Biophilia: Perception of the Environment Melanie O’Brien
Biophilia Perception of the Environment Melanie O’Brien 07473613
Supervisor: Elizabeth Shotton
Master of Architecture Programme School of Architecture, University College Dublin. January 2014
ARCT40610 UCD MArch Dissertation
Biophilia: Perception of the Environment
The Broken water-jar The rain... Eyes of shadow-water eyes of well-water eyes of dream-water Blue suns, green whirlwinds, bird beaks of light pecking open pomegranate stars. But tell me, burnt earth, is there no water? Only blood, only dust, only naked footsteps on the thorns? The rain awakens... We must sleep with open eyes, we must dream with our hands, we must dream the dreams of a river seeking its course, of the sun dreaming its worlds, we must dream aloud, we must sing till the song puts forth roots, trunk, branches, birds, stars, we must find the lost word, and remember what the blood, the tides, the earth, and the body say, and return to the point of departure... [Octavio Paz, 1955]
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ARCT40610 UCD MArch Dissertation
Biophilia: Perception of the Environment
Biophilia: Perception of the Environment
Abstract Biophilia is the connection between the natural environment, the human body and the mind1. It argues that this is an inherent and necessary consideration for the built environment in order to maintain human stability and comfort. The human mind has evolved to be capable of higher executive mental function, such as creativity, innovation and abstract thought. This marked the turning point in our evolution, however we still have those primitive inclinations which rely on having present the basic needs for survival to remain satisfied and dormant.2 When these ‘fight or flight’ systems are triggered, they override the conscious mind, decreasing capacity of other aspects such as productivity, concentration, memory and general mental functionality, and increasing levels of tension and anxiety.3 It is not a new concept; on the contrary, there is a persistent thread of thought surrounding man’s relationship with nature throughout history. In art, architecture, literature, and all other creative disciplines, there is a fluctuating narrative as to what our optimum relationship with nature should be. Biophilia, as Wilson introduced it, has materialized itself in many built environments of the past, but not under this relatively new term.4 Firstly, part I maps the origins of how and where these parallel thoughts emerged to offer insight into the role Biophila could play in the design of future environments. Secondly, the human body is a complex entity, and the mind infinitely more so, part II endeavors to understand some of the relationship between these and the built environment. In bringing these two studies together, greater clarity will be achieved into the potential biophilia holds to become an enduring platform on which to discuss architecture.
Fig i: 1 St Mary’s Lane, Dublin. 1964. Robin Walker.
Kellert, Stephen R. Building for Life: Designing and Understanding the Human-Nature Connection. Washington: Island Press, 2005. P 124. 2 Fromm, Erich. The Anatomy of Human Destructiveness. NY: Holt, Rinehart & Winston, 1973. P 365. 3 Kellert, op. cit., P 123. 4 Wilson, Edward O. Biophilia. Cambridge, Mass. and London: The Harvard University Press, 1984. P 1. 1
ARCT40610 UCD MArch Dissertation
Biophilia: Perception of the Environment
Acknowledgements
“nothing can come of nothing” Joshua Reynolds
There are several people without whom this dissertation would not have been possible. To Dominique Hes, for sparking an interest that lead me to pursue this subject. To John Olley, for his inspirational essay, Drawing that has remained in my memory years after many others had long disappeared. And above all to my supervisor Elizabeth Shotton, for her constant invaluable input, guidance, and for keeping me on track despite my wanderings.
ARCT40610 UCD MArch Dissertation
Abstract Acknowledgements Preface Part I Ch 1
Word Theory needs a term Biophilia, a new brand?
Ch 2
Biophilia The acknowledgement of human habitat The roots of ‘Biophilia’ Environmental sensuality, bias toward the visual
Ch 3
Part II Ch 4
Nature Humanity’s identity in a changing world Art lineage of a fluctuating relationship Reverberations of the great movements
Abstraction Kellert’s biophilic elements Man as an abstract thinker Perception; imaginative input
Ch 5
Scale Domesticated man Extensions, the veils of modern life
Conclusion Bibliography Appendices A1
A walk through a Biophilic house Boyd House II, Melbourne, Australia.1958. Boyd, Robin.
Biophilia: Perception of the Environment
ARCT40610 UCD MArch Dissertation
Biophilia: Perception of the Environment
Preface Spatially, architects seek to increase connection with the natural world by way of blurring the ‘line,’ or threshold between indoor and outdoor space. Creation of room from garden, extending living space into the outdoor realm, these are concepts we as architects are familiar with. Something we often don’t question is why is this important? Why create an outdoor space for regular use? The answer is because we crave connection with the natural world. Be it a fresh breeze, a seat in the sunshine, or simply hearing rain fall on the roof; we are innately lulled into comfort and contentment when we connect with the greater natural world around us. Biophilia aspires to increase quality of life, improve productivity, concentration and memory, induce fewer social problems in society as compared to environments devoid of its traits, enhance healing and well being, and assert general connectedness with community and the surrounding world.5 It seems too good to be true; therefore it begs the question as to why is this not a more common term in the world of architecture and planning. “Great architects have intuitively sensed these things, without [probably] even articulating – or being able to articulate – why they did what they did. It just seemed right.”6 I propose that what we are now understanding to be biophilia has existed in our built environment for millennia. Since man has been capable of influencing the environment that he occupies, he has had the ability to choose or alter what that environment may be. We are generally familiar with the Chinese term, Feng Shui, and possibly less so with the Indian Vastu Shatra. These are philosophical theories with ancient origins concerned with harmonising human existence with the natural environment.7 They emerged from entirely different cultures, however the principles encapsulated in these methodologies are very similar to those now being defined in the concept of biophilia; access to light, air and natural environment – all in an effort to create calming, sensual space.8 The word biophilia first appeared in the writing of the widely read German-born psychologist Erich Fromm in the 50’s, however it was not until Edward Wilson, an American biologist picked up the concept and began writing some years later that the concept gained velocity. Attributed as the father of the idea, Wilson was later joined by others, most prominently by Stephen Kellert who now writes extensively on the importance of biophilic design in the built environment. How we perceive our world is central to understanding how biophilia influences our emotions. An architect or designer cannot replicate nature, but they can replicate engagement of the senses as a connection to the natural world arouses. We as humans are abstract thinkers, we have the ability to see or experience one thing – be it language, a painting or sound – and envisage another. It is this ability to abstract meaning that allows connection to the living world to offer comfort, transferring us experientially elsewhere.
5 Kellert, Stephen R., Judith H. Heerwagen, and Martin L. Mador. Biophilic Design: The Theory, Science and Practice of Bringing Buildings to Life. Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons, 2008. P 123.
Heerwagen, Judith speaking in Finnegan, Bill. "Biophilic Design: The Architecture of Life." 60 minutes. USA: Tamarak
6
Media, 2011. Bramble, Cate. Architect’s guide to feng shui: exploding the myth. Oxford: Architectural Press. 2003. P 24. 8 Kellert., op. cit., P 111. 7
ARCT40610 UCD MArch Dissertation
Part I
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Biophilia: Perception of the Environment
ARCT40610 UCD MArch Dissertation
Biophilia: Perception of the Environment
Word “What's in a name? That which we call a rose By any other name would smell as sweet”9 Biophilia is a relatively new term, endeavoring to spark a new way of understanding. It is an approach to design; a set of attributes to be taken into account, although these considerations are nothing new nor revolutionary, consisting of simple features such as access to natural light, to fresh air, or to calming natural sounds.10 Biophilia is not positioned as a new movement, or as an original term. It is, however, the new acknowledgement of an often-unnoted phenomenon; the theory that we, as humans are inscribed with an innate affiliation with all things living.11
Theory needs a term “nothing comes harder than original thought”12 A theory that can only be conveyed through extended explanation cannot resonate as powerfully as one that has been awarded its own word. There is instilled in the reader or listener, a level of acceptance when an idea has its own title. This stems from our own way of thinking. What sets the human apart from our other living neighbours on this planet is our ability to think abstractly – to experience one thing, but imagine another. The act of naming is just that – giving abstract expression to something completely different. It is a game of association, as experience grows, so too does the ability to formulate and link abstractions to their corresponding reality.13 A word offers something for the mind to grapple with. It becomes the anchor, the pivoting point – a thing. It forms an object in the mind’s eye – even if it is an abstract one – it has longevity, something that the explanation or definition has not. The bestowal of its own word solidifies the idea and allows it to be more easily remembered. The definition of any term has malleability; the ability to be questioned and to change, but there always endures that milestone of thought – the word. The trajectory of future thinking can be pushed and pulled, the angle of its focus can move, and the extent of its coverage can alter – once it has been given its own word. Biophilia is highly theoretical, and therefore is difficult to offer concrete evidence as proof. It is operating in the abstract world of emotion and unconscious thought, and as such is almost infinitely broad. If we are inherently attracted to living things, at what point do we begin to suffer when they are absent? And what level of absence has an effect on human emotion? Is there a timescale to this proposed phenomenon? The point at which we begin to suffer from the absence of connection to living things is very difficult to define, mostly as it is a highly subjective issue. No two individuals will respond emotionally in the same way, or to the same level, as personal experience is the most dominant contributing factor, however there are more general factors that can be understood, such as culture. The word, biophilia, offers an over-arching idea under which theories and hypotheses may be tested. Bio- refers to the life or living organism aspect of the theory, and -philia (being the opposite to phobia) means a positive feeling or liking. What the word allows is tangibility for the mind to place the meaning in the context of other knowledge. Biophilia is a theory, and it is as of yet, often an unfamiliar one, however, in having its own title, learning what it is can be contextualized alongside other relevant knowledge. That is to say, explaining to an individual what biophilia is, will prove much easier than simply explaining the merits of design which follow the same principles, under the idea that we have an innate need to connect with our greater environment. It allows one to question what is that? Instead of what do you mean? Many words carry with them particular or established associations and connotations, as such the use of a word with an emerging idea requires thoughtful approach. One such example is in a study conducted by ethologist – specializing in the study of animal behaviour – John Calhoun of social behaviour
Shakespeare, William. Romeo & Juliet, Act II Scene 2. Kellert, Stephen R., Judith H. Heerwagen, and Martin L. Mador. Biophilic Design: The Theory, Science and Practice of Bringing Buildings to Life. Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons, 2008. P 123., 11 Wilson, Edward O. Biophilia. Cambridge, Mass. and London: The Harvard University Press, 1984. P 1. 12 Ibid., P 66. 13 Anderson, John R. and Bower, Gordon H. Human Associative Memory: A Brief Edition. Hilldale, New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates Publishers. 1980. P 65. 9
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Biophilia: Perception of the Environment
that accompanies over-crowding that can result in physiological consequences.14 Calhoun studied, over a three-year period, the lives and behavior of four wild rat colonies. As the experiment progressed, he began to notice what he termed as the “behavioral sink” as gross distortions of behavior began to emerge as a result of the overcrowded conditions. The unhealthy connotations of the term sink were not accidental, as the behavioral sink aggravates all forms of disease and anti-social behavior already found within the group. This study and newly coined term has gone on to be used widely as an animal model of societal breakdown, and even as a touchstone for psychology and urban sociology.
