differently upon complex chains of meanings. Sound, through touch, identifying ive distinctive smell, touch, and the haptic sense provide aspects of touch and illustrating them by less of this spatial and intellectual distance, contrast to the dominant sense, vision: and there is much less ixity and clarity in the impressions conveyed. These sensations

211 Quentin Stevens are more likely to operate below conscious- Performance ness; and impact the emotions more directly. The Diana memorial and MMJE provide The forms of the Diana memorial and MMJE the body with continuous and varied senso- are experienced up close by moving, acting ry distractions which affect visitors without bodies. The importance of touch and move- them necessarily ‘thinking’ about it. They ment in these two settings emphasises that react spontaneously. People visiting these perceptions are not only passively received memorials appear to explore the variety of from these memorial objects. Visitors them- feelings available, rather than concentrat- selves are the main producers of sounds and ing on one ‘obvious’ perception or action. smells at these memorials, both consciously For these reasons, visitors are more likely to and unconsciously. Visitor’s own actions come away with different impressions. Be- produce feelings which are directly, physi- cause of the visual abstraction of these two ologically pleasant or unpleasant. As Thrift settings, people are often unaware of their (1997) suggests, the human body is percep- signiicance, so the managers of each site tive and receptive, but it is also expressive installed signs that clarify the purpose as and affective, creating its own possibilities well as prohibited actions. At the Diana me- of feeling. morial managers also installed a fence.

Fried (1967) provides a useful framework for understanding how people engage with these memorials, through his critique of Feeling the Meanings minimalist sculpture. Because an abstract These two memorials are visually very ab- artwork (in these cases, simple concrete stract, far less legible than most memori- shapes) offers nothing to look at, visitors be- als. These examples relect a second major come more aware of the context surround- component of Fried’s (1967) deinition of ing the artwork, their own physical relation Minimalism: they show the artists’ retreat to the artwork, their other sensory experi- from representation. Abstract memorials ences, their own actions, and the actions of highlight a lack of desire to provide detailed other visitors. People relect on themselves and accurate depiction or explanation of and what they are doing, what they feel in the people, events and feelings which are the moment, rather than privileging seeing meant to be commemorated. But it is only and understanding the thing. These two me- visually that these sculptures are minimal. morials heighten the visitor’s awareness of The art appears (i.e., visually) to use a mini- physical space, particularly because the me- mum of material and technique. The solidity morials are large and permeable, so people and geometric simplicity of these sculptural move through and inside the artwork. forms prevents the viewer from becoming psychologically absorbed in pictorial content. The formal restraint of these two memorials and the many ways of moving through them also make visitors’ actions highly visible to each other. Unusually for memorials, which traditionally prompt introspection, visitors spend much of their time at these sites looking at other people, rather than at the memorials.

For the Diana memorial, the designer Kath-

212 Nothing More than Feelings ryn Gustafson did not want Diana to be re- walk in separate rows might feel alienated membered as “an icon that you can only and alone, with only leeting views of their look at” (BBC News 2002). The fountain does companions. The ground plane is uneven not ‘illustrate’ Diana through representation and slopes in several different directions, so or symbolism, but was designed to com- visitors feel unsteady, destabilised. This me- municate something of Diana’s personality morial communicates with the visitor’s body to visitors by analogy: along the fountain’s directly through environmental cues, rather course, the shape and low of the water is than mediation through symbols. Mean- varied and changeable: sometimes ‘bubbly’, ing is meant to be conveyed through an at other times calm, quiet and gentle; the analogous bodily experience. These effects fountain is also inclusive and accessible, are dificult to communicate to the reader like Diana. To relect Diana’s own affection through images. People are supposed to feel for children, this fountain seeks to continue this memorial’s purpose rather than see or to make children happy, by supporting their think it. These unpleasant, uncomfortable play, rather than sombre mourning. The me- physical feelings are intended to stimulate morial is intended to have the same effect emotional ones; to produce a sense of ap- Diana herself had on children. Rather than prehension and confusion which might lead a symbol of joy, this fountain is a device visitors to then relect on why the space they that produces sensory enjoyment. The many are in is making them feel this way. children who play here are thus not ‘overlooking’ this memorial’s purpose. At these sites, the designers’ efforts to make people relect on historical tragedies With the MMJE, the architect Eisenman was through abstract metaphors and perceptual not trying to represent the Holocaust: he be- analogies seem to be at odds with visitors’ lieves this is impossible, because the Holo- observed responses to the sensory stimuli. caust is unfathomable, and representations People act according to their perceptions trivialise it (Eisenman 2005). Figural Holo- of a range of pleasurable behavioural affor- caust memorials, such as the one at Sach- dances in these memorial landscapes. senhausen concentration camp near Berlin which depicts emaciated, suffering victims, communicate that the viewer should deinitely react by feeling sad. Instead, Eisenman wanted to induce in visitors physiological feelings like those the Holocaust victims experienced. He placed the rows of dark, tall, stelae at the MMJE close together, so people walking between them would feel claustro- phobic, trapped and conined. Some large, heavy stelae tilt out over the visitor, to make them feel weak and insigniicant. The gradually-sinking ground plane draws people downward; long tight rows of stelae restrict views out, so visitors become disoriented in Feeling the functionality the ield of seemingly repetitive and endless stelae. The stelae’s mass also attenuates sur- Observations reveal a fantastic variety of rounding city sounds. The aisles between the ways that people position themselves in re- stelae are intentionally too narrow for two lation to these two built environments. Visi- people to walk abreast, so people forced to tors enter into these landscapes and move

