meditation space
David Vaculik
concept The second concept is based on the books The Eyes of the Skin and The Thinking Hand by a Finnish architect Juhani Pallasmaa which focus on human senses. I would like to define a space where human senses are sharpened and each of us can realize the magnitude of their own personality. Suppress perception only through vision, focus on the other senses and combine all senses. To teach our hands to see and eyes to touch and care. To create aura for matter and empty space to enhance perception, recognition of proximity and distance, presence and absence. Confuse and guide a human to recognize perceived and imagined. Provide a space for meditation, private adoration, prayer. Lead a human to introspection using verticality, horizontality, material and weight. The purpose of land as a border is to define a clear target. Use senses to distort existing experience, to fall for direction, visualize the space, and guide to the end. At the same time I would like to present my work to blind people, expand field of vision to all the visitors and use their skills and experiences to reach meditation and dialog within themselves.
meditation Meditation is an experience of relaxing the body, quieting the mind and awakening the spirit. It encourages a deeper understanding of self and others. There are thousands of meditation techniques that have been developed and practised over 5 000 years. Four categories:
.Concentrative
Assists with focusing the mind. We are focusing on: breath, imageand an objective or sound. It is based in the Hindu tradition.
.Receptive
Assists with becoming more fully present in the moment. This is done by being mindful and attentive to feelings, sensation, thoughts, images and smells This helps to be calmer and clearer. Based on Buddhism.
.Reflective
Assists with investigating an idea in a systematic way. Using thinking and analysis to answer a question, challenge or idea. It brings wisdom to our lives.
.Generative
Assists in cultivating and strengthening specific quelities: patience, love, compassion, courage. Benefits of meditation are higher level of energy, creativity, spontaneity lower blood pressure, better concentration, decreased stress, depression, anxiety. ...And much more!
guided meditation 1 Calm down
2 Create a setting
3
Imagination & Creativity
4 Back to reality
Listen to my guided meditation https://goo.gl/CPmEsu
meditation 1 - house Intro
Hello and welcome to the meditation session focused on imagination. As we begin, find a quiet place away from surrounding distractions. Sit with a straight back in a position which feels comfortable and close your eyes. Notice the areas where the chair, sofa or a bed is supporting your body. Feel the spot where your feet touch the ground. Slow down. Slow down your thoughts. Slow down your reactions. Slow down your entire body. Imagine your thoughts are clouds in a sky. They come in... and go. Just as your mind, the sky may be clear on a sunny day. Other times, it may be cloudy with lots of clouds moving quickly in the wind. Try letting go of your thoughts. Let the clouds pass through the sky and disappear in the far. Now, gently bring your attention to your breath. Feel the cold sensation at the tip of your nose as you inhale the air. Notice how your chest expands as your lungs get filled with air. Take a deep breath. When you inhale, relax. As you exhale, exhale the stress out of your body. If you notice your thought are drifting away, gently bring your attention back to the breath. Now, breath in, breath out Breath in, breath out Breath in, breath out Continue breathing on your own. Remember, if you notice you have any thoughts, let the clouds pass and gently bring your attention back to the breath.
Setting
Imagine you are driving a car out of a noisy city. The radio is playing your favourite music. Do you drive really fast or slow? What do you see when you drive? Do you see a countryside or a forest? Maybe you see mountains, maybe you see a beach full of people. As you drive further and further the rich landscape unfolds before your eyes. As you take turns, you start thinking about your destination. What will it be? Where are you driving? Just as the picture starts taking a shape in your mind, you hear the navigation beeping as it signals you reached your destination. As you step out of the car and look around, it has become clear to you this is the most beautiful place you have ever been to, it's your ideal place. What is it? Maybe it's a house, maybe a block of flats, maybe a tiny tent. You are feeling happy and warm. Spontaneously, you imagine your family talking and children playing in the garden. You feel like home, you feel safe. You decide to take a closer look at your ideal place. You start walking through the driveway. As you get closer, what do you see? As you reach into your pocket, you realize there's a set of keys. You step towards an entrance to your ideal place and put the key into the lock. You unlock the door. The sound of the door-unlocking resonates so immensely, that it feels as if you unlocked a place within yourself.
