Sensory Spaces 1: The Senses & Designed Environment

Week 1 content - Introduction to course and the first lecture on sensory spaces. How the senses are effected by the designed environment and how senses should be considered when designing.

Sight, one of the 5 senses and probably one of the most used in design.

"A tool for developing design problems and making design judgements."

Barbra Adkins speaks of the design judgement has 4 factors:

1. "A better understanding of judgement is needed if we want to improve our design ability in an intentional manner".

2. "Judgement is a key dimension in the process of design."

3. "The ability to make design judgements is what distinguishes a designer as a designer."

4. "The ability to make good design judgements distinguishes good design."

She goes on to talk about home, homes are spaces already designed, we can see patterns and what the emotions are of the home. How we dream about a home emits the sense of comfort and security.

Merleau-Ponty:

"Knowing comes as much from embodied experience as it does from thought and reflection. Sensation leaves impressions on the body."

Thinking, which is an embodied experience, causes thought and reflection. Experiences meditated by the senses are things such as smell & memory or feeling of sunlight = warmth. We know how to type without looking, knowing through the hand not being conscious of every letter in which we type.

Understanding of senses is important in order to design well, if a client feels uncomfortable in a space that is cluttered then the spaces designed would be minimalistic rather than layered, natural colours would be used rather than many bright ones. This is is designing with sensory in mind, to make the space comfortable for a client without overwhelming the senses. However we need to try and consider more senses rather than just sight.

Notes taken in class: