Architecture as a Social Construction Architects may have a particular vision for how a building will fit in to the surrounding landscape and what purpose it will serve, but it’s people who use them on a day-to-basis and help to ascribe meaning to the structure. Alongside artistic and cultural concerns, sociological considerations should be taken into account in the design of buildings, argues Dr Silke Steets. The Social Construction of Reality was very well received by the scientific community when it was published in 1966, providing a new perspective on human thought, and it still ranks among the most important sociology books today. Written by the sociologists Peter L. Berger and Thomas Luckmann, the book brought together different strands of sociology that were previously only loosely connected, now Dr Silke Steets aims to extend their ideas to the material realm, in particular the architectural field. “The built environment is a core aspect of our daily lives, so my idea was that we need to think about buildings from a sociological point of view, and Berger and Luckmann’s sociology of knowledge is most helpful here,” she outlines. The traditional approach to architecture emphasises artistic and cultural concerns, but now Dr Steets wants to help create a wider perspective. “I want to create more sensitivity around the views of the ordinary users of buildings, and how ordinary people perceive buildings,” she explains.
Sociology of knowledge This work draws heavily on the ideas of Berger and Luckmann outlined in The Social Construction of Reality. The two authors developed a concept of the sociology of knowledge which includes not only philosophical ideas, but what passes for knowledge in people’s daily lives. “This everyday perspective is what I gain from Berger-Luckmann,” says Dr Steets. Based at the University of Leipzig in Germany, Dr Steets is now applying
these ideas to architecture, with an awareness that a building is at the same time both a material and a symbolic construction. “We talk about significant buildings in public space and engage in discourse about it. This would be one example of socially ascribing meaning to a building,” continues Dr Steets. “Another level would be looking at the everyday way in which people use buildings. Therefore, we need a multi-faceted approach to understanding how buildings become meaningful to us.”
Dr Steets. “A good architect analyses the spatial and social situation, and then makes a suggestion on how it could be improved.” This starts from detailed analysis of the overall situation, and Dr Steets believes sociological considerations should be taken into account. Alongside contributing to the material turn in sociological theory, Dr Steets also aims to encourage architects to consider sociological understandings of the built environment. “I’m arguing for a more inter-
I want to create
more sensitivity around the views of the ordinary users of buildings, and how ordinary people perceive buildings. The historical context of architecture is also important in these terms. A building may have been designed and constructed for a specific purpose, but this may well change over time, and while many cities want to preserve their architectural heritage, some buildings may be associated with individuals, ideas, or periods of history that people would rather forget. “Leipzig for example is very keen to preserve its medieval and musical traditions. However, it’s rejecting the heritage of the GDR (German Democratic Republic 1949-90) era, such as modernist architecture from the ‘60s and ‘70s,” says Dr Steets. Architects are trained to create spaces, which involves formal as well as social aspects. “Whereas a client or a user sees a situation as it is, the architect sees it as it could be,” stresses
disciplinary perspective in architecture,” she says. This is already happening to a degree, with some younger architects showing interest in sociological ideas and collaborating in research, something which Dr Steets aims to encourage further. “I want to get in conversation with architects and planners, and to create a consciousness or sensibility about how users perceive buildings,” she says.
Berger-Luckmann Berger/Luckmann Revisited: The Sociology of Knowledge Between Disciplinary History and Empirical Application PD Dr. Silke Steets, Leipzig University Nikolaistrasse 8–10, Room 4.16 Internal Mailbox: 16 31 99 04109 Leipzig, Germany T: +49 (0) 341 / 97-37772 E: silke.steets(at)uni-leipzig.de W: http://www.silke-steets.de/en/
Leipzig University, Campus Augustusplatz 2017 Photographer: Swen Reichhold / Universität Leipzig
Silke Steets is a sociologist and Heisenberg Fellow at the Institute for the Study of Culture at Leipzig University. Her theoretical background is in the sociology of knowledge and her research interests include the relationship between space, popular culture, religion, contemporary art, materiality and the city.
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