213 Quentin Stevens through them. They explore possibilities of of outstretched hands, and people walking location, posture and movement. They move between them test their temperature, hard- around to see the full complexity of the set- ness and smoothness. People engage with tings and to photograph them, but they are the stelae’s inertial mass when they wedge also ‘feeling’ their way around the sites, and themselves between pairs of stelae as a way listening to different parts. of climbing up (ig. 4). Being able to perceive the properties and arrangements of The ring shape of the Diana memorial these objects in close three-dimensional de- brings people ‘inside’ it. The site’s sloping tail emphasises possible relations of action topography provides an enjoyable aware- and use, and not just perception. ness of kinaesthesia - the body’s own motion - at varying speeds. People walk circuits from the entry gate up and around to the top of the memorial, where they have the best overview, and back down again. Young children enjoy running down a grassy embankment on one side of the ring. People also enjoy rolling on inline skates and scooters down the smooth slope of the memorial’s paved paths. The fountain channel has been carefully scaled in relation to the human body. People walking around the perimeter path can bend down to touch the water. The low height and ample width of the concrete edge invite sitting with one’s feet in the water, walking along the edge or stretching out to lie down. The watercourse is also scaled to human action. The variations in its current allow people to play different games with its low. The channel is narrow enough for people to step across the water, yet also wide enough for people to walk along in the channel itself. Visitors experience a wide range of sensations through all these interactive performances with the sculptural form. Conclusion Similarly at the MMJE, people explore the The MMJE is a sublime landscape. Those diversity and the challenge of various spatial who wish to mourn for Jewish Holocaust relations to the sculpture. The stelae’s incre- victims may be expecting a memorial that mental changes in height facilitate stepping interprets this tragedy and that makes visi- up onto the upper plane of the ield. The tors think sad thoughts. But these concrete stelae’s close spacing allows people to walk shapes are mute. The dificulty of compre- or jump between their tops. Low stelae near hending this memorial is intended to ill the periphery are ideal for sit on. The ste- visitors with an existential dread which is lae have a similar shape and size to people, appropriate to the memorialisation of enor- they stand on the ground; they are freestand- mous loss. ‘Nothingness’ - the invisible and ing objects which people can interact with. unspeakable - is the message; the nothing- The stelae rows are closely spaced in reach ness of this setting is intended to overwhelm 214 Nothing More than Feelings visitors. The Diana memorial also explains ties, and ‘sound out’ possibilities. nothing about Diana’s life, how she died, or the public’s attitudes toward her. But what References this memorial does achieve is making people happy. BBC News (2002) “Fountain relects Diana’s joy and grief”, 6 December, These abstract memorials, lacking denota- tive or connotative symbols, offer the visi- accessed 2 May 2008 from http://news.bbc. tor nothing more than feelings, by which I co.uk/1/hi/uk/2549263.stm mean sensations. People’s immediate sensory responses and reactions to these two me- Carney, L. S. (1993) ‘Not Telling Us What morial settings are the memorials’ intended to Think: The Vietnam Veteran’s Memorial’, effects. There is no need for interpretation or Metaphor and Symbolic Activity 8(3), 211- mental relection; there is nothing more. 219.

Like all abstract memorials, the Diana me- Eisenman, P. (2005) personal interview, 18 morial and MMJE do not ‘tell people what to August. think’ (Carney 1993). But the kinds of playful, indulgent, sensuous activities observed Fried, M. (1967) ‘Art and Objecthood’, Art- at both sites raise the question of whether forum June, 12-22. these designs encourage visitors to think at all, or, rather, only to perceive, to move, to Goffman, E. (1959) The Presentation of Self act. Constant and diverse distraction of the in Everyday Life (New York, Anchor). sensing body means that visitors to these Latham, A. (1999) ‘The Power of Distrac- memorials are distracted from relecting tion: Tactility and Habit in the work of Wal- upon the victims, the tragedies or the wid- ter Benjamin’, Environment and Planning D er society. This can be contrasted with the 17, 451-73. asceticism and control of ritual behaviours that often become associated with com- Thrift, N. (1997) ‘The Still Point: Resistance, memoration, for example one minute’s si- Expressive Embodiment and Dance’, in S. lence, standing still, lest we forget. The body Pile and M. Keith (eds) Geographies of Re- is taught about tragedy through focused, sistance (London, Routledge). disciplined performances, not uninhibited, exploratory ones. Tuan, Y.-F. (1977) Space and Place: The Per- spective of Experience (Minneapolis, Uni- At these two memorials, people’s perfor- versity of Minnesota Press). mances actively interpret a rich scope of potential interrelations between various sensory perceptions, spatial conditions, possibilities for bodily action, and emo- Acknowledgements tional states. These relations are unmediated by the kinds of strong representational cues This research has been supported by a grant which are typical features of public memo- from the British Academy. rials. People’s actions lead to the discovery of new possible interrelations. Various forms of play observed in these settings highlight people’s active role as they ‘feel their way around’ the landscape, ‘sniff out’ opportuni-

215 Quentin Stevens

Biography

Quentin Stevens is a senior lecturer in urban design. He has a PhD in urban design and degrees in architecture and urban planning. His other research interests include waterfront leisure precincts, urban festivals, and architecture and planning in Antarctica. He recently published The Ludic City: Ex- ploring the Potential of Public Spaces and, with Karen Franck, edited the collection Loose Space: Possibility and Diversity in Ur- ban Life (both Routledge 2007).