Imagination
As you step inside, what do you see? Maybe you can see a long or a wide hall, maybe you see a living room or maybe some kind of public place. Perhaps you can smell some flowers nearby. What kind of flowers are they? Perhaps roses or chamomiles... Maybe you smell someone baking a cake. Maybe you smell something else. Where is the smell coming from? Are you curious? Do you want to explore the place? Imagine the whole space you're in.
As you step into one of the rooms, you take a deep breath and look around. What kind of room are you in? Do you see plain walls or are there any pictures or paintings? What about the colour of the walls? What colour fits this place? Maybe there's a furniture. What kind of furniture fits there nicely? Are you alone in the room? What else do you see? Now you decide to take a minute for yourself and sit down. What are you sitting on? Is it a chair, sofa or perhaps a bed? You keep calm and breath slowly. The air you are breathing is coloured. It's your favourite colour. It's the good colour. Picture this colour. Imagine this colour moving through your whole body as you breath it in. Now take notice of the areas in your body that don't feel good. Take notice of any negative emotion or sensation in your body. You may feel stress, sadness, anger, or hurt in those places. Perhaps a physical pain. Picture those areas in your body. What kind of colour are those places? As you inhale, inhale the good colour. Notice how it fills your whole body with revitalizing and healing energy. It makes you feel good and warm. As you exhale, exhale the bad colour. Imagine it, leaving your body, along with any negative emotion that you might have. Breath in, breath out Breath in, breath out Breath in, breath out You feel relaxed and energized, full of enthusiasm and curiosity. You wonder, what other rooms are in this place? As you exit the room back to the hall, you realize there is so much to explore. Take notice of all the possible rooms or features of this place that you could explore. One of the room stands out to you and you decide to go in. Wow, you think. What a wonderful place. This is not an ordinary room. It's full of ideas, yet it's simple and elegant in its design. Notice all the wonderful features in this room. It's evident to you what is the purpose of this place. Whether it's aesthetics or utility, every feature of this room is purposeful. Picture those features. This room has a particular atmosphere to it. How does it make you feel? You notice the window and you are curious what can be seen outside. What do you see? Maybe you can see a forest or a lake. Perhaps there are ducks or swans swimming on the water surface. Are there any fisherman waiting for their catch? Is there a flock of birds in the sky? And what about that forest? Is it coniferous or deciduous? Can you see an anthill in the corner? Tiny ants are talking to each other trying to find nicest sticks to build their home. You notice the weather. Is it a beautiful sunny and warm day in summer? Or is it raining or even snowing? "What a beautiful view", you keep thinking. As you turn back to the room, you think again about how wonderful this place is. You think, "How come, can someone else access my mind, in such way, that they can construct a place that is so perfectly suited for me?". It's almost as if you designed it yourself. You think, "Maybe it was me who designed this place. Maybe I have always had this ability to express and materialize great ideas hidden deeper in my mind." You decide it's time to go, but you don't feel sad, you leave knowing you can re-visit this place anytime you want to. As you're getting into the car you take one last look at the place. Then you drive back to the city. This time you remember the road and its turns. When you return to the place where your journey started, you take a seat. Knowing, such great creations can come from your mind makes you feel empowered, fulfilled and happy.
Outro
Now gently bring your attention back to the room. Notice the different sounds around you. Gently wiggle your fingers... You can stretch your body if you want to. And when you're ready, open your eyes.
meditation 2 - city Intro
Begin by finding a comfortable position and allowing your body to begin to relax. You may want to close your eyes, or focus your gaze on one spot in the room. Turn your attention inward, noticing how you are feeling right now. Notice where your body is the biggest tense, and take a few moments to relax these tense areas. Imagine your thoughts are waves on a sea. They come... and go back to the ocean. Just as your mind, the ocean may be peaceful on a sunny day. Other times, it may be a storm with lots of big waves moving quickly in the never-ending infinity. Try letting go of your thoughts. Let the waves pass through the sea and disappear in the far. Take a deep breath in, and as you breathe out, lower your shoulders into a relaxed position. Breathe in again, and relax your hands as you exhale. Relax your legs with your next breath. Relax your jaw as you exhale again. Keep breathing slowly and calmly, letting your body relax a bit more with each breath out. Release tension each time you exhale... feeling your body sinking... relaxing... becoming loose...