Biophilia, a new brand? The fact is, we are a materialistic society, and often even that which is in our best interest needs a degree of branding to evoke our engagement. When ‘sustainability’ emerged, it was a toned-down and more readily acceptable form of the ‘hippy’ movement of the 60’s. It was new, different and exciting. Now, it is old news, and a tired subject of conversation. How so can it be dressed up into a marketable image, and become something that we can ‘buy into’ and follow like some new trend? The concept of sustainable design emerged around a time of crises – as many new movements do – around the 50’s and 60’s when negative environmental impact was becoming apparent as a result of irresponsible consumerism. Later the movement gained momentum around the 70’s with the emergence of the oil crisis when the issue began to grasp a foothold in the political scene with such milestones as the1972 Limits to Growth Report and the Stockholm Conference.15 It was undeniably a great revolution of thought at the time or its emergence, but the word sustainability has lost power and desirability as time has passed. We are used to hearing it, we are used to considering it and can accept many of the necessary implications it is having on our world – we all now leave the cardboard out of the waste bin and put it aside for recycling – but it has become a stagnant concept. Maybe it was always destined to be as such, being labeled with a word that means just that – to sustain what is already there, remaining the same, and staying still. At the time of the 70’s oil crisis whereby people began to panic that the world was running out of this essential resource, the promise of stocks staying at the same level would have been a provocative thought, but now, there’s an inactivity about the word that is wholly uninspiring. The word biophilia originally appeared, not with the man who has been attributed as its ‘father’ – Edward Wilson – but in the work of Erich Fromm, a German-born, American social psychologist. He described biophilia as; “the passionate love of life and of all that is alive: it is the wish to further growth, whether in a person, a plant, an idea, or a social group.”16 As well as being, on the whole, a materialistic society, we are also one that demands clear, distilled ideas before they can be accepted. Like mathematicians, we need to establish an ‘elegance’ to make vast notions easier to grapple with.17 Fromm was the first to use the word biophilia, but he did not push the concept, nor was it the main focus of his work. He wrote extensively about the principles of human nature, and introducing this new word, he opened the door on a newly coined concept that was to be built upon by others. Fromm did not adequately distill biophilia to become clear and evocative enough to flare a following.
Hall, Edward, T. The Hidden Dimension : Man's Use of Space in Public and Private. London: The Bodley Head Ltd, 1966. P 21-32. 15 Helios, The University of Huddersfield. The History and Chronology of Sustainable Development. Module outline for “Sustainability for SME’s”. <http://helios.hud.ac.uk/scomjm4/mmport/susmod/Page2.htm> Accessed 12th Dec 2013. 16 Fromm, Erich. The Anatomy of Human Destructiveness. NY: Holt, Rinehart & Winston, 1973. P 365. 17 Wilson, Edward O. Biophilia. Cambridge, Mass. and London: The Harvard University Press, 1984. P 60. 14
ARCT40610 UCD MArch Dissertation
Biophilia: Perception of the Environment
Biophilia So what is biophilia? Like with most questions, there is a long and a short answer. In the words of Wilson, and not dissimilarly to Fromm, it is “the innate tendency to focus on life and lifelike processes,” however, in his highly personal book titled Biophilia, there remains an ambiguity as to the design-implications of the idea.18
The acknowledgement of human habitat Biophilia is a new way of rationalizing why connection to the environment is important, but more importantly, it is concerned with how to go about implementing particular principles to create a more successful human habitat.19 Too readily, we forget that we are animals; there are important elements to retain in our living conditions. The reality of the majority of modern lives today, is that most of our time is spent in buildings – they are our new default habitat. Wilson, an American biologist – considered the world’s leading authority on myrmecology; the study of ants – was the first to begin thinking of biophilia in practical terms; how it applied to our living environment. The emergence of SBS or Sick Building Syndrome in the late 1970’s initiated a shift in thought regarding the nature of our indoor environments. There transpired an acceptance that their quality could impact our health; a concept that would prove innovatory to our design process. Like biophilia, this was not an original thought, but it was a sign of acceptance that there existed in our designs, the potential for negative effects. This sparked a new paradigm; there was a willingness to change.
Fig ii Fig ii: Clerical workers in the Pentagon. 1950. (<http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-21878739> Accessed 17th January 14.)
The roots of ‘Biophilia’ In an earlier work, The Heart of Man: Its Genius for Good and Evil of 1964 Fromm refers to Biophilia in a dark light as “the tendency to preserve life and to fight against death is the most elementary form of the biophilious orientation, and is common to all living substance. Inasmuch as it is a tendency to preserve life, and to fight death, it represents only one aspect of the drive toward life.”20 His view is a pragmatic one – we require a level of connection to the natural environment in order to survive. It’s a difficult theory to fault. He was concerned with the elementary aspect of Biophilia – very much the why we might have such an affiliation with nature, rationalizing it greatly in terms of survival of species. The dark undertones about escaping death contrast greatly with his later writing where he views it in a much more positive light seeing it as a highly constructive trait.21 He notes that humans are the only species who struggle so greatly with why and how we are here on this planet at all, and he too appears to struggle with defining his own inclination towards the natural.22 This struggle can be attributed to our tendency toward abstract and symbolic thought, and our attempt to decipher the highly elusive ‘purpose’ of our lives.
