Dream, Design, Define

Balance is an extremely important factor when analyzing the space were in, especially when it comes to our perception of open and closed environments. Prospect is identified as an open environment with broad views, bright and open space with "perching" to overlook outside activity from the comfort of your safe space. Refuge is identified as a closed environment which provides refuge, narrow views, and overall protection from the outside world along with it's stressors. It is important to find a balance between prospect and refuge when designing a space to not only provide the ability to look out and see what is going on in the open space around you but also provide a safe, private space for your client. This balance is known as the prospect-refuge theory. Prospect-refuge theory was developed by English geographer, Jay Appleton. In his book, Experience of Landscape, Jay proposed that humans seek out to review the space around them based on two factors- to have opportuni...

Have you ever been in a space that made you feel uncomfortably close to others? Or felt like someone invaded your personal space? Or even enjoyed the close embrace of a hug from a loved one? All of these are examples of personal space, which is basically a bubble between ourselves and others. This bubble known as personal space is constantly expanding and contracting as we meet/see different people, move through/enter different spaces, and on overall emotional state of mind. How designers can help with making people feel as in control and comfortable as possible about their amount of personal space is through the use of proxemics! As a family, we don't mind our personal space being invaded! Photo taken off my iphone, Disney Land, CA Proxemics is the use of distancing people through design, discovered by American Anthropologist and linguist, E.T Hall. The use of proxemics can be utilized in many ways from changing ceiling heights to feel larger, orientation and division of s...

How do normal, everyday individuals travel throughout their world? How do people cope with stress? And why does everyone deal with these various situations within their environment differently? The answer is James Averill's Control Theory (1973). Averill suggested that individuals have three types of control over their environment: behavioral control, cognitive control, and decisional control. The British Journal of Mathematical and Statistical Psychology (2010) even states that all individuals use these three types of control over their environments to cope with stress, especially in the use of decisional control. Overall, Control Theory means that individuals are able to institute control over their environment to ultimately induce a sense of well-being, safety, and comfort. Now, what do the three types of control theories mean? Behavioral control is considered to be an individuals way to modify the environment around them. An example of behavior control could be choosing to...

Dream to Design, Design to Define, Define to Discover. 44 year old Danish Architect, Bjarke Ingels ,  has reached international fame with his architectural designs that defy conventional standards and incorporate bold statements consisting of emphasis, function, and sustainability. ArchDigest cited him as "One of the most inspirational architects of our time!" after receiving many awards including being named Wall Street Journal's innovator of the year , achieving architectural feats after designing New York's first twisting skyscraper known as the Twisting High Line Towers, and designing large scale pieces of architectural art like the ORB featured at Burning Man 2018. Bjarke Ingels' 30 ton inflatable ORB makes debut at Burning Man 2018 www.cnn.com/burningman   Bjarke Ingels quotes,"Architecture is about trying to make our world a little more like our dreams".  Bjarke Ingels' perspectives on design has truly changed how I vie...