216 Materials in Architectural Design: from abstract to objective material information Lisa Wastiels & Ine Wouters Vrije Universiteit Brussel

1. Introduction In this paper we explore the information that is available on materials and discuss the Materials are the physical substances out different types of information that would be of which things are made. In architecture, useful to architects. This study reveals that the materials a building is made out of do the needs of architects in terms of material not only determine what can be built, but information are different from what is pro- also contribute to the overall experience of vided to them now. A framework of mate- an environment. Different materials or ma- rial information is presented that provides terial applications will thus also inluence a a comprehensive overview of the different project differently. In the housing project material aspects important to the architect. by MVRDV in Ypenburg (www.mvrdv.nl), terracotta tiles, metal sheeting, and wooden shingles are used among other materials to cover houses of the same form and volume. 2. Material Information in Ar- Even though this is a very extreme example chitecture – and perhaps not the most material sensitive design – it illustrates how materials in- The most general information that is avail- luence the appearance and experience of a able on materials in architecture is repre- project, house or space. sented in material data sheets. These data sheets are mostly provided by the manu- Designing is more than meeting some func- facturers or material suppliers and contain tional needs; we also design for an experi- technical data, like the density, the modulus ence. When an architect chooses materi- of elasticity, the elongation, the hardness, als, performance aspects are factored in, but the service temperature, the combustibility, also aspects related to the experience and and so forth. Very little attention is given sensorial stimulation take part. An architect to the aesthetics, however. Information on can create the atmosphere he has in mind the available colors, or maybe the degree of by deining space or lighting conditions but glossiness can be included, but most manu- he can also express it through the materials facturers do not take it any further. applied. Similar spaces with similar lighting conditions can lead to different impressions To get an idea of the appearance of prod- when different materials are used. ucts or materials, architects use material

217 Lisa Wastiels & Ine Wouters samples or they look at example projects. decisions during their material selection Some irms, like Material ConneXion®, the process. Can we provide more structured Nordic Innovatèque®, MatériO and Mate- and comprehensive material information ria, offer material sample libraries to their to architects in order to take more abstract clients: they provide physical samples as experience aspects into consideration in a well as technical data sheets, so design- more conscious way? ers can combine two types of information. The use of material samples partially helps architects with the information on aesthetics and experiences but they are mostly a 3. Attributing Properties to fragmented visual aid with little attention for the multimodal experience the material will Materials contribute to. Moreover, these consultancy Through in-depth interviews, architects irms or libraries mainly aim to bring prod- were questioned about the materials that uct designers and architects into contact were used for their projects, how these ma- with new materials, rather than providing terials inluenced the projects, and how the them with comprehensive information on choice for different materials would have materials. altered the project. A qualitative analysis Accompanying the images of the materi- of the interviews, which is extensively deals, Materia provides technical information scribed in (Wastiels et al, 2007), revealed as well as sensorial information in their on- that architects use similar descriptions for line database‘materialexplorer.’1 Glossi- materials, elements, and spaces. Example ness, translucency, texture, hardness, tem- descriptions of materials are ‘colored plas- perature, and acoustics are speciied in the ter,’ ‘metal with a certain texture,’ ‘material datasheet. Even though these aspects seem that was very hard,’ where the attributes are to be described rather informal, we believe linked directly to the materials. When talk- that providing such ‘sensorial’ information ing about elements such as beams, walls in the standard material data sheet can be or ceilings; the architects used material at- very helpful to architects during their ma- tributes to describe these elements: ‘it’s a terial selection process. Providing better hard loor,’ ‘it is an opaque wall,’ ‘a frag- structured and more comprehensive infor- ile element’. Finally, the vocabulary used mation on materials will facilitate the pro- to describe the spaces was also analyzed: cess of comparing different materials based ‘the room is very sunny in its color,’ ‘the art on more objective information. buildings are extremely tough,’ or ‘it is a formal but progressive place’. In order to create some clarity in the enor- mous amount of materials that is made avail- Certain attributes like ‘hardness’ or ‘friend- able to architects nowadays, it is important liness’ were found to be used to describe to deine which characteristics of materials materials, elements, as well as spaces: a hard would be desirable information for archi- material, a hard loor, and a hard space; or a tects. Here, the word ‘desirable’ does not friendly material and a friendly space. This necessarily refer to information on “the as- illustrates that, in terms of descriptive vo- pects they like,” but to the information on cabulary, it does not really matter whether aspects they consider throughout the design architects are naming materials, elements or process – consciously or unconsciously. De- spaces. sirable information for architects thus contains the aspects that actually lead to certain