Wilson, Edward O. Biophilia. Cambridge, Mass. And London: The Harvard University Press, 1984. P 1. Fromm, Erich. “Human Nature and Character.” In Man for Himself: An Inquiry into the Psychology of Ethics. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul Ltd., 1947. P 366. 20 Ibid.. P 47. 21 Fromm, Erich. The Heart of Man: Its Genius for Good and Evil. NY: Harper & Row, 1964. P 45. 22 Fromm, Erich. "Human Nature and Character." In Man for Himself: An Inquiry into the Psychology of Ethics. London: 18 19
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Biophilia: Perception of the Environment
Undoubtedly, this conflict is eased by religion; arguably the most persistent form of abstract and symbolic human thought. Fromm admits that to many individuals, life and existence alone presents a “problem.” It is a highly confronting choice of word, but one which is not entirely out of place, “self-awareness, reason, and imagination have disrupted the “harmony” which characterizes animal existence… Reason, man’s blessing, is also his curse”23 With this heightened-awareness of self alongside the capacity for abstract, calculated thought, the inner conflict to rationalize purpose and existence can manifest itself in a sense of lost control. Fromm argues that it is a negative attribute of man that we see ourselves as separate from nature and other creatures, but acknowledges that it is this very separation that weighs heavily on the mind and produces a sense of disorientation, “he is set apart while being part; he is homeless, yet chained to the home he shares with all creatures.”24 He chooses to convey these ideas through a deep layer of negative associations – “reason as curse”, “existence as problem”, and being “chained.” His most positive statements are made in his later writing, “The biophilous person prefers to construct rather than to retain. He wants to be more rather than to have more.”25 Fromm was an observer and critic of human forces. To him, biophilia was one of these. He saw it as a positive response to negative existence. However he was often subject to criticism for his morbid and suicidal implications in his texts, and this is no different in his reference to biophilia. He did not capture his readers’ imagination with his idea of biophilia, and his use of the word largely went unnoticed. Wilson’s 1984 book, Biophilia, is a very personal account of his own responses to nature, and contends our affinity with nature is evident throughout humanity in both science and the arts. He firmly believes its presence in all individuals to some degree, and that there exists not only a fundamental, but genetic need to be connected with the natural environments.26 As a biologist by training, it is not unexpected that Wilson would be in pursuit of this hypothesis of it having biological roots, but it left him open to wide skepticism and criticism.27 The desire to connect with the natural environment Wilson argues is; “responding to a deep genetic memory of mankind’s optimal environment.”28 The fundamentals of the human brain offer some insight into the reasoning behind this innate need to connect with the natural world, alongside the evolutionary path from savannah to modern life which has influenced its formation.29 The brain consists of three basic cerebral types which are physically and chemically different, but which function together.30 The most ancient part is fundamentally reptilian, and has a primary role in instinctive functions such as determining territory, hunting, shelter, social hierarchies and fight or flight responses. The next part to develop was the limbic, or primitive cortex, which plays an important role in emotional, hormonal and organ functions. The latest part to develop in man and so-called higher mammals is significantly different to the others, and is what accommodates conscious thought. In man, this culminates to become the rational mind of symbolic thought and calculation.31 Wilson argues that the primary system overrides the tertiary when it detects a threat or warning.32 In order to avoid this sense of threat, this primitive part of the brain is genetically programmed to require sensual connection to “the prevailing original habitat in which the brain evolved?.”33 It is in this statement that there is difficulty. The concept of reverse evolution regarding the capacity for genetic memory in a species, concerned with the relationship between physical features and environment was investigated by Michael Desai, an American evolutionary biologist.34 In observing several generations of Drosophilia, or fruit fly, he found that reversion to an ancestral genetic state relied on standing genetic variation, that is to say, the physical features most suited to the environmental condition in question had to still be present in some
Routledge & Kegan Paul Ltd., 1947. P 127. Ibid., P 40. 24 Fromm, Erich. The Sane Society. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul. 1955. P 23. 25 Fromm, Erich. “Human Nature and Character.” In Man for Himself: An Inquiry into the Psychology of Ethics. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul Ltd., 1947. P 366. 26 Wilson, Edward O. Biophilia. Cambridge, Mass. and London: The Harvard University Press, 1984. P 106. 27 Kahn, Peter H., The Human Relationship with Nature: Development and Culture. Cambridge, Mass. and London: The MIT Press. 1999. P 26. 28 Ibid., P 111. 29 Ibid., P 109. 30 Tuan, Yi-Fu. Topophilia: A Study of Environmental Perception, Attitudes and Values. Engelwood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice-Hall Inc., 1974. P14. 31 Ibid., P 14. 32 Wilson. Op. cit., P 103. 33 Ibid., P 106. 34 Desai, Michael M. "Reverse Evolution and Evolutionary Memory." Nature Genetics 41, no. 2 (2009): 142-43. P 142. 23
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Biophilia: Perception of the Environment
of the living population for them to notably re-emerge; “Thus all populations maintain an evolutionary memory – their past has much to say about how they evolve in the future.”35 This experiment does not prove Wilson’s point, but it does raise an interesting question; could man revert to a more ancestral state if the conveniences of modern life were removed from him? We may be many more generations passed the time when we lived in our ancestral environment than the shortlived drosophilia, but the fact that we still retain a limited capacity for instinctive response implies that there remains also in our ancestral brain the standing genetic presence that Desai spoke about. We lived for a much longer time in the natural environment than we have now in this modern condition of being removed from it, and so we have ingrained in us the instinctive predisposition to respond positively to “configurations that were favorable for survival or the ongoing well-being during evolution”36 This is what biophilic design aims to evoke – instinctive reversion to a simpler, calmer state stimulated by a more natural, uncomplicated environment.
Environmental sensuality, bias toward the visual The world is experienced and understood through the senses – sight, touch, smell, hearing, and taste. Like the captive animal in a zoo enclosure, we require a level of environmental stimulation. What biophilia executes is an enrichment of the human habitat to satisfy unconscious needs, evoking engagement. This is achieved through connection to nature, or attributes commonly experienced in our native natural environments37. This is a point Wilson iterates, saying humans “…will walk into nature, to explore, hunt, and garden, if given the chance. They prefer entities that are complicated, growing and sufficiently unpredictable to be interesting.”38 There exists a longstanding association between healing and natural environments; be it relaxation, respite, or even recovery from physical illness.39 In modern life, we have removed so much of the sensual experiences we are equipped to receive.40 The multi-sensory landscape is closely linked with the natural landscapes that promoted human survival and reproductive success, it is the position of biophilia that we have retained the capacity for such landscapes to nurture human physiology and promotes emotional wellbeing.41 Findings from over 100 studies have shown that stress reduction is one of the key benefits of spending time where all the senses are ignited in the wilderness, especially, according to Ulrich, in those resembling the savannah.42 Tim Ingold – a British anthropologist – writes extensively on our need to reconnect with our environment. In his essay Culture on the Ground he refers to the “groundlessness of metropolitan life” now experienced so extensively in developed cultures.43 He suggests that the barriers we’ve become accustomed to placing between our bodies and the surrounding world inhibit our ability to engage with and understand it.44 This lack of engagement generates a disconnectedness that can formulate the very disorientation Fromm spoke of.45 In a way this can be attributed to the longstanding bias toward visual experience in design. Pallasmaa argues that we hear with our ears, feel with our hands and smell with our nose, and taste with our tongue, all at the same time as we see with our eyes.46 We may not always be consciously aware of this, but that does not mean that they are not having profound effect over our perception, and our emotions. Architecture is a careful game of choreographed interaction between built form and the human body, as such it is a commonly discussed idea as to why are the other senses so often neglected or ignored in design. To answer in biological term, much more data is fed to the nervous system through the optic nerve than
Desai, Michael M. "Reverse Evolution and Evolutionary Memory." Nature Genetics 41, no. 2 (2009): 142-43. P 142. Ulrich, R. “Stress recovery during exposure to natural and urban environments.” In The Journal of Environmental Psychology. 11. 201-230. 1991. P 212. 37 Kahn, Peter H., The Human Relationship with Nature: Development and Culture. Cambridge, Mass. and London: The MIT Press. 1999. P 18. 38 Wilson, Edward O. Biophilia. Cambridge, Mass. and London: The Harvard University Press, 1984. P 116. 39 Kahn, Op. cit., P 13. 40 Ingold, Tim. "Culture on the Ground: The World Perceived through the Feet." Journal of Material Culture 9, no. 3 (2004): 315-40. P 315 41 Kahn. Op. Cit.,. P 13. 42 Ibid. Ulrich, cited in Kahn. P 13. 43 Ingold. Op. cit.,. P 316. 44 Ibid., P 321. 45 see note 22. Fromm. Op. cit., 1947. P 366. 46 Pallasmaa, Juhani. The Eyes of the Skin: Architecture and the Senses, Polemics. London: Academy Editions, 1996. 34 35
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Biophilia: Perception of the Environment
through the other sensory organs; it is a more complex system.47 Throughout our evolution we learned to rely heavily on this sense and so it has developed at a greater rate than the others. We rely, however, on the sensory data from other fields to correct the visual field generated from this information. Psychologist James Gibson conducted much research of this, he was an advocate of the importance of integrating kinesthetic – the sense of feeling felt deep in the muscles of the body which allow it to adjust and move smoothly – in conjunction with visual experience to understand reality, kinesthetic 48 Despite its complexity, our sense of sight is subject to many limitations. We commonly understand that depth is perceived by the use of two eyes, but this is in fact only true if short distances.49 Passed this point, we rely on the other sensory data we have at our disposal to determine distance, such as sound or memory – this ‘limitation’ actually presents the opportunity to trick the eye more easily, something which we most advantageously exploit in visual art. It is unfortunately often the case that “our urban spaces provide little excitement or visual variation and virtually no opportunity to build kinesthetic repertoire of spatial experience,” effectively stifling our sensual experience.50 It is through this experiential repertoire that we learn to interpret the world around us, limiting this in our environment will in turn limit our abilities to perceive. Like how the mind becomes ‘rusty’ when a once well-known piece of knowledge is not exercised, so our ability to use our senses diminishes when they go unused. Their sensitivity may be unaffected, rather our interpretation of them becomes less proficient, therefore it is important to retain diversity of experience to exercise and utilize our sensual capacity.
