healing and architecture

Imprints of Human Steps

2009-10-15T18:46:00.000-07:00

image credit: kitkat (flickr)

It is not about the stones set on the ground. It is about the act of stepping; moving one foot forward, then the other. My own steps traced in the constant dialogue between the soles of my feet and the sturdy stones pushing and pulling against each other to move about.

Shattered Reflection

2009-10-15T00:02:00.000-07:00

image credit: *inspire*dream*create (flickr)

"...Isolation and a sense that all human connection was elusive, was the province of others, of the happy people on the other side of the glass wall, was the worst part of my depression. I used to think: I want in on whatever deal it is that these other fucked-up chicks have got! And then Rafe came along, and he tried to love me, I really believe he did, but there was no amount of love that would have stitched my wounded psyche at that point...I discovered, through the love Rafe gave me, that affection as medicine is highly overrated, that a person who is as sick with depression as I most certainly was cannot possibly be rescued through the power of anyone's love. It is just so much worse than that. I mean, if you were to find a shattered mirror, find all the pieces, all the shards and all the tiny chips, and have whatever skill and patience it took to put all that broken glass back together so that it was complete once again, the restored mirror would still be spiderwebbed with cracks, it would still be a useless glued version of its former self, which could show only fragmented reflections of anyone looking into it. Some things are beyond repair." (Wurtzel, 214-215)

Wurtzel, Elizabeth. 1994. Prozac Nation: Young and Depressed in America. New York: Houghton Mifflin Company.

Emotional Mapping

2009-10-14T23:34:00.000-07:00

example of biomapping: Nottingham (credit: Christian Nold)

A new way of mapping emerged with the concept of bio mapping by Christian Nold. Now, one's emotional state can be quantified in the form of a map. I wonder if the relation between man and community; relation between man and nature be defined through this tool.

Nold explains in his website:

Bio Mapping = Lie Detector + GPS

The Bio Mapping tool uses a custom built Galvanic Skin Response (GSR) sensor which is based on the lie detector. The device records the changing levels of sweat on the skin as a measure of the user’s physiological arousal. By aggregating all the participants journeys, a surface layer can be created that becomes a ‘Communal Emotion Map’.

By interpreting and annotating this data, communal emotion maps are constructed that are packed full of personal observations which show the areas that people feel strongly about and truly visualize the social space of a community.

Nold, Christian. Bio Mapping. http://www.biomapping.net

Expression of Time Frozen

2009-10-14T22:51:00.000-07:00

image credit: Kagedfish (flickr)

"... things wabi-sabi may be on the point of dematerialization (or materialization)- extremely faint, fragile, or desiccated- they still possess an undiminished poise and strength of character." (Koren, 62)

Koren, Leonard. 1994. Wabi-Sabi: for Artists, Designers, Poets & Philosophers. Berkeley, California: Stone Bridge Press.

Existential Loneliness

2009-10-14T21:50:00.000-07:00

image credit: olasso (Flickr)

All around, no flowers in bloom
Nor maple leaves in glare,
A solitary fisherman's hut alone
On the twilight shore
Of this autumn eve.

Fujiwara no Teika

Poem by Fujiwara no Teika (1162-1241) translation by Toshihiko and Toyo Izutsu Koren, Leonard. 1994. Wabi-Sabi: for Artists, Designers, Poets & Philosophers. Berkeley, California: Stone Bridge Press.

Beauty in Shadows

2009-10-14T21:24:00.000-07:00

image credit: Andreas Resch

"Deep shadows and darkness are essential, because they dim the sharpness of vision , make depth and distance ambiguous and invite unconscious peripheral vision and tactile fantasy." (Pallasmaa, 46)

Shadows give shape and life to the object in light. It is essential to our view of reality. It not only finds beauty in the thing of itself but in the patterns of light and darkness where one creates another. The patterns give spatial imagination and a place for mental withdrawal and privacy.

Pallasmaa, Juhani. 2005. The Eyes of the Skin: Architecture and the Sense. Great Britain: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Place of Healing

2009-10-06T09:04:00.000-07:00

The word 'heal' is defined as 'to make sound or whole' in Merriam-Webster dictionary but for the purpose of my thesis, I would like to define it as such:

to make whole by strengthening the experience of self (sense of being) through multi-sensory experiences: not just the 5 physical senses (sight, touch, smell, taste and hearing) but also the emotional senses enriched by both memory and dream (the past and future).

I would like to concentrate in a sense sensitive design that would stimulate our body and mind to regain the intimacy of individuality and identification with the use of:

- light/shadow
- colour
- texture/materials
- aroma
- sound/music therapy
- movement through space
- natural views/indoor and outdoor landscapes

I am interested in the architecture that can initiate, direct and organize behaviour.
I would like to focus in creating a healing environment for metal illness recovery.
A place that is geared not only towards recovery, but also towards community and sanctuary in the urban context. I think it is important to provide a place that will evoke a stronger faith in oneself that would lead to have faith in humanity- to feel a sense of belonging.