Setting
Imagine you are walking a street in a historical city. From your headphones on your ears you can hear your favourite music. Or perhaps you don’t have any headphones on and you are just walking the streets and you are listening to them. It lives on its own. Do you walk slow or fast? What do you see around? Maybe you see very old buildings, maybe you see new buildings. Maybe there is a marketplace and many people whispering and talking over each other. There might be very peaceful town square with some palms, flowers and fountains with just a few people. As walk further and further the city, another streets unfolds before your eyes. As you take turns, you start thinking about your destination. What will it be? Where are you going? Do you have a destination at all? Imagination and creativity You keep walking the streets exploring a city. It’s so beautiful day, no clouds, just sunny weather, warm and a little bit windy. You are walking through some gates made of flowers. They are so gorgeous! There are some celebrations in the city, you think. You are enjoying the beautiful day… Until you came to the main square. What can you see? You decide to take a closer look. You are absorbed by the atmosphere. You smell something and you hear something. What is it? Are you curious? Do you want to explore the place? Imagine the whole space you're in. Is it a fountain what you can hear and birds singing? Are there some people? Maybe there is a gate or a monument made of flowers and many people talking to each other and celebrating. Maybe there is just a few people chilling on benches around the square. As you step into the space, you take a deep breath and look around. What kind of square is it? Are there some historical or modern buildings? Or perhaps some buildings from another world, you saw them in a book when you were a child. Now, you grew up and you are the architect, focus on details of every building around. What about the rubbish? Is it a nice place or neglected? Does it fit to the city? Are there any accessories on the ground? What kind of benches and lights are there? Do you like it or not? What else can you see? You notice really nice shop with interesting window shop.
What is inside the shop? Are there some beautiful dresses on a mannequin or are there some train toys or maybe some new equipment for drawing and painting? You want to go in so much. You step in that shop and you look around. You haven’t ever seen a shop like this before. What colours are inside? What is the atmosphere? You can see shelves with so many things on them. You want to try everything. Can you smell something? Maybe there are some sweets you would like to try. And you can. How do they taste? Maybe it’s another type of shop where you can taste everything you see.
Outro
Now gently bring your attention back to the room. Notice the different sounds around you. Gently wiggle your fingers... You can stretch your body if you want to. And when you're ready, open your eyes and become fully alert, refreshed and filled with energy.
meditation 3 - landscape Intro
Get comfortable. Sit in a supportive chair or lie on your back. Relax your body by releasing any areas of tension. Allow your arms to go limp, then your legs. Feel your arms and legs becoming loose and relaxed. Now relax your neck and back by relaxing your spine, release the hold of your muscles all the way from your head, down your neck, along each vertebra to the tip of your spine. Now, breath in, breath out Breath in, breath out Breath in, breath out Continue breathing on your own. Become more and more relaxed with each breath. Feel your body giving up all the tension, becoming relaxed, calm and peaceful. Feel a wave of relaxation flow from the soles of your feet, to your ankles, lower legs, hips, chest, back, hands, lower arms, upper arms, shoulders, neck, back of your head, face, and the top of your head. Remember, if you notice you have any thoughts, let them pass and gently bring your attention back to the breath.
Setting
Imagine you’re in a paradise, in the oasis of the world. You are sitting on a grass, looking on a lake in the middle of nowhere somewhere in the rain forest. Birds are singing, frogs are croaking. You notice a fish in the lake for a while. There are also monkeys and other animals at the lake. You can rest now. After a while of resting, you decide to go explore the island. You can hear waves and seagulls, there is an ocean very near you! You are walking toward the ocean, walking through a beautiful, tropical forest. You can hear the waves up ahead, you can smell the ocean spray, the air is moist and warm. Feel a pleasant, cool breeze blowing through the trees.