Hall, Edward, T. The Hidden Dimension : Man's Use of Space in Public and Private. London: The Bodley Head Ltd, 1966. P 21-32. P 65. 48 Gibson, James J. “Spatial Perception and Spatial Behaviour.” In The Perception of the Visual World. Cambridege, Mass.: The Riverside Press, 1950. P 223. 49 Gibson, James J. “Theories of Perception.” In The Perception of the Visual World. Cambridege, Mass.: The Riverside Press, 1950. P 16. 50 Hall. Op. cit., P 62. 47
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Biophilia: Perception of the Environment
Nature Humanity’s fascination with nature is an understandable one; nature constitutes our planet, our environment, and as such, our home. It provides for us, withholds from us, and generally, is in control of the lives we live. Through the centuries, our relationship with nature on the whole has at times transformed and shifted, gained popularity and waned out of favour, but it is a robust theme, with an ever-present potency that draws our interest.
Humanity’s identity in a changing world “The distinction between the world created by man – ‘culture’ – and the world in which man exists – ‘nature’- has been perhaps the single most important mental category ever conceived.”51 If Biophilia proposes that we are inherently inclined toward all things living, is there now a gap in the debate as to what exactly is living? Plants are living, animals are living, and we are living, but what of greater nature? What of the wind, the water and the sky – these are all elements of our natural environment, but they are not necessarily living. They are, however, elements of life. If these elements are also included under the term biophilia, its scope broadens even further still. In accordance with Wilson’s theory of biophilia, he does not limit our feelings of affiliation to other life, but also to life-like processes.52 Fromm argued that the emergence of man occurred at the point that instinctive adaptation reached its minimum, giving way to conscious awareness and calculated responses. It was at this point that man broke from the world around him and began to see himself as different to other animals.53 Like the adolescent breaking from the security and network of the family, this new independence brought with it all the struggles of establishing a new identity. We live in buildings; we spend most of our lives in them. They are our self-assembled habitats. We leave them to enter the ‘natural world’, and often feel we need to leave the realm of the urban world to truly experience ‘nature’. When we got to this position is unclear, with the indoor condition being almost entirely separate from the external one – two opposing worlds looking at each other through the openings we permit. The further we move into the arena of sustainable design; placing the natural world in higher regard – as something to be conserved and protected – ironically, we can often move farther away from it. The incorporation of so-called ‘green bling’ may increase our frequency of encounters with natural objects, but there is a removal from emotional attachment that counteracts the intended positive impact. When a building is identified as being of architectural significance, or a piece of our past is awarded high historical value; the tape goes up, the barriers are erected, and people are held at whatever distance is deemed necessary to protect that newfound relic. It may be put on show, but it is an unnatural engagement of “look, but do not touch.” The piece becomes an isolated object removed from its context, an abstraction of its authentic self. We have accepted that our cultural world, that which is made by man for man is growing and changing at rapid speed, and that this is having a negative impact on the natural world around us, but this concept of one being almost entirely separate from the other is a relatively new one. There is now a conscious effort to re-acquaint the two – to bring them together in a more integrated way, however “Societies often borrow environmental features from one another without necessarily changing their own social patterns.”54 If we as a society have moved our culture so far from the natural world, then there is a sense of the moves occurring to bring the two back together as often being contrived simply as superficial tokens.
Forty, Adrian. "Nature." In Words and Architecture: A Vocabulary of Modern Architecture, 220-39. London: Thames & Hudson, 2000. P. 220. 52 Wilson, Edward O. Biophilia. Cambridge, Mass. and London: The Harvard University Press, 1984. P 1. 53 Fromm, Erich. "Human Nature and Character." In Man for Himself: An Inquiry into the Psychology of Ethics. London: Routeledge & Kegan Paul Ltd., 1947. P 39. 54 Latham, Alan. "Researching and Writing Everyday Accounts of the City: An Introduction to the Diary-Photo DiaryInterview Method." In Picturing the Social Landscape: Visual Methods and the Sociological Imagination, edited by Caroline Knowles (ed.) and Paul Sweetman (ed.), London and New York: Routeledge, 2004. P 218. 51
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Fig iii
Fig iv Fig iii: Suburban Utopia often didn’t live up to expectation. Neighbourhood street, Smithtown, NY. (<http://switchboard.nrdc.org/blogs/kbenfield/whats_wrong_with_this_picture.html> Accessed 17th Jan 14). Fig iv: Trees out of context in a shopping centre. Southglenn Mall, Col. US. (<http://www.labelscar.com/colorado/southglenn-mall> Accessed 17th Jan 14)
In order realign our thinking about built and organic worlds, ‘cultural’ and ‘natural’ environments; we must first understand what propelled us to this point; it has not been a simple linear path, but a morphological route affected by a multitude of events and circumstances. However, our collective view of ‘nature’ has been consistently presented through the arts under its many guises. It is an undeniably recurrent theme, rising and falling as human interest has pushed and pulled its locus around the world. Through the arts and sciences we have attempted to understand the world around us, and it is through science and art that we can trace our cultural morphology.
Art as lineage of a fluctuating relationship “any full history of the uses of ‘nature’ would be a history of a large part of the history of human thought.”55 Art displays the values and trends of the artist, however every artist is operating within a cultural context; their work encapsulates the views relevant at their time. Art is a universal language, devoid of the many connotations associated with literature, “powerful enough to cross cultures; it reads the code of human nature.”56 It was Kellert’s line of research that began looking at people’s attitudes and values regarding nature, distilling it into a set of applicable design principles. This research spans a career of twenty years, but in brief, he identified nine values.57 The utilitarian value emphasizes the material benefits to be gained from exploitation of nature. The negativisitic value emphasizes the feelings of fear associated with nature. The dominionistic value emphasizes the desire to control and assert dominance over nature. The naturalistic value emphasizes the many satisfactions to be gained through direct experience with nature. The ecologisticscientific value emphasizes the systematic study of natural systems, patterns and functioning of nature. The aesthetic value emphasizes a pleasurable emotional response from the physical beauty of nature. The symbolic value emphasizes how we use natural symbolism for communication. The humanistic value emphasizes the capacity we hold to care and form bonds with nature and animals. And finally the moralistic value emphasizes the conscience we retain in our conduct toward the ‘natural’ or non-human world. Most of us can see merit in one or more of these values, and we can begin to understand what our own view is toward nature. So too can it me applied to art, and the many great works can generally be placed under one or more of these themes. Since the foundation of civilized humanity, the most primitive of artworks we have pursued our innate fascination with the natural world, depicting animals, scenery and life
Williams, Raymond, quoted in Forty, Adrian. "Nature." In Words and Architecture: A Vocabulary of Modern Architecture, 220-39. London: Thames & Hudson, 2000. P. 220. 56 Wilson, Edward O. Biophilia. Cambridge, Mass. and London: The Harvard University Press, 1984, P 62. 57 Kellert, Stephen R. The Value of Life: Biological Diversity and Human Society. Washington: Island Press. 1996. P 26. 55
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sources.58 Before printing enabled widespread publication of imagery, storytelling was the first broadly reaching form of communication. The Bible, as one of our first widely known texts, often circulated in the form of colloquial story telling, solidified the position of nature in the celestial realm, and as an object of veneration. Eden, the ‘garden of God’ on Earth, is where the origin of mankind itself was attributed. It was paradise, but even it was rife with power and danger in the form of the serpent and poison apple.59
Fig v:
Fig vi Fig. v: The Garden of Earthly Delights. Bosch, Hieronymus,1480-1505. (<http://www.spanisharts.com/prado/bosco/delicias.htm>, Accessed 17th October 2013). Fig. vi: Hunt-Lennox Globe. Engraved Copper terrestrial globe. Ca. 1510. (<http://exhibitions.nypl.org/treasures/items/show/163>, Accessed 18th October 2013).
