The Experience of Architecture

by Henry Plummer

A thought-provoking consideration of how architecture, from a doorknob to a city plan, can influence human behavior How does the experience of turning a door handle, opening a door from one space into another, affect us? It is no wonder that the door, one of the most elemental architectural forms, has such metaphorical richness. But even on a purely physical human level, the cold touch of a brass handle or the swish of a sliding screen gives rise to an emotional reaction, sometimes modest, occasionally profound. This book aims to understand how these everyday acts are influenced by architectural form, a concept that is vital for all architects to grasp. It considers how specifically built elements and volumes, taken from a wide array of buildings and settings around the world, can affect our powers of decision. From hand-carved stairs in Greek villages to free-floating catwalks, from the elegant processional steps of Renaissance Italy to Frank Lloyd Wright’s masterly manipulation of form, all provide very different experiences of stepping from one level to the next, and all affect our experience of that space. Seamlessly integrating text and image, each chapter focuses on a different aspect of our daily interactions with architecture, looking at stairs, floors and paths, moving interior spaces, perception and perspective, transparency and the relationship between a building and its setting. This book is not just for architects and designers engaged in the production of space, but for all those who seek a richer understanding of their place in the built world. 275+ illustrations, 250+ in color

Genres: Architecture, Design

288 pages, Hardcover

First published November 15, 2016

Reviews

[Ben · Rating 1 out of 5]

Tried/wanted to enjoy it, but way too much text and pretentious wording to actually consume.

[Michael · Rating 2 out of 5]

The premise is interesting, the images are excellent and provocative, the book design is elegant and inviting.

But the writing is horrible, almost unreadable. Every sentence is distorted into the passive voice, inverting sentence-orders at random. Again and again I found myself stumbling through paragraphs, consciously working to assign subjects and verbs, translating into language that made sense to me. The effort required left me uncertain of the overall meaning of what the author was getting at, which meant more effort to summarize the meanings, paragraph by paragraph.

[Lorenzo Diaz campos · Rating 5 out of 5]

Estamos acostumbrados a leer y consultar libros de arquitectura que, en más o menos largas reseñas, describen elemento por elementos edificios y construcciones. Pero ¿Es en realidad así como vivimos la arquitectura?
Henry Plummer hace un acercamiento diferente a la arquitectura, su objetivo es mirarla, analizarla y entenderla desde el punto de vista vivencial. El autor se pregunta ¿Qué pasa una vez que giras la perilla de bronce de una puerta? ¿Cómo la vivencia misma de la arquitectura cambia la arquitectura misma y como las arquitecturas notables, cambiando las vivencias antes existentes, han catapultado nuevos tipos de vivencias.
Con un texto muy rico y una continuidad deliciosa con ricas referencias visuales Plummer nos lleva de la mano, a través de sus capítulos, por los diferentes elementos y aspectos de la arquitectura. Usando referencias de los grandes maestros y detalles de sus mágicas ceraciones vamos conociendo un enfoque diferente del mundo construido.
El libro abarca muchos aspectos del estudio y entendimiento de la única de las bellas artes que se recorre, que se habita. Como pocos el autor nos da a conocer la disciplina como una creadora de vivencias, de experiencias. Un texto que nos permite conocer, acercarnos a la arquitectura desde un punto de vista más humano.