218 Materials in Architectural Design 4. Framework of Material In- formation

In order to guide architects during their material selection process, it would be useful to provide material information on the Figure 1: Traditional hierarchy of materials, elements, and spaces relecting the construction different aspects considered during the de- industry. sign and material selection process. Based on the framework of material considerations The traditional hierarchy as represented in (Wastiels and Wouters, 2008) and the analy- igure 1 – going from materials to elements sis of the vocabulary used to describe ma- to spaces – relects the construction industry. terials, a framework of material information Construction workers and manufacturers is presented here (igure 2). The different need materials to make elements and they dimensions of materials contributing to the use these elements to create spaces. The de- overall project are presented in increasing sign industry, however, does only partially order of abstraction. rely on this traditional hierarchy. Architects do not select materials for their projects in terms of this hierarchy but in terms of the pre- conditions formed by the context, in combination with the considerations concerning the manufacturing process, the physical aspects and the evoked experience (Wastiels and Wouters, 2008). Because their thought process does not always follow the logic of going from a material, to an element, to a space, architects need supplemental or other information during their design process in order to make justiiable material choices.

Van Kesteren (2008) found that product de- Figure 2: Framework of material information useful signers think in material solutions and do not to architects. really consider the material properties while selecting materials, which makes their material choices very conservative. The analysis of the (1) Manufacturing aspects interviews revealed that architects also have trouble with mastering the properties of mate- The manufacturing aspects refer to the pro- rials, and more speciically the description or duction, assembly or inishing technique. meaning of the properties of materials. Pro- The choice for a speciic technique de- viding a framework with structured material pends on the project context but also on information might help them in understanding the material’s form and physical behavior. the different nuances between materials with- Descriptions of manufacturing aspects in- out solely relying on their gut feeling. Guid- clude sheet-rolled, hand-formed, poured, ing them through the material selection pro- polished, varnished etc. cess based on such a framework, might lead to more conscious material choices, different (2) Physical aspects from traditional applications. The physical aspects of a material de- 219 Lisa Wastiels & Ine Wouters scribe the mechanical, technical, physi- that we also use these terms to describe cal, optical, and thermal behavior of the people’s personality). A material can be material. This information is included in perceived ‘warm’ without the material ac- the standard material data sheets avail- tually being warm according to the tech- able from manufacturers and material da- nical (at high temperature) or sensorial tabases. They are quantiiable and can be (tactile warmth) deinition. measured. Examples are the compression strength, the density, the thermal conduc- (5) Associative aspects tivity, etc. Associations are deined by Ashby and (3) Sensorial aspects Johnson (2002) as making a connection to a time, place, event or person. For ma- The sensorial aspects of a material describe terials, associative aspects relate to the the interaction with the human senses and common uses of a material in a speciic can therefore be divided into visual, tac- culture or context. Similarly to the asso- tile, auditory, olfactory, and taste aspects. ciations considered for a project, associa- The visual aspects include the color, gloss, tive descriptions of materials refer to the and texture of a material; examples of tac- personal memory: associations to things tile aspects are roughness, and warmth; people know from the past or from expe- auditory aspects include dampness, and rience. Bricks might be associated with pitch. Most of the sensorial aspects can tradition, while metals have industrial as- be described based on a combination of sociations. technical parameters. Tactile warmth, for example, can be described by the contact (6) Emotive aspects temperature Tc, which relies on the density, the thermal conductivity, the speciic According to Desmet and Hekkert (2007) heat, and the temperature of the material emotions are elicited by an evaluation sample (Myers, 1971). of an event as potentially beneicial or harmful. In this respect, emotive descrip- (4) Perceptive aspects tions of materials refer to the observer’s subjective response towards a material; Perception is the result of interpreting what they describe how a material makes you is observed (Ashby & Johnson, 2002). feel. A material can be scary, pleasant, or Karana and van Kesteren (2006) deine beautiful. perceptive parameters based on what we think of materials after the sensation. In this respect, perceptive aspects such as formal, though or friendly, describe the 5. Relation between the ele- meaning that we attribute to materials after sensing them. A distinction can be ments of the framework made between material characteristics or Within this scheme the different levels of human characteristics when describing material descriptions can be linked to each perception. Human characteristics, such other. For example, a perception aspect as informal, trendy, or friendly, are con- such as ‘warm’ will depend on a sensory in- cepts that refer to a person’s personality terpretation of warmth (tactile warmth and which is transposed onto materials. Mate- visual warmth) which itself is inluenced by rial characteristics, such as tough, warm, technical or physical material aspects such or rough, also refer to a personality but in as the average roughness, the thermal capac- the form of material characteristics (note 220 Materials in Architectural Design ity, the density, the color, the thickness, the process. In this framework we ind six types texture… Moreover, aspects like the texture of material information, going from least or the roughness can be inluenced by the abstract to most abstract: manufacturing as- manufacturing process (like being polished) pects, physical aspects, sensorial aspects, or the color can be inluence by the material perceptive aspects, associative aspects, and being stained. emotive aspects. This framework allows to draw the relationship between more abstract An architect wanting to create a warm and material information and measurable objec- informal space, might reason back to the tive material information. material properties (sensorial and physical) and manufacturing techniques that can con- 6.1 Approaches to frame- tribute to it. Moving up the framework, going from most abstract to least abstract prop- work erties, a reasoning relation is identiied. On the other hand, the physical and sensorial The framework can help architects in properties of a material applied in a build- choosing materials or taking design deci- ing will affect the perceptive, associative sions through different approaches: starting and emotive interpretations of the building’s from a given material or starting from a dematerial. Moving down the framework, thus sired material experience. The irst option represents a causal relation. would be to start with the speciic technical properties of a given material. The given set The framework allows to draw relations of properties like the density, color, thick- between the different levels and allows to ness, etc. leads to a speciic sensory interpre- create links between measurable mate- tation and perception. More general, when rial information and perception aspects. A choosing to work with a speciic material more thorough description of the experi- without specifying all the physical aspects, ence aspects of materials and a deinition the set of properties could also be a range. of their relation to the material technical as- For example, one could choose to work pects can lead to more thoughtful and well- with plaster without specifying the color or considered material choices. roughness upfront. The range of possible physical properties leads to the extreme values that could be achieved for the sensory interpretation and perception of plaster (ig- 6. Conclusion and discussion ure 3). Through the framework, the designer can mold the inal experience by choosing To conclude, we found in the previous the physical aspects accordingly. To go with study that architects do not explicitly think plaster might thus lead to different experi- in terms of the traditional hierarchy of ma- ences of e.g. softness or warmth based on terials, elements and spaces. They select the chosen physical variables. materials according to a set of precondi- tions and several considerations concerning Another option would be to start from a the manufacturing process, physical aspects desired perception and track what kind of and experience aspects. parameters can be altered to achieve this perception. In this case, the framework of A framework of material information was material information helps in ‘educating’ presented here, which provides a compre- the architect. Multiple paths are possible hensive overview of information that might to alter the perception. There is no deter- be useful to the architect during the design minate relation going up the framework,