It is this kind of sinister symbolic layer of darkness and power that gave rise to humanity’s obsession with the idea of retaining distance, and later achieving dominance over the natural world. Similar iconology was seen as the age of discovery became more widespread. The Lennox Globe is one of the oldest terrestrial globes in the world, dating to 1510, and is only one of two known maps to be inscribed with the latin script “HC SVNT DRACONES,” meaning ‘Here be Dragons.” Medieval and Roman examples are also known to label such undocumented regions as “Here be Lions.” It was common practice to decorate maps with depictions of such wild and venerated creatures.60 These are clear examples displaying Kellert’s negatistic value of nature as something to fear, and also his symbolic value using commonly shared symbolism of nature to communicate meaning.61 Nature was long seen as the pinnacle of beauty, a ‘perfection’ to aspire to, or a wilderness to be enhanced. One of the first models for the discussion of beauty and architecture was with Aristotle’s view that “generally art completes what nature cannot bring to a finish, and partly imitates her.” This became the shared attitude of many seventeenth century art and architectural theorists.62 It set art and the hand of man completely apart from nature, and yet admitted its desire to imitate its qualities. However, the first challenge to this idea came in Claude Perrault’s Ordonnance of the Five Kinds of Columns; “neither imitation of nature, nor reason, nor good sense in any way constitutes the basis for the beauty people claim to see in proportion and in the orderly disposition of the parts of a column.”63 Perrault’s idea sparked an alteration in view that beauty resides in the object; and instead emphasis was moved to the arrangement of objects – the constructed view. This is consistent with Bernini’s skepticism of the high value bestowed on the study of nature; he saw it as a flawed, imperfect thing in need of the artist’s skill. His view was not to follow and study it blindly, but with a selective eye; “nature is always feeble and niggardly … artists who study it should first be skilled in recognizing its faults and correcting them.”64 It was highly fashionable at the time of these
Forty, Adrian. "Nature." In Words and Architecture: A Vocabulary of Modern Architecture, 220-39. London: Thames & Hudson, 2000. P. 220. 59 Wilson, Edward O. Biophilia. Cambridge, Mass. and London: The Harvard University Press, 1984, P 84. 60 The New York Public Library, rare book division. “The Hunt-Lennox Globe” in Treasures. <http://exhibitions.nypl.org/treasures/items/show/163> (Accessed 26th November 2013.) 61 Kellert, Stephen R. The Value of Life: Biological Diversity and Human Society. Washington: Island Press. 1996. P 26. 62 Aristotle, Physics, “Book II”, quoted in Forty, op. cit. p. 220. 63 Perrault, Ordonnance of the Five Kinds of Columns, quoted in Forty, op. cit. p. 221. 64 Bernini, 1665, quoted in Forty, Adrian. "Nature." In Words and Architecture: A Vocabulary of Modern Architecture, 220-39. London: Thames & Hudson, 2000. p. 226. 58
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philosophers to take on the great challenge of defining nature. The various views can be placed under the overarching themes of architecture is like nature, and architecture is nature.65 This conflict can be seen quite explicitly in the manifestations of the 18th century English landscape garden, which generally followed the view that “Nature is incapable of pleasing without the assistance of art.”66 Initially, there was a long-standing traditional fashion for formal gardens and pattern originating in the French garden, which elevated the aristocratic idea of obedient nature above the untended or working landscape. This style gave way to the constructed view; often to distant follies or false relics of antiquity, in which the grandeur of the Grand Tour was re-created for supposed contemplation and enjoyment. Later beauty was seen in a controlled, false ‘wildness.’ This was never so evident than in the ha-ha – a defensive ditch in the landscape near a great house that allowed the illusion of proximity to natural wilderness or livestock, while in fact any apparent danger was physically inhibited. It became fashionable to admire not the rolling hills of well-tended gardens and farmland, but the windswept openness of the ocean and mountain.67 While the tone of the attitudes morphed greatly, it presents nature as an ever-present concern through civilized humanity. There remained a level of respect and admiration, however it took its form.
Fig viii
Fig vii
Fig ix
Fig vii: Gardens of Versailles. 1662-1700. Le Nôtre, André. (<http://www.jardineriaramal.es/bloglos_jardines_del_palacio_de_versalles_paris.3php>, Accessed 10th January 14). Fig viii: The Rotunda, Stowe Gardens, Buckinghamshire. 1730. Kent, William. (<http://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/837206. Halling, Phillip.>, Accessed 10th January 14). Fig ix: Chatsworth Garden. 1759. Brown, Capability. (<http://janeausteninvermont.wordpress.com>, Accessed 10th January 14).
Reverberations from the great movements It is undeniable that the social and cultural context influences the views and values of any given time, but there are certainly times of immense shift that can be attributed to greater changes. The most significant shift in thought regarding nature of our age, as previously mentioned, was the initiation of the environmental movement of the 1960’s, whereby “a re-invented ‘nature’ has returned to the vocabulary of architecture.”68 The conventional way of seeing and talking about our relationship to nature was questioned, and turned on its head. There was rapid advance in technology and ideas associated with the modernist movements, which fixated environmental concerns at the fore of social interest. Art Nouveau, or ‘new art’, saw an explosion in organic form in architecture, and was a break from so-called academic art. It was a “total” art style, manifesting itself in all forms of visual art.69 Tassel House by Victor Horta is a famed architectural example. The reference to nature and organic form is evident, and to be in this space is to physically occupy a piece of art. There’s a fantastical element that is difficult not to enjoy. This indulgent space draws its inspiration unquestionably from the natural world.
Forty, Adrian. "Nature." In Words and Architecture: A Vocabulary of Modern Architecture, 220-39. London: Thames & Hudson, 2000. P 220. 66 Chambers, 1772, quoted in Forty, Adrian. "Nature." In Words and Architecture: A Vocabulary of Modern Architecture, 220-39. London: Thames & Hudson, 2000. p. 227. 67 Jarrett, David. The English Landscape Garden. London: Academy Editions, 1978. P 46. 68 Forty, op. cit,. P. 220. 69 Duncan, Alastair. Art Nouveau: World of Art. New York: Thames & Hudson. 1994. P 7. 65
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Fig xi
Fig xii
Fig xiii
Fig x: Staircase. Tassel House, Brussels. 1893-94. Horta, Victor. (<http://www.studyblue.com/notes/note/n/midterm/deck/19020>, Accessed 16th January 14) Fig xi: Detail of wall decor. (<http://hanser.ceat.okstate.edu/6083/victor_horta_tassel.htm>, Accessed 16th January 14) Fig xii:: Plan of entry. Source as above. Fig xiii: Vestibule. Source as above.
Manifestations did not stop at floral or organic form, but went on to curved lines often giving rise to a sense of movement or life. Art Nouveau design is dynamic, evocative and engaging, however, it can be a little overwhelming. The visual impact of these spaces was so powerful that they left little room for the other senses. Louis Sullivan was prevalent in the States in this same period. Working in the rapidly growing cities of America where steel frame systems were opening up the possibilities for high-rise skyscrapers, there was an emphasis on practical use above aesthetics. He famously coined the phrase “form follows function,” and has also been called “the father of modernism”.70 His signature style, however, is in fact his organic ‘ornament’ that often adorned the exterior of his buildings. Eruptions of vines and celtic-inspired motifs adorned his facades, emphasizing and celebrating the structural lines. To Sullivan, a high-rise “must be every inch a proud and soaring thing, rising in sheer exultation that from bottom to top it is a unit without a single dissenting line.”71 Sullivan held nature in high regard, and wanted to bring its aesthetic pleasure into the world of the growing city. His buildings are comparable to those of Roman or Greek grand antiquity, which were also often surpassing construction restraints in their time. The U-shape plan of his Guaranty Building with south facing, white-glazed tile courtyards collected and distributed as much natural light as possible into the interior spaces, which were divided using partitions of timber, glass and open steel cages.
Fig xiv
Fig xv Fig xiv: Terracotta ornament. Guaranty Building, New York. 1895. Sullivan, Louis. (<http://nla.gov.au/nla.pic-vn3721245-s9.>, Accessed 12th January 14) Fig xv: Elevator Doors. Source as above.
70 Szarkowski, 71 Roth,
John. The Idea of Louis Sullivan. London: Thames & Hudson. 2000. P 13. Leland M. Understanding Architecture: its elements, history and meaning. East Roseville, NSW: Craftsman House. 1994. P 450.
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Art Nouveau gave way to the Art Deco movement appearing in France following World War I. Again a “total” art style, Le Corbusier was attributed with the first use of the word Art Deco.72 Owing to its emergence in the inter-war period, it embraced the rapid industrialization that was transforming culture at the time.73 People were more adaptable, many social structures were broken or altered, and progress was the mood of the moment. Lines became cleaner, and forms often more symbolic than literal. The age of abstract design was coming to the fore, geometric form taking the place of organic motif, following the trend of the coinciding art movements of cubism, constructivism and futurism. The work of Charles Rennie Mackintosh was one of the most influential over the emerging Deco style, with his work from the 1900’s proving as an indication of what was to come.
Fig xvi
Fig xvii
Fig xviii
Fig xvi: House for an Art Lover, competition entry. 1901. Mackintosh, Charles Rennie. (<http://designmuseum.org/media/item/4377/-1/114_4Lg.jpg>, Accessed 17th January 14). Fig xvii: Stain glass window. Martin House, New York. 1904. Wright, Frank Lloyd. (<http://museum.cornell.edu/collections/view/stained-glass-windows-from-martinhouse.html>, Accessed 17th January 14). Fig xviii: Six-panel screen. Ca. 1922-25. Gray, Eileen. (<http://www.highendweekly.com/2013/03/tetetete-with-dr-stephen-kelly-stay.html>, Accessed 17th Janua
72 Benton, Charlotte. Benton, Tim & Ghislaine, Wood. Art Deco: 1910-1939. London: V&A. 2003. P 16. 73 Hillier, Bevis. Art Deco of the 20s and 30s. New York: Schocken Books. 1985. P 12.
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Biophilia: Perception of the Environment
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Abstraction “The rational brain is the primary power at man’s disposal to translate his yearnings into semblances of reality.”74 We are abstract thinkers. We have used this ability to imagine and create the world around us. We use language, symbols, and art to experiences in our own minds. This we do by drawing from the wealth of memories that we acquire over our lives.