Imagination
You walk along a path. There are flowers, trees and creatures along the path you haven’t ever seen or even imagined they could possibly exist. You are coming closer to the sea. As you come to the edge of the trees, you see the brilliant aqua colour of the ocean ahead.
You walk out of the forest and onto a long stretch of white sand, the sand is very soft powder. Imagine taking off your shoes, and walking through the hot, white sand toward the water. The beach is wide and long. You can hear the waves crashing to the shore, smell the clean salt water and beach, you gaze again toward the water, it is a bright blue-green with white clouds. See the waves washing up onto the sand and receding back toward the ocean, washing up and flowing back down. Enjoy the ever-repeating rhythm of the waves. Imagine yourself walking toward the water, over the fine, hot sand, you are feeling very hot. As you approach the water, you can feel the mist from the ocean on your skin. You walk closer to the waves, and feel the sand becoming wet and firm. A wave washes over the sand toward you and touches your toes before receding. As you step forward, more waves wash over your feet. You can feel the cool water provide relief from the heat. Walk further into the clear, clean water, you can see the white sand under the water, the water is a pleasant, relaxing temperature; providing relief from the hot sun, cool but not cold. You walk further into the water, swim if you want to, enjoy the ocean for a few minutes‌ Now you are feeling calm and refreshed. You walk back out of the water and onto the beach. Stroll along the beach at the water's edge, free of worries, no stress, calm, enjoying this holiday. Up ahead is a comfortable lounge chair and towel, just for you. Sit or lie down in the chair, or spread the towel on the sand, relax on the chair or towel, enjoying the sun, the breeze, the waves. You feel peaceful and relaxed, allow all your stresses to melt away. Outro If you are ready, gently bring your attention back to the room. Give yourself a few moments to reawaken and get reoriented to your surroundings. Open your eyes, stretch if you want to, allowing your body to reawaken. Open your eyes and look around, returning to full alertness. When you are completely awake and alert you can proceed with your day.
senses
In the first experiment I put a bag on my head. In the inside of the bag were three LED diodes, which my friend controls. When one of them turn on, I had to turn round in the right direction and take a step. Right, left or straight and reach the finnish.
In the second experiment I put a scarf on my head. My friend had a jar full of clay. I had to turn my head round untill I found the smell of clay and took a step. In the both experiments I reach the finish.
straight terrain
sloping terrain
Then I tried the same on the sloping terrain. From the previous experience I knew the end is down the street. It was much easier reach the finish, because my feet felt the sloping terrain.
mandala in architecture mandala
rose window
dome
secred geometry The point
The circle
The seed of life
The egg of life
The flower of life
Vesica piscis
The tree of life
The fruit of life
platonic solids Metatron‘s cube
Platonic solids
Metatron‘s cube
Star Tetrahedron
Hexahedron
Octahedron
Dodecahedron
Icosahedron
wired mandala
wired mandala
mandala movements 1
mandala movements 2
mandala movements 3
mandala scale
Portable construction +1,500
0,000
1:100
Intimite space
+3,000
0,000
1:100 Monument in landscape
+6,000
0,000
1:200
meditation live
photos
meditation live
analysis
I made meditation with my classmates on the top of Castell De San Fernando, which we chose because of a beautiful park around and view from the top of the hill. In the evening there is calm surroundings so we thought it could be good to take place a meditation there. We climbed the hill to the top and I told them to sit however they want. Everybody sat with crossed legs. When I asked them why, they told me it is the most comfortable position for them. The beginning of meditation they were not calmed down so they were chuckling while and they moved a little with their fingers and toes, till they found a position totally comfortable for them. When the part of calming down and calming breath started they also started to calm down their thoughts and they fully dived into the meditation. After that they were calmed and focused. For me was surprising that they didn’t show their emotions even they imagined a place very familiar for them. I always thought we show our emotions when we are trying to imagine something, I think it is because we are focused and it is not necessary to show them. But sometimes they showed them, I think it was the strongest moment in the meditation for them, but it was individual. I can’t find a moment when it was the strongest for everybody. In the middle of meditation, some