221 Lisa Wastiels & Ine Wouters

Figure 3: Use of the framework starting from a set of Figure 4: Use of the framework starting from a dematerial properties. sired aspect of perception. which represents the possible reasoning Further research will focus on the deini- processes of the architect (igure 4). As an tion of the interaction between the different example, starting from a warm experience, material descriptions. We will focus on one moving up the framework one can achieve perception aspect and describe this based warmth through altering the tactile warmth on the physical and technical aspects of the (eg choosing for wood) or the visual warmth material. The aim is to describe the relation- (eg specifying the color). This bottom-up ap- ship between objective measurable techni- proach actually allows to see how one can cal information and the sensory or percep- coordinate certain material experiences. tion level of information in more detail.

6.2 Quantifying descriptions for better selection References

Even though the three experience descrip- Ashby, M. F., & Johnson K. (2002). Materials tions (perceptions, associations and emo- and Design: The Art and Science of Material tions) can be clearly separated conceptual- Selection in Product Design. Oxford; Bos- ly, they overlap at several points and a clear ton: Butterworth-Heinemann. difference between the different groups can be hard to distinguish in practice. For the Desmet, P. M. A., & Hekkert, P. (2007). most subjective descriptions (emotions and Framework of Product Experience. Interna- associations), it is rather hard to formulate tional Journal of Design, 1 (1), 57-66 deinitions for the different aspects. How- ever, for the less abstract aspects (sensorial Karana, E., & van Kesteren, I.E.H. (2006). descriptions, and even perceptions) we be- Material effects: the role of materials in peo- lieve a quantiiable descriptions can be pro- ple’s product evaluations, 5th conference vided that allows architects to make more on Design and Emotion 2006, Göteborg, considerate material choices. A description Sweden, 2006 of the intangible aspects of materials important to architects and designers, can help in Materia. http://www.materia.nl/ bridging the gap between architects and en- gineers/material scientists. Material ConneXion. http://www.material- connexion.com/

222 Materials in Architectural Design Material Explorer. Accessed July 18, 2008, Acknowledgements from http://www.materialexplorer.com/ This research is funded by the Research MatériO. http://www.materio.com/ Foundation – Flanders (FWO), Belgium. Myers, G. (1971). Analytical Methods in Conduction Heat Transfer. USA: McGraw- Hill Book Company. Biographies Nordic Innovatèque. http://www.noin.nu/ index-eng.html ir. arch. Lisa Wastiels is a PhD researcher at the VUB – Vrije Universiteit Brussel, investi- van Kesteren, I. E. H. (2008). Selecting ma- gating the impact of materials on the archi- terials in product design. Doctoral thesis. tectural experience. Her research is funded Delft University of Technology (TU Delft), by the Research Foundation Flanders (FWO) The Netherlands. and aims to describe the relation between experience aspects and the material proper- Wastiels L., & Wouters I. (2008). Material ties. During a one-year stay at the Massa- considerations in architectural design: A chusetts Institute of Technology she worked study of the aspects considered by archi- on the PhD in collaboration with John E. tects for selecting materials, Undisciplined!, Fernandez, associate professor in Building Design Research Society Conference, Shef- Technology. In 2005 she completed the Mas- ield, UK, 2008 ter in Design Studies at Harvard University, after inishing her Architectural Engineering Wastiels L., Wouters I., & Lindekens J. studies at the VUB - Vrije Universiteit Brus- (2007). Material knowledge for Design: The sel in 2004. architect’s vocabulary, Emerging trends in Design Research, International Association dr. ir. arch. Ine Wouters is a professor, of Societies of Design Research (IASDR) teaching building materials, building tech- Conference, Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 2007 nology, timber constructions and renovation techniques at the VUB - Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Belgium. Her research focuses on the redesign, rehabilitation and re-use of existing buildings and structures. She is chairwoman of the Research Lab for Architectur- al Engineering (ae-lab) at VUB. Her current research focuses on the metals used in the 19th century.