Kellert’s biophilic elements “The direct experience of nature does occur in buildings and especially in landscapes and organisms, but more typically the built environment emphasizes the indirect and particularly the symbolic experience of the natural world.”75 In his book Building for Life, Kellert has listed what he sees as the attributes of biophilic design.76 His eight elements are: (1) Prospect; ability to see distance, (2) refuge; sense of enclosure or shelter, (3) water: indoors or inside views, (4) biodiversity, (5) sensory variability, (6) biomimicry, (7) sense of playfulness, (8) enticement. Direct access to nature is to be immersed in it – in a forest, by the sea, or being bathed in unfiltered light and air. One would expect this to evoke the most potent emotional response, however Kellert’s argument is that there are levels of biophilic design that are indirect – that is something non-living, metaphorical or vicarious, but which stimulate a similar sense of emotion as direct access to nature, and are applicable to indoor space.77 To present this, Kellert refers to the work of Frank Lloyd Wright, predominantly his residential structures. The organic design features prominent in Wright’s work are natural light, natural materials, and incorporation of the surrounding environment through views. His Prairie-style housing also sits into rather than onto the landscape where they are sited, owing to the shadows cast by the deep eaves diminishing the force of the solid, vertical wall.78 All of these elements are familiar in vernacular design – traditionally a rearrangement of materials present on site or in the vicinity.79 What vernacular architecture achieves is a sense of belonging in a place, with the outdoors environment literally being what makes the building. Vernacular buildings have the ability to mature, be repaired or adapt to changing conditions. To Wright “any building … should be an elemental, sympathetic feature of the ground, complementary to its nature-environment, belonging in kinship to the terrain,”80 however on the exterior he often uses alien materials such as concrete. In this case, he relies on careful form and proportion to allow the buildings to nestle into their surroundings – it may be out of place, but it is sympathetic toward its context.
Tuan, Yi-Fu. “Common psychological structures and responses,” in Topophilia: A Study of Environmental Perception, Attitudes and Values. Engelwood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice-Hall Inc., 1974. p.14. 75 Kellert, Stephen R. Building for Life: Designing and Understanding the Human-Nature Connection. Washington: Island Press, 2005. P 128. 76 Ibid., P 129. 77 Ibid., P 127. 78 Ibid., P 130. 79 Stephens, Dominic. "Chair as Landscape. House as Landscape: A Veracular Chair as Re-Arrangement of a Hedgrow. A House as Re-Arrangement of a Site." In The Everyday Experience. Irish Museum of Modern Art: Irish Architecture Foundation, 2013. 80 Wright, Frank Lloyd. Quoted in op. cit., Kellert. P 130. 74
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Fig xx Fig xix: Rosenbaum House. 1939. Wright, Frank Lloyd. (<http://www.pinterest.com/revisionhome/great-outdoors/>, Accessed 17th January 14). Fig xx: Fallingwater. 1935. Wright, Frank Lloyd. (<http://www.arquitetonico.ufsc.br/frank-lloyd-wright>, Accessed 17th January 14).
Wright often used stained glass in his architecture (see fig xvii) The colours, forms and light passing through such a window creates a rich, varied light similar to that which passes through a tree or plant canopy. This is an abstract reference to the natural world, but one which actively creates a similar indoor condition to be experienced by the occupant.
Man as abstract thinker “early twentieth-century modernist art, where it was held that particular property of every art was to offer an experience unique to its own particular medium, incommunicable through any other medium.”81 Experience of one art form cannot be experienced through another; this was an ongoing idea in the modernist movement as it emerged, however it implied that architecture could not be experienced through words, art not through photography, nor literature through the image.82 There is logic in this, and a conscience toward the genius of the artist, but if it is the case, can nature ever hope to be recreated in architecture? There must also be a level of acknowledgment for the equal genius of the human mind to ‘fill in the gaps’, taking an abstraction of a reality and with their own creative input, imagine the experience for itself.83 We have become accustomed to abstract references; they inundate us. The great artists and their works may be where we trace the cultural values to, but their work filters down into the visual and graphic world we see every day in the form of trends. As Haute couture manifests on the distant, glamorous catwalk, and eventually finds its ways to the high street, so too great art sets the trend our advertisements, illustrations, magazines and other visual media follow. We have been groomed to understand our world in abstract terms by being consistently exposed to abstract symbols and icons, one of the most enduring being Harry Beck’s London Underground Map.
81 Forty, Adrian. “Introduction” in Words and Buildings: A Vocabulary of Modern Architecture. London: Thames & Hudson, 2000. P 13. Ibid., P 13. 83 Tuan, Yi-Fu. “From Cosmos to Landscape.” In Topophilia: A Study of Environmental Perception, Attitudes and Values. Engelwood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice-Hall Inc., 1974. P 129. 82
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Fig xxi Fig xxi: London Underground Map. 1933. Beck, Harry. (<http://www.tfl.gov.uk/corporate/projectsandschemes/2443.aspx>, Accessed 17th January 14).
An abstraction is anything that seeks to convey the idea through the form of another. There is an absence of literal depiction. Indirect biophilia demands a level of imaginative input; to ‘join the dots’. Often, this is achieved through associative memory – the theoretical model of linking of information in the memory whereby input of sensory data constitutes a reminder to another piece of information by association84. For example, a light breeze reminiscent of a walk in the country, dappled sunlight hitting the wall like a forest floor – there is a reliance on individual perception and experience.85 Connection is never stronger felt than when a memory is triggered – consciously or unconsciously – and memories are most enduring when concerning a potent emotional experience.86 It is this function; of being able to visualize the building from a line drawing, or the scene from an abstract painting, that allows us to experience a similar level of satisfaction in being exposed to an indirect abstraction of the natural world, as direct access.87 The degree at which this satisfaction is experienced is a little harder to unveil, as it is so dependent on individual perception.
Perception; imaginative input “man learns while he sees and what he learns influences what he sees”88 This is why we enjoy the arts; they present conditions from which the mind simulates reality, provoking engagement. Art is not purely entertaining; it presents puzzles for the mind to contend with, although within a framework that is visually, acoustically or in any other way, sensually elegant. Art evokes contemplation, confusion or revelation. It challenges perception and reaction. The act of leaving a ‘gap’ or a degree of incomplete reality, allows the mind to actively fill it with something of its own. In this way, abstractions of nature can sometimes hold a greater potential to engage than direct access. In removing an element of reality, there is left the promise of a world unknown to any other. There is room for personal input, to get lost in your own fantasy.
Anderson, John R. and Bower, Gordon H. Human Associative Memory: A Brief Edition. Hilldale, New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates Publishers. 1980. P 65. 85 Forty, Adrian. “Memory” in Words and Buildings: A Vocabulary of Modern Architecture. London: Thames & Hudson, 2000. P 208-9. 86 "Neuroanatomy of Memory." In The Oxford Handbook of Memory, edited by Endel Tulving and Fergus I. M. Craik, 478. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2000. P 137. 87 Hes, D. 2013. Biophilic Design, lecture given in Regenerating Sustainability ABPL90272 at the University of Melbourne, Parkville, on 10 April 2013. 88 Hall, Edward, T. The Hidden Dimension : Man's Use of Space in Public and Private. London: The Bodley Head Ltd, 1966. P 66. 84
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Fig xxii
Fig xxiii Fig xxii: Reflected light & water pool, Frye Museum, Seatle, USA. 1997. Remodlelling. (<http://www.flickr.com/photos/brewbooks/241316052/in/photostream/>, Accessed 17th January 14). Fig xxiii: Suspended Corridor. 2005. Iglesias, Cristina. (<http://albaforteagorraiz.wordpress.com/antecedentes/>, Accessed 17th January 14).
Visual artist and filmmaker, Niamh O’Malley, works with this phenomenon – studying the symptoms of Charles Bonnet syndrome, whereby sufferers are subject to an enlarged blind spot of the eye. What results is that the brain unconsciously fills in the missing information with hallucinated forms from imagination or memory. O’Malley’s work involves manipulating or obscuring portions of film to challenge the perception and expectation of the viewer.89 Sometimes “creativity requires the courage to let go of certainties;”90 the lack of reality bestows on the abstract stimulus just such an absence of certainty. Like a puzzle, an abstraction demands input from the individual, to be experienced by no one else but that individual. Culturally, we desire and respond to our environments in entirely different ways. For example in general terms; the Japanese are accustomed to limited space, and are therefore less stressed by confined arrangements and have a higher tolerance for crowding. They also tend to furnish their rooms in a different manner, placing furniture in the center of a space, and so can find those with furniture located along the walls larger than those accustomed to the same arrangement. 91 Memory, and experience alters perception; “we can measure with a tape whether or not a man can reach something, but we must apply an entirely different set of standards to judge the validity of an individual’s feeling of being cramped.”92 Experience is so inherently connected with individual – to their own past experiences – that it is almost impossible to evoke the same emotional reaction to a provocation in any two people. There are, however, frameworks that can accommodate assumptions to establish some similarities, such as culture, as “no matter how hard man tries it is impossible for him to divest from his own culture”93 In this way, biophilia cannot present a set framework of design principles which must be adhered to, nor can it answer the degree of negative impact that their absence will incur, but biophilia may offer a guide that can be adopted and applied to the specific situation in question. In a recent exhibition called The Everyday Experience, one contributor Ciaran O’Gaora wrote; “The home you’re born into always has a particular fascination. It informs the instinctive feelings you have for scale, light, texture, form, flow of space…these measures are carried with you through life and new spaces are viewed through the lens of what you’ve already experienced as a child.”94 O’Gaora’s own work involved designing miniature houses that connect scale, memory, emotion and experience. It is important that when the designer moves into the realm of designing for individual experience that they avoid the trap of ‘designing for everyone resulting in designing for no one.’ There are, however, instinctive stimuli we as the general population can be presumed to respond to, its just a case of establishing what these are.
