Architecture and narrative : the formation of space and cultural meaning / Sophia Psarra.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Psarra, Sophia.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Architecture--Composition, proportion, etc.

Architecture.

Architecture and society.

Physical Description:

xv, 285 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon ; New York, NY : Routledge, 2009.

Summary:

Looking at how meaning is constructed in buildings and how it is communicated to the viewer, this intriguing study will be of interest to anyone concerned with architecture and culture; from architects to museum specialists and exhibition designers.

Arrangement of spaces, social relationships and cultural content is fundamental to how buildings are shaped, used and perceived. Narrative enters architecture through the ways in which space is structured to achieve specific effects on our perception. Architects employ conceptual-formal patterns independently from a viewer's experience, but also organize space from the viewpoint of an observer. The act of perceiving is linked with the sequential unfolding of information as our bodies pass through space.

Examining the notions of conceptual, perceptual and social space, Architecture and Narrative explores the ways in which these three dimensions interact in the design and life of buildings.

Contents:

Part 1 Foundations 17

1 The Parthenon and the Erechtheion: the spatial formation of place, politics and myth 19

2 Invisible surface: reflections in Mies van der Rohe's Barcelona Pavilion 43

Part 2 Architecture and Narrative in Literature 65

3 'The book and the labyrinth were one and the same': narrative and architecture in Borges' fictions 67

4 (Th)reading the Library: spatial and mathematical journeys in Borges' Library of Babel 89

Part 3 Spatial and Narrative Interactions 109

5 Soane through the looking-glass: the house-museum of Sir John Soane 111

6 Victorian knowledge: the Natural History Museum, London and the Art Gallery and Museum, Kelvingrove, Glasgow 137

7 Contemporary experience: the Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh and the Burrell Collection, Glasgow 161

8 Tracing the modern: space, display and exploration in the Museum of Modern Art, New York 185

Part 4 Theoretical Synthesis 211

9 Comparative discussion 213

10 The formation of space and cultural meaning 233.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9780415343756

0415343755

9780415343763

0415343763

9780203639672

0203639677

OCLC:

166255135