223 Sensory Experiences of Home: the construction of home in high density housing context Anna Wieczorek & Magali Paris Architectural and Urban Ambiances Research Center (CRES- SON-UMR CNRS 1563 Grenoble) & Environmental Re- search Unit at Psychology Department (Warsaw University, Poland)

1. Introduction Finally, in the last part, we propose critical discussion of the project: its strengths, its Our research takes place in the context of limits, and the future direction we can give to the dense city by wondering how is it pos- these research. The presented study should sible to dwell together–today–in high den- be regarded as an exploratory project based sity housing contexts . More precisely, we on interdiciplinary theory and methodology wonder how is it possible to reconcile, on in the ield of sensory urbanism. the one hand, the willing of having its own “Home-paradise” and, on the other hand, the unavoidable condition of dwelling in cities as close to each other in a “huis-clos”. 2. Theoretical Background

In the irst part of our paper, we propose According to Martin Heidegger (1954), to explore briely the concept of dwelling dwelling is a way to exist in the world by through a pluridisciplinary literature review acting on it. Human condition is directed by (human geography, sociology, environmen- the vocation of the goddess Cura: we can tal psychology and philosophy). not exist in the world if we have nothing to take care of, nothing to be devoted to (Har- In the second part, we describe the phe- rison, 2007). Day by day, with little gestures nomenological and ethnological methodol- that could have–but not necessarily–materi- ogy we have used and consecutive parts of al impacts, residents make their house be- the works we have implemented in situ. come “dwellable” (Breviglieri, 2006).

In the results section, we present four dif- Following these concepts, we deine dwell- ferent dwelling attitudes more or less ori- ing as the process of making a place of exis- ented to the self or to the outside environ- tence a Home by taking care of the human, ment. We propose for each attitude one natural and built environment that surrounds behavioural and/or material construction us. Residents have in common the skill of that engages one or more senses and satisfy adorning the surroundings of their house particular motivations. We also describe (Raymond, 1984). Gardening empowers the the consequences of these constructions at residents to adorn these surroundings and the community scale. to take care of it in a special way. Garden- ing is “a close at hand form of leisure ac-

224 Anna Wieczorek & Magali Paris tivity” (Kaplan, 1973). Gardening consists construction by sheltering behavioural and of modelling soil and branches and taking material features. According to Jay Apple- care of lowers, leaves and fruits. It consists ton (1990), The “house façade” offers pros- of modelling sensorial materials: perfumes, pect and refuge perspective, and these two textures, colours and shapes (Laroze 1990). qualities combined ease the construction of Moreover, Gardening contributes to the home. modelling and the care of Self and of neighbourhood relationships. Psychologists such In this sense, therefore, we theorize that as Rachel and Stephen Kaplan (1990) and residents “construct sensorially” their home Clare Cooper Marcus (2005) have demon- in order to protect the integrity of their self strated that gardening and the perception of and to shape their relationships with neigh- the garden plays a major role in the con- bours. struction of the self and the idea of Home. Moreover, according to numerous experiments of community gardens, gardening not only consists of manipulating raw materi- 3. Methodology als but also of modelling human relationships (Lewis, 1924, Bass, 1987; Morton, The aim of this paper is to present the Harrison,2007). importance of senses in everyday experience of Home by investigating different Dwelling consists of becoming familiar multi-sensorial (or inter-sensorial) strategies with a place (Tuan, 1977). The familiarity implemented by residents. These strategies process takes time. It requires satisfying are different ways, for the residents, to ex- some psychological primary needs as se- periment and create their own environ- curity, privacy, permanence, control, free- ment. We claim that dwelling modern cit- dom and self-expression (Gunter, 2000). ies is a multi-modal experience (Augoyard, It permits to create some reciprocal affec- 1991; Bromberger, 2007; Sansot, 2006). tive bonds with social and physical famil- The multi-modal perception of the dwelling iar environment (Seamon, 1980; Prohansky, environment, the everyday production and 1978; Tuan, 1977) and consists of construct- reception of sensorial signals through famil- ing conceptual and material layers of familiar activities and the sensory modelling of its iarity. These layers of familiarity can be re- own environment play a major role in the ferred to the concentric static shells around double movement between the inside and the self (Moles, 1992) and also to dynamic the outside that lead to make a place of ex- distances between Self and the others that istence a home. shape social interaction (Hall, 1966). In our study, we want to make a one step further To deine the empirical frames of the study by describing, on micro-level, according to we assumed that human beings construct the “microspherology” concept of Sloterdijk sensorially their home in two ways: materi- (1998), different multi-sensorial strategies ally and conceptually. First, residents con- implemented by people in order to build struct materially the sensory environment their layers of familiarity. they live in trough action on and shaping it with their daily activities. Second, residents Our research focuses on the surroundings construct conceptually their home: they of the house, located between the private have memories, fantasies and expectations sphere and the common or public sphere. of their sensorial experiences that contrib- The surroundings of the house can tell the ute to a subjective representation of their story of material and conceptual home living environment.

