BODY X BUILDING
Nowadays, architect mention about the human body is quite important and need to be consider when designing a building. how does it really related to the human bodies when come to architecture?
The relationship between architecture today and the human body obviously have a long history.
And more questions are arising when exploring the relationship because it is more than simply about finding the proper dimensions and placement within the architecture space to ‘provide a person space to live and how they act inside’. The unite of architecture and human body give more impact on the occupant’s behaviour through the body, as well as affecting them mentally, physiologically and even profoundly through the body.
“Architecture must be a thing of the body, a thing of substance as well as of the spirit and of the brain.” Le Corbusier
The intention of Le Corbusier is to unite architecture and anthropometric as a whole, which the combination of these had turn out to be the ‘modular system’, that it is expressed in numbers, figures, and diagrams.
With the use of mathematics and human scale, these help a lot in human communication through same measurement system and all the construction work can be simplified. Besides, when architect use modular as a basic reference in designing a building, it provides a guideline for laying out useful spaces, for designing structural systems, and for creating an aesthetically pleasing environment.
The feeling always the important part for occupants when choosing a building or inside a building, the proportion of space usually can affect how the occupants feel and whether a building appears fascinating, welcoming, or threatening.
A building that are true to the human body
Serpentine Pavilion / Sou Fujimoto
Just as Fujimoto, always implementing the “cave” concept, uses layering to establish greater variation and in-between situations to better connect architecture with the human body within his design.
The pavilion, which has already gotten its "cloud" nickname because of its shape and lightness construction. Sou Fujimoto said that the inspiration for the design of the Pavilion was the concept that geometry and constructed forms could meld with the natural and the human.
A simple cube, sized to the human body, is repeated to build a form that exists between the organic and the abstract, to create an ambiguous, soft-edged structure that will blur the boundaries between interior and exterior.
As all above, what he trying to do is the combination of human bodies and nature to create a space that encourage people to explore the site in new and diverse ways. This design also encourages visitor to create their own experience when inside a building/space.
Furthermore, I think that the buildings are the metaphor of the human body. This significant role in architectural has been realized and applied by architects since Vitruvius.
“Proportion is a correspondence among the measures of the members of an entire work, and of the whole to a certain part.” - Marcus Vitruvius
Marcus is so believing in symmetry, the principle of which must be most carefully observed by each architect because he stated that human body is designed by nature, so every part of it should consist of its own meaning.
Diagram above show the sketches of Calatrava
For example, L’Hemisfèric designed by architect Santiago Calatrava: An Eye-Catching Architectural Masterpiece In Valencia.
L’Hemisfèric can be classified into the building that design based on the shape of human body. It represents a great human eye: the eye of wisdom. It symbolises looking and observing the world, which visitors can explore through stunning audio visual projections.
Just look at the outlook of building, the “pupil” is the hemispherical dome of the IMAX theatre and the “eyelid” can open and close by using hydraulic lifts to operate the steel and glass shutter.
In conclusion, architecture always have the responsibility to design a ‘perfect building’ for occupants in the lifetime. It’s our job to give them the perfect environment to stay inside a building. As an architect, it is a must to explore more and find out the possibility and the way architecture relates to the human bodies and find the right balance between the two.
As you delve into this balance, the question soon becomes about that interplay, finding where the two meet, exchange, part ways and influence one another.
This will result in within your design, the purpose is to take your occupants to a new “sense of place” that arouses curiosity, creativity and/or comfort at the right time.