O’Malley, Niamh. “US Thirteen”. Lecture, Monday Market series. Richview, University College Dublin on 7th October 2013. 90 Fromm, Erich. "The Creative Attitude", in Harold H. Anderson (ed.), Creativity and Its Cultivation, New York, Harper & Brothers, 1959, pp. 44-54. P 53. 91 Hall, Edward, T. The Hidden Dimension : Man's Use of Space in Public and Private. London: The Bodley Head Ltd, 1966, P 52. 92 Ibid., P 52. 93 Ibid., P 177. 94 O’Gaora, Ciaran. In The Everyday Experience. Irish Museum of Modern Art. October 2013. 89
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Sherry Turkle, a psychologist and social scientist, conducted a series of experiments concerning artificial versus human voice recognition.95 She discovered that the level of ‘reality’ necessary in the artificial voice to obtain the same level of emotional response in a human was startlingly low. The abstracted voice needed only a small level of pitch fluctuation to replicate human speech, and when coupled with facial expression and movement mirroring in basic toys, the emotional response was almost indeterminable between that evoked by a human voice and that of an artificial device. She described these instinctive stimuli as Darwinian buttons; genetically programmed into us to recognize and respond to other living creatures “like us.”96 This too can be applicable to relationship to nature, and is evident in Kellert’s design principles (see Kellert’s biophilic elements).97 His attributes identify what are these so-called Darwinian buttons – particular stimuli associated with life-like conditions. They take advantage of the ability to ‘trick’ the unconscious mind into believing artificial conditions are in fact derived from natural sources.
Turkle, Sherry, speaking in, Moore, Stefan’s "Mysteries of the Human Voice." 52 mins. Australia: National Geographic, 2013. 96 Ibid., Turkle. 97 Kellert, Stephen R. Building for Life: Designing and Understanding the Human-Nature Connection. Washington: Island Press, 2005. P 127. 95
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Scale Throughout the history of the built environment, many architects have studied and based design principle around the human form.98 This makes sense, as humans are the client for which architecture is intended. As the mathematician discusses ‘elegance’ of a solution, so the architect discusses proportion.99
Fig xxiv
Fig xxv Fig xxiv: Vitruvian Man. 1492. Da Vinci, Leonardo. <http://witcombe.sbc.edu/davincicode/leonardovitruvian-man.html> Accessed 17th Dec. 2013. Fig xxv: Le Modulor 1949. Le Corbusier. <http://www.andriesvanonck.com/ergonomy.html> Accessed 17th Dec. 2013.
The original model for discussing beauty in architecture derives from Plato’s account of the natural world being governed by geometry or numerical relations100. The perfection strived toward in the regulation of concinnitus aims to translate ‘beauty’ in the minute adjustment of proportion. Da Vinci’s Vitruvian Man is probably the most universally recognizable drawing of human harmony through proportion, but similar aspirations are witnessed in Corbusier’s fascination in the idea of human scale, evident in his many drawings exploring the body, none as much as his Modulator Man.
Domesticated man We may not be used to thinking of ourselves in this way, but we are animals. We may feel more flesh and bone when we are sick, or exercising or using our bodies, but on the whole, we too often feel that our bodies are just means of transporting our heads!101 As I previously discussed, “Western man has set himself apart from nature, and therefore, from the rest of the animal world,”102 and as a tamed being, like other domesticated animals, we are capable of squeezing greater numbers into a given area, as is occurring in our cities.103 In the so-called higher mammals, this can be maintained, as long as they feel safe and aggression is under control. If stress begins to rise, so too does fear, and the primitive survival instincts of the brain take hold. In this instance, there needs to be a release. In Corbusier’s Unité d'habitation, the ceiling level of these comparably slender apartments was taken down to an uncommonly low height of just above two meters for much of their floor plan. This confinement should surely constitute an unpleasant living condition, however it did not, with these apartments being highly acclaimed and desired. The reason for this is that the compressed space is juxtaposed against an entirely glazed wall providing an uninhibited view to the horizon (in the case of the bedrooms), or a portion of double-height space (in the case of the living areas). What this provided was the necessary release of space intensified by the compressed zone, and proved that a small portion of generosity can allow greater confinement overall.104 This highly choreographed arrangement also serves to intensify the occupier’s relationship with the view, awarding it a more predominant role in the everyday life
Forty, Adrian. “Nature” in Words and Buildings: A Vocabulary of Modern Architecture. London: Thames & Hudson, 2000. P 221. 99 Wilson, Edward O. Biophilia. Cambridge, Mass. and London: The Harvard University Press, 1984. P 60. 100 Forty, Op. cit., P 220. 101 Robinson, Ken. “Ken Robinson: How schools kill creativity” 2006. TED Talks. 102 Hall, Op. cit., P 184. 103 Hall, Edward, T. The Hidden Dimension : Man's Use of Space in Public and Private. London: The Bodley Head Ltd, 1966. P 186. 104 Janson, Alban. Krohn, Carsten and Grunwald, Anja. Le Corbusier: Unité d'habitation, Marseille. Stuttgart, London: Axel Menges. 2007. P 31. 98
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of the apartment. The overall effect resonates with Kellert’s biophilic design principles, namely; prospect, and sensory variability.105 In contrast to this, the staff canteen in Michael Scott’s Busaras features a different kind of release. Here, on the seventh floor in Dublin – a city of little high-rise development – there is a rarely enjoyed view. For the staff, however, the wonder must soon become banal, and most choose to spend their breaks not by the south-facing floor to ceiling windows, but on the opposite side of the room in an area where the ceiling drops to being less than door-height. This narrow zone provides a spatial intimacy the staff does not get to enjoy in the office environment, offering instead a sense of sheltered security at a more human scale, drawing on Kellert’s biophilic attribute, refuge, as well as sense of playfulness, and enticement.106
Fig xxvi
Fig xxvii Fig xxvi: Le Corbusier’s, Unité d'Habitation. High-density housing. Marseille, France. 1945. (<http://www.extraextra.org/Review_Art_Le_Corbusier_09.html> Accessed 15th Dec 2013.) Fig xxvii: Busaras staff canteen. 1953. Scott, Michael. (<http://farm7.staticflickr.com/6155/6230182262_2e257c41cb_z.jpg> Accessed 10th January 2014)
Fig xxviii
Fig xxix Fig xxviii: Boyd, Robin. Walsh St House. Melbourne, Australia. 1958. <http://www.beciorpin.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/walsh_st_2.jpg> Accessed 27th Oct. 2013. Fig xxix: Gray, Eileen. E-1027. Cote d'Azur, France. 1929. <https://www.domusweb.it/content/dam/domusweb/en/art/2010/12/10/conversationwith-kasper-akh-j/big_288650_2033_08-p.81.book_2_UPD1.jpg> Accessed 2nd Jan 2014.
The view in Boyd’s house has a similar effect to that of the Unité d'Habitation apartments. Designed to only be experienced through the banal act of sitting on the couch, does this serve in a way to bring these distant
Kellert, Stephen R. Building for Life: Designing and Understanding the Human-Nature Connection. Washington: Island Press, 2005. P 128. 106 Ibid., P 128. 105
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mountains to an almost tangible level. It certainly encourages the beholder to see them for longer, as they have already assumed a position of rest. The resultant experience warps perception of distance and in fact allows a distant landscape to have a presence in this domestic space. If one wished to get closer, or experience the air as well as view from the balcony, the view would not be visible. This game of withholding served to intensify the experience of only one sense at a time; the view only to be experienced from the indoor environment, and the open air only in a covered condition. Each are examples of choreographed experience, not simple observation or presentation, and each are designed with the scale of human body in mind, however it was a conceited scaling in Corb’s case, as he designed the space to the scale of the French man. He was accused of sexism in his dimensioning of the space! Looking at Eileen Grey’s e1027, she designed in a similar fashion, but instead to her own slight stature’s scale. She placed herself at the centre of the design and arranged the view to the horizon to be visible at her eye level. As a personal home, this was slightly more acceptable than Corb’s high-density housing project. Gray and Corbusier had very different views regarding designing for the human, despite their mutual respect and familiarity. In response to Corbusier’s comment that the house being a machine to live in, Gray contradicted this, saying “It is the shell of man—his extension, his release, his spiritual emanation."107 Her design was very much about the scale of the human body, and the scale of use. She emphasized minimum space and maximum comfort. She sought to “enhance the human potential of modern architecture, overcoming its supposed cold and alienating qualities by reinstating fundamental physical, psychological and spiritual needs as primary”108 To her by designing with the body in mind, the house held the potential to become an extension of that very body. She focused not only on harmonizing built with the greater natural environment, but with the one we ourselves are housed in – our bodies. Without intentionally seeking to do so, Corbusier, Scott, Boyd and especially Gray were putting into practice many biophilic design attributes.109 There may be eight, but not all need to be utilized to create a space harmonizing with the natural environment. There’s a degree of subjective selection required by the desidner, as biophilia does not need to overpower their own creative vision.