225 Sensory Experiences of Home

Taking into account these assumptions, our (sociability circles). research has been implemented through an interdisciplinary phenomenological per- Then we proceeded with a content quali- spective. In reference to Seamon (1980), tative analysis of the gathered materials by the notion of immersion into the world and using Nvivo 7.0 software. of world experience are crucial concepts for this study as a researcher’s attitude questioning the in situ and as a way to understand residents’ experience. 4. Results

We have adopted the grounded theory We revealed, throughout our analysis, dif- approach to work on the topic (Strauss & ferent inter-sensory strategies of home con- Corbin, 1990) that consists to extract hy- struction. In high-density housing contexts, pothesis from the collected research mate- we observed that building home consists of rial and permits to work toward a dynami- shaping it and behaving within it accord- cal approach. Our evolutive methodology ing to the way we would like to be related proposition consisted of more than one in to neighbours. We organized these inter- situ visit and of constant feedback between sensory strategies in 4 groups: 4 dwelling data collection and analytical work in order attitudes more or less oriented to Self or to to ind the best itting tools to work on multi- the world: irst “Turned on to Self”, second sensorial, everyday experience of Home. “Opened to the world”, third “Within the community” and last “On the limits...”. We have proposed tools and techniques issued from social sciences. These tools and techniques could be suitable for the observation and the description of Home construction process. Semi-structured interviews were conducted on each site. During Figure 1: Dwelling attitudes. our irst visit, the interviews were focused on general features of the place and on the Shapes of the house surroundings and relations that residents have developed with behaviours adopted by residents within it their place. During second and further vis- constitute a living and unstable landscape, its, the interviews were oriented towards a “sensoryscape”, where sensorial signals– description of multi-sensorial strategies of produced and received–are circulating. We Home construction, their motivations and present 4 situations involving the senses, their impacts at the community scale. We each one is related to one of the four dwell- assumed residents may have dificulties in ing attitudes. Either the situation was ob- speaking about daily life, expressing feel- served or/and it has been told to us by the ings and fantasies about their place, there- residents. We describe them answering the fore we have used some techniques refer- following questions: which senses do the ring to the projective mechanism in order to residents involve while acting? Why did facilitate this type of discourse. These pro- they act this way, what motivates them to jective techniques were oriented irst to in act this way? What are the consequences situ perception (commented garden tours), of their action at the community scale, how second to spatial place representation (men- neighbours perceive their action and how tal mapping, seasonal sensory images of the do they act back? garden, visual reactivation upon pictures of the place) and social place representation By answering these questions, we de-

226 Anna Wieczorek & Magali Paris scribe design process of home construction time, anchored in the middle of his terrace, implemented by residents through their be- sensorially isolated from his environment, haviours and the manner they shape their Arnaud creates his own soundscape. Each house surroundings. This manner of talk- member of the community understands the ing about how residents dwell sensorially code “iPod listening” that Arnaud created to could be the sketch of an interdisciplinary mean he want to be alone. Residents could tool that get disciplines oriented to the indi- also isolate themselves by avoiding to come vidual and disciplines oriented to the space into visual contact or by adopting a “not to to enter into dialogue. We show that senses get caught” behaviour by hiding behind and are mobilised by residents in order to sat- remaining silent. The shaping of the garden isfy basic psychological needs. Moreover could also be the support of different clo- the reception and the production of senses sure process that involve touch and sight are embedded in the management of neigh- and sometimes smell sense. bourhood relationships. Finally, the sensory way residents feel, act and interact transforms the common conception of a place, far beyond its spatiality.

Figure 3: Being “opened to the world”.

At a different time, Arnaud adopts anoth- Figure 2: Being “turned on to self”. er dwelling attitude: he is “Opened to the world”. Being “Opened to the world” con- The dwelling attitude of being “Turned on sists of being sensorially receptive to neigh- to Self” could be illustrated with closure to bours and willing to get caught by them. outer sensorialities. Sometimes, Arnaud is Arnaud is very found of jazz music, in com- staying alone and according to him in tran- mon with 2 of his neighbours. A jazz drum- quillity in the middle of his terrace whereas mer lives and practices there. When Arnaud every neighbour could come to him as there is in the mood of exchanging with neigh- is no door closing his terrace and every bours, he puts jazz music on, quite loud so neighbour could partially see him as gar- as it to be understood, to invite neighbours dens are separated from each other’s with to share it with him and to come to see him. semi-permeable bamboo hedges. He could Reciprocally, Arnaud could be sound recep- be there in tranquillity since he is listen- tive for listening to jazz music. Arnaud de- ing to his iPod. Therefore, he is less recep- scribed his dwelling place as a place where tive to sound and visual signals and show personal worlds circulate. This circulation to the others by wearing his headphones leads to the construction of common pref- that he does not want to communicate with erences. To make its music being heard is them, that he wants to be outside the so- often a feature of the spatially introverted cial world for a while. During this intimate places we studied. The residents want to

227 Sensory Experiences of Home show their preferences and share them with neighbours. The house surroundings shelter limits very permeable to senses. On the façade of the house–through curtains, windows and doors–and through different spatial sequences of the garden, residents could adopt behavioural codes mainly related to sound and sight in order to communicate and to share moments.

By learning how to dwell together, the residents build community rules based on Figure 4: Being “Within the Community”. the behaviours that should be adopted and shape their personal gardens and the common spaces according to a community spirit. The attitude of being “Within the com- The behavioural codes are adopted in or- munity” consists of inluencing each other’s der to avoid to trouble. Behavioural codes on lifestyle and garden shaping, of taking are a set of rules adopted for the community common decisions and of acting together comfort. according to common motivations. Arnaud and his wife decided to light their garden, Finally, we bring to the fore the dwelling mainly composed of 3 bamboo hedges attitude that is “On the limits...”. In some on each of its sides, with hangings–called contexts, behavioural codes are not system- PodLens–hooked in the bamboo. PodLens atically understood and private and common are quite expensive hangings, created by a surroundings could be more or less deinite. famous designer. They make reference in the Furthermore, having control over the home socio-professional world of Arnaud’s com- limits is a psychological basic need. There- munity. Seeing the lighting in the bamboo fore, residents could focus their attention in- that the PodLens created and after talking to- between their home and outside by shaping gether about it, 5 others neighbours chose to its limits. buy the same hangings. Therefore, 6 neighbours out of 8 have set up the same garden Josette (igure 5) is dwelling in a ground lighting. According to them, this lighting is loor apartment totally different spatially important as a part of community identity, and socially from Arnaud’s one. The 15-sto- it creates a kind of continuity between the rey building is opened to the public space. different houses visually and mentally as it Josette reaches her home through a little is a shared choice. For the residents, the garden she set up on her doorstep and stairs bamboo and its lighting is the main sensory and on a small public path that reaches the feature of their dwelling place. The spatial street. Her garden is accessible from the common choices often concern the garden public space and more or less respected by separation and therefore often conditioned the passer-by. Josette sets up a “to be seen the closure and the opening of the garden. garden” that is always changing according to seasons and special events as Christmas, and she has to pay an everyday attention, she has to be there, to control that what she did is not being damaged by people and domestic animals. By coupling sight and touch senses, Josette try to signal her presence and

228 Anna Wieczorek & Magali Paris to give intimacy to her home surroundings. the community organization. Her “on the limits…” dwelling attitude consists of distancing others from her home We presented each dwelling attitude by investing continuously the space. Even through one example. Each dwelling atti- if limits are more deined, like they are in tude could be incarnated in very different Arnaud’s dwelling place, limits are always situation according to the space organiza- prospect places from where it is possible to tion, to the sensory properties of the dwell- observe and control. Private places could ing place, to the social composition and to always be invaded, with glances, objects, the dwelling times. The described dwelling sounds and smells, even if their limits are attitudes characterise the affordances of a impassable. Limits are places of tension. place, a scope of possibilities that the resi- Each resident shapes their limits and be- dents can seize to build their Home. haves around them in a very personal way, that’s there, on the limits, that the affordanc- The evolving methodology, we proposed es of a place are strongly revealed. for the study, permits to follow the changes of places and people and to deine some stakes of the conception based on evidences of usage. We have demonstrated that a process of home construction goes beyond the construction of the building. Residents make their place a Home by adaptive and creative actions. This is the way they produce unique, multi-sensory ambiances in their dwelling place. These studies reveal the competencies developed by the residents through dwelling and permits to think space as an evolving place.

By making the sensorialities the key con- Figure 5: Josette’s Apartment. cept of our study, we gathered and described very subtle, often ephemeral, strategies that 5 Discussion facilitate the relations with and to the world. These strategies, observed on very different, The present results describe the process of individual or community level, provide the multi-sensory construction of Home. We feeling of security, control over the environ- have assumed that residents construct sen- ment and continuity, therefore permit to call sorially their Home to protect the integrity a place Home. of their self while shaping their relationships with neighbours. Therefore our research has The results demonstrate also that the man- been focused on the interactions between agement of “dwelling together” in the dense, residents and their dwelling environment urban housing context pass more by multi- to make their place a Home. We have de- sensory strategies of coping than is based on scribed 4 dwelling attitudes illustrated by be- static space limitations proposed at the behavioural and place shaping actions. These ginning of the project. Therefore for further actions involve different senses, they are led dense buildings, it should be worthy of in- by personal and collective motivations and vestigation, with observation of inhabitants they have consequences on the community actions in order to learn from the process. scale, on inter-personal relationships and on We hope some of the presented evidences

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