of them changed the position of their body and also the position of their hands. It is not that easy to sit in one position 15 minutes, it’s because what body needs. Moving a little if it’s for too long time. After a meditation they followed the instructions and they did exactly I told them. They started to move their body from the smaller parts of body to the biggest. I don’t have it in my film because it was a little bit dark and I can’t see anything in the mobile phone. When they came back to ‘reality’ they were a little bit surprised it is so dark around and the Castillo de Santa Bárbara was illuminated so the scenery was magical, it was like they forgot about time and about a place in the meditation and they had a smile on their lips. On our way back home, we were talking about the meditation and I think it really works because they were happy, relaxed and fresh to do some new things in their life. Also, I asked them to draw me something they imagined and fill in the survey I have made. I have one picture from Gabriela and I am still waiting for others. But about a survey I asked them for some things they imagined, how they felt and about some basic questions about meditation. I asked them how they cope with stress, everybody answered they listen to music, it’s not that surprising for me, it’s the easiest and the best way how to calm down and I think everybody does it this way. Another question what surprised me a little was a question how often do they use mental imagination and visualisation when they are working on a project, two of them answered that they do very often but one of them does it just sometimes. I think for architect it’s the most important thing. Also when I asked if they ever tried to meditate, one of them said that she used in the past Schultz method. One of them hasn’t ever had a need to and one of them didn’t know how to do it.
meditation live
analysis
During the meditation they had only positive feelings. Free, satisfied, peaceful, happy and they felt relaxed, what was also a positive effect they felt. For everyone it was easy or very easy to imagine something. I wanted from them to imagine a place which is their ideal place where they are feeling the most peaceful. Everyone imagined a scene from the past in a nature with a beautiful view on mountains and forest. Also a scene from the past like grandma’s house. They highlighted the voice, music and they think the meditation gave them some directions in focusing and calming down. When I asked on negatives, there is much time about breathing so I considered my future records might be more focused on imagination then on breathing exercise. The place we considered as an ideal place in Alicante for meditation (Castillo de San Fernando) is not that good in the evening. There was a little bit too cold and windy, also a little bit noisy than we assumed. But not that noisy, there were not people and noisy streets with cars neither. I also asked them where they would like to meditate, the answers were different. They would like to meditate in the nature, home on the top of the roof of home in their beds. The last questions the agreed on everything, it was a good experience for them, they would like to meditate again on their own in the future and they recommend it to everybody.
the movement of body The visitor has to bend his body to reach the point in the middle of construction and sit.
flower opening
membrane structure closing mandala using membrane
Opened
Closed
Weather protection: rain, wind and sun Intimity
Using heat-sensitive material: When is sunny, mandala opens, because the membrane structure stretches. When is cloudy or rains, mandala closes.
the movement of mandala
The lower part is connected to the top, when one of them moves, the other one moves in the different direction. When the top is closed - the lower part is opened. When the bottom is closed - the top is opened.
Opened
Closed
Closed
Opened
Changing the shape of membrane
Opened
Closed
Closed
Opened
size of circles
Achieve anthropomorphic construction changing the size of circles
asymetric size (4 different length of wire) . don‘t allow the effect of opening and closing . the meeting point of circles isn‘t in the middle of main circle . causes deformation .
meditation armour
1st idea
meditation x auditorium
final idea
meditation x defensive armour for soldiers
1st design cocoon
1/2
1700
2/2
2/4 3/3 4/2
5
1
1/2
2
2/2 300.0
300.0
200
.0
0 0.
15
2/4
4/2
5
3/3
350.0
4
3 225.0
175
.0
300.0
100
.0
125
.0
2nd design 3-modes design
MODE 1
MODE 2
OPEN BOTTOM PART
MODE 3
FULL PROTECTION
MEDITATION PROTECTION
knit wear
wire wear
wire wear
experiment photos
experiment photos
final design dimensions drawing
BODY
FRONT
BACK
Circumference [cm] 42 40 38 36
38 40 42
30
42 40
40
how it works
arms (sleeves)
how it works legs (trousers)
final design photos
final design photos
proyectos 5 David Vaculik