Extensions; the veils of modern life “Man and his extensions constitute one interrelated system. It is a mistake of the greatest magnitude to act as though man were one thing and his house or his cities, his technology or his language were something else.”110 Modern life in developed societies has caused us to evolve to be almost entirely dependant on the conveniences we have come to know. Culture derives from the everyday experience – the way we live – and so we have grown to create our own self-assembled culture that is highly reliant on technology and man-made resources. As such, one cannot think as simply about how to increase connection to the natural world and living systems without taking the existing culture into account. Hall argues that we are inherently linked to our culture – it is part of our very being, drives our instinctive responses, and veils all our actions in its hidden agenda.111 It arises from the whole of what we know around us; our environment, our technology, our relationships and movements. Most of culture remains hidden beyond the realm of consciousness. We are a product of our nurture, as well as our nature; this culture is not fixed, but an ever-morphing aspect of our being. “You learn something new every day”; a familiar saying, but one that is often not considered beyond the accomplishment of learning a new fact or skill. Every new bit of technology, every new convenience that yields favour in frequent use, however small, gains a place in our culture. We are at the point it is almost impossible to envisage removing ourselves from the culture of convenience we have made for ourselves, and it is worth questioning when we’ve goie too far. Fromm viewed these conveniences as “hindrances to the elevation of mankind,” implying that we are becoming
Gray, quoted in Constant, Caroline. Eileen Gray. London: Phaidon Press Ltd. 2000. P 117. Ibid., P 73. 109 Kellert, Stephen R. Building for Life: Designing and Understanding the Human-Nature Connection. Washington: Island Press, 2005. P 128. 110 Hall, Edward, T. The Hidden Dimension : Man's Use of Space in Public and Private. London: The Bodley Head Ltd, 1966. P 188. 111 Hall, Edward, T. “Hidden Culture.” In Beyond Culture. P 57. 107 108
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complacent and idle as a result of our own past innovation.112 Thoreau’s book Walden, well known in our environmentally aware age, is an advocate of simple living and natural surroundings. He shares the view that the extensions we’ve encapsulated ourselves in inhibit the higher mental functions we’ve evolved to be capable of.113 The natural world is not only physically competing against the extensions of modern life, but must also fight to gain our attention. If it’s not consciously considered in the environments that we frequent, we run the risk of loosing a strong relationship with it as a society as a whole – the very scale of our engagement will greatly diminish.
112 113
Thoreau, Henry David. “Economy” in, Walden: a Place in the Woods. Boston: Ticknor and Fields, 1854. P 269. Fromm, Erich. "Human Nature and Character." In Man for Himself: An Inquiry into the Psychology of Ethics. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul Ltd., 1947. P 39.
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Conclusion Human reliance on nature for the basic elements for life may all be but a distant memory in the developed world, but our inherent fascination and need to connect with it remains ever-present. Viewing art and literature as a product and conveyer of cultural view, one can clearly trace our altering perception of the natural world. The arrival of modernist movements saw abstraction in language and attitude toward design come to the fore across the creative disciplines.114 There was a progressive and conscious effort to distil form down to its very essence; this too can be said of our attitude to nature; in architecture, decoration and ornament were replaced by the clean line and simple plan. Credit was duly given to the human mind’s capacity to simulate reality from basic abstraction.115 The act of relating to nature moved away from direct access to the natural world, and into the realm of abstract reference. Man set himself aside from the natural world through technology; his extensions.116 These extensions have become so embodied in our culture that we can no longer be thought of as separate from them, they formulate the constant lens through which we perceive the world around us. The pace of technological advances is fixed, but it is not to be viewed as a negative direction, as our advances are a celebration of the very innovation and capacity to create biophilia seeks to enhance. It may be difficult to ignore the many new extensions becoming increasingly common in society as a whole, and the sum of which undoubtedly contribute to the stressful disconnectedness modern life inflicts on many individuals, but I conclude that we must execute a degree of will power to limit our own personal reliance on them. In examining the morphology of our representations of nature, this paper undertook to reveal the potency of abstractions relative to nature itself, and if they possess greater potential to penetrate the veil of extensions we’ve encased ourselves in. In the absence of direct access, abstracted nature certainly has huge potential for positive impact – not decorative visual pattern, but sensual stimuli reminiscent off nature herself. There is a careful choreography required to create successful biophilic space, which has been absent in other ‘green movements’. Fromm notes that the point at which we became human as opposed to animal was this very moment that instinctive thought gave way to what he calls his awareness.117 However, engagement with abstraction leads us to relapse back to a more instinctive way of thought. The abstract image relies on quick response, and to a degree, one that is universal and crosses cultural perceptions.118 Many of the great and revered architects of our time were working in this realm of abstraction and nature, even if it was not a central theme to their work’s legacy. For any movement to remain prevalent, for progress to be achieved, it must retain the favour and attention of the masses, therefore our discussion of nature and the natural environment needs to join the design platform for discussion on a more equal and accessible level – not as optional new-age technology, but as desirable, simple and above all beneficial references. The ‘chore’ of nature in design needs to be forgotten, the ‘delight’ reinstated.
Forty, Adrian. Words and Buildings: A Vocabulary of Modern Architecture. London: Thames & Hudson, 2000. p.23. Tuan, Yi-Fu. Topophilia: A Study of Environmental Perception, Attitudes and Values. Engelwood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice-Hall Inc., 1974. p.13. 116 Hall, Edward, T. The Hidden Dimension : Man's Use of Space in Public and Private. London: The Bodley Head Ltd, 1966. p.188. 117 Fromm, Erich. "Human Nature and Character." In Man for Himself: An Inquiry into the Psychology of Ethics. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul Ltd., 1947. P 40. 118 Wilson, Edward O. Biophilia. Cambridge, Mass. and London: The Harvard University Press, 1984, P 62. 114 115
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Appendix A1
A walk through a Biophilic house Boyd House II, Melbourne, Australia.1958. Boyd, Robin.
Fig : Image of Boyd House II, by Melanie O’Brien
Robin Boyd’s Walsh St House, dating to1958, offers obvious connection with nature through the large open-air courtyard splitting the home in two, but it also includes many more of the attributes Kellert outlines in his work. Basic environmental features attributed to biophilic design by Kellert include water and colour. Entry to Walsh St House is through a bright red door in an otherwise plain, unremarkably woven fence. The human eye is naturally drawn to bright colour; in our primitive past it would often denote an area of fertility, growth, and therefore, food. Walking though this, one passes over an overgrown pond, crosses a boardwalk – with more give than one is used to – is then presented with an immense wall dappled in sunlight which diffuses through the uncharacteristically large tree on the street front. Of course this is an attractive setup for most people, but it is designed to put one at ease as they leave the suburban streetscape for the hidden world within. In one of the most prestigious addresses in the City of Melbourne, surrounded by dense development, there exists an oasis of escape and contentment, achieved by clever blocking of what one doesn’t want to see, and opening what one desires to experience. On entry to the main space of the house, the master bedroom, a secret view to the distant mountains is only revealed if one is lucky enough to pause and be invited to sit down on the salubrious velvet couch. The idea of “scales of nature;” from wilderness, to poetic or abstract is an important one in biophilia. In the case of Walsh Street, Boyd was a talented architect, with an opportunistic site, designing to his own taste. There is a clever play of when and where to connect to the greater landscape, and when to retreat to the controlled internal courtyard, which is both logical and fundamental to the function of the house. As a man from a family of successful painters, Boyd was familiar with art, and was adamant that architecture occupied the same realm of high distinction. The injection of vibrant colour through artworks into an otherwise subdued colour palette was of equal importance to the choice of deep shades of timber, warm copper fixings and vibrant green canopy. To Boyd, the complexity of space relied on combining decorative, built and natural elements as one entity to be experienced. This reflects in Kellert’s idea that any reference to the natural environment has an effect on human emotion, the ‘larger’ the scale the more potent or enduring the impression, such as a brick relief wall offering an abstract pattern of light and shadow mimicking the dappled light through a forest canopy, or light reflected from water creating a dynamic organic pattern.119
Heerwagen, Judith H. and Gregory, Bert. “Biophilia and Sensory Aesthetics” in Biophilic Design: The Theory, Science and Practice of Bringing Buildings to Life. Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons Ltd, 2008. p 227-241.
119