Origins of architectural pleasure / Grant Hildebrand.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Hildebrand, Grant, 1934-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Architecture--Aesthetics.

Architecture.

Architecture--Psychological aspects.

Physical Description:

xxiii, 174 pages : illustrations ; 27 cm

Place of Publication:

Berkeley : University of California Press, [1999]

Summary:

Why do Some Buildings make us feel happy or excited or tranquil? What is it in architecture that elicits pleasure? Grant Hildebrand asks these general questions in Origins of Architectural Pleasure, as well as more specific ones: "When we choose a new dwelling place, or build one, or make landscaping decisions for one, or for that matter occupy a workplace, select a restaurant or a table in a restaurant, plan a vacation -- are there any characteristics we can identify that seem to improve our chances of contentment?" To answer them, the author examines buildings and groups of buildings -- from five continents and five millennia -- that have retained their remarkable appeal or excitement. The book explores the reasons for such responses to the physical environment and relates some of our pleasure in architecture to elements in nature essential to survival, from the self-evident need for shelter to the aesthetic satisfaction of discovering order in complexly organized surroundings -- or complexity in apparent order.

Although this line of inquiry has been associated with environmental determinism and quantifiable objectivity, neither approach governs this book, which instead explores material that might contribute usefully to both critical and creative architectural judgment. Its premise is that characteristics we like (in both settings and experiences) should match closely those that would have improved our chances of survival. It analyzes six families of these archetypal characteristics, illustrating them with both natural and architectural examples.

While ever-advancing developments in technology enable us to create increasingly complex buildings and places, it is refreshing to revisit and reconsider our most fundamental relationships to the built environment.

Contents:

1 The Aesthetics of Survival 5

2 Finding a Good Home 15

3 Exploring 51

4 Categorizing and Differentiating 91

Some Closing Comments 139.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 165-167) and index.

ISBN:

0520215052

OCLC:

39169882