SENSORY ARCHITECTURE:

Seeking Perception Beyond the Visual

Dave Giancarli
Introduction
Sensory Architecture: Seeking Perception Beyond the Visual

David Giancarli
MArch Fall 2012
Advisers: Carol Burns and Terry Moor

Abstract

Using the qualities of haptic and auditory perception of spaces rather then just the visual, architects can
create a spatial awareness, clarity, and allows the building to be experienced by the body as a whole
creating engagement. This study has been framed by concentrating on the visually impaired, who have an
intimate connection to architectural space and the non-visual senses, as compared to the sighted. A full
spatial understanding cannot be achieved using visual cues alone, but must draw upon the understanding
of sensation and perception together. The successive method of cognitive space forming the visually
impaired undergo creates a more personal engagement with their environment because, unlike the
sighted, sensory perception is pieced together to form an image rather then being immediately
recognized. Hapticity and auditory information can offer enrichment to the experience of architecture.
Touch breaks down individual components to cognitively recast the whole through the understanding of its
physical properties. Perception of auditory information allows for the size and character of a room can be
understood based on the sound, echoes, vibration and breeze of the air. These qualities are
unfortunately usually only consciously perceived by visually impaired since they are not distracted by the
vision. The sighted subconsciously understand these cues in the perception of space but often
environments are designed for primarily visual experiences. As a frame of reference, the visually impaired
provide architectural researchers and designers with a useful perspective on the process of developing
experiential qualities in built form.

1
Acknowledgments
Table of Contents
I would like to thank my 1 Introduction
professors, and classmates and 1 Tile - Abstract
who have assisted me in forming 2 Acknowledgments
3 Table of Contents
my thesis throughout this semester.
I would also like to thank my
mother, my girlfriend Susan and
4 Main Body
my late great-uncle Tom who have 4 Definitions
5 Main Question - Relevance
always encouraged me to
6 Research Essay
explore my ambitions. 12 Visuals
14 Evaluation - Conclusion - Hypothesis

15 Methodology
15 Original Work
17 Frames
21 Site
26 Design Probe
27 Conclusion
28 Design Method
29 Objectives and Time Line
30 Evaluation Criteria

31 Conclusion
31 Discoveries - Reflections - Next Steps

32 Bibliography

2 3
Main Body
Definitions
Aural Perception: The ability to
understand a space’s qualities such as
size, scale, and materiality through the
sense of hearing
Active Touch: Exploration of an
environment through the movements of
the body, utilizing an understanding of
tactility, density, temperature, and weight
Cognitive Mapping: Navigating a space
utilizing the senses and memory to
develop a mental image of a space
Dynamic Touch: Exploration using a
tool that is not part of the body i.e. a
blind cane or feeling the weight of a door
through its handle
Haptic perception: The process of
understanding objects through touch,
involving a combination of tactile,
density, form based, and thermal
qualities
Hi-fi Soundscape: Defined and
informative sound that produces clarity
and understanding of an environment
Inclusive Design: Designing for those
with all physical and sensory abilities
4 5
Question
Low-fi Soundscape: Auditory
Spatial Cues: Points of understanding In a culture dominated by visual perception, how can
within a space that utilize any of the
distinctions between spaces cannot be senses, allowing for a cognitive architects utilize the senses to create inclusive
defined image of a place to form environments for those of varying visual capabilities?
Multi-Sensorial: To involve several Tactility: Perceiving the texture,
senses working together to create
spatial experience
pressure, and heat of an object through Relevance
the skin
Ocularcentrism: The idea that visual
Visually Impaired: A person with low
Modern design’s focus on visual perception of space has created a
perception is the most privileged and
visual below 20/200, meaning from 20 disconnect between the body and the sensory experience. This issue is
dominant of the senses causing a
feet away objects appear at the emphasized by the contemporary lifestyle where physical engagement is
disconnection between a person and his
environment
resolution of objects 200 feet away secondary the vast amounts of information recieved through retinal
imagery. Multi-sensorial design allows for an interpretation and an
Passive Touch: When the environment engagement with an environment rather then taking it for what it appears to
engages with the occupant even while be. The visually impaired were chosen as a frame to view the design
the body is in a static position i.e. opportunities that are possible with non-ocular sensory perception and
sensing thermal changes within a room
discover ways to allow this experience to lead to an inclusive creation of
Sighted: People with the ability to architectural space.
perceive space through normal levels of
visual detail
Soundmark: Like physical landmarks,
soundmarks allow a person to orient
themselves within a space
Research Essay
Since the nineteenth century,
multi-sensory design has been
advocated for as a counter to
ocularcentrism in the perception of
architectural spaces. Ocularcentrism,
or dominance of the eye, has led to the
design of spaces that do not fully utilize
the other senses. Finnish architect and
professor Juhani Pallasmaa states,
“Modernist design has housed the
intellect and the eye, but it has left the
body and the other senses, as well as
memories and dreams, homeless.”1 By
designing for haptic and auditory
perception, architects can create a
spatial awareness, clarity, and
engagement that allows for a building to
move past its purely functional program
and towards an active experiential
quality. This study has been framed by
concentrating on the visually impaired,
who have an intimate connection to
architectural space and the non-visual
senses, as compared to the sighted.2
6 7
Ocularcentrism
The origins of the hegemony or
dominance of ocular perception trace
back to ancient Greek philosophers who
considered the eye to be the gods’
greatest gift to humanity. During the
Renaissance, reverence of the eye
became an obsession for designers
concentrating on visual imagery in order
to form magnificent spaces based on
perspectival representation.3 Reliance
on solely visual understanding in the
creation of architectural space has been
reinforced with the invention of
computer imaging technology, flattening
the natural multi-sensory perception in
the design process into “a passive
manipulation of space, a retinal
journey.”4
Visual perception alone cannot
develop complete spatial awareness,
clarity, and engagement. Professors of
architectural theory and art, Joy Monice
Malnar and Frank Vodvarka have
observed:
“One appreciates a place not by its
impact on the visual cortex, but by the way in
which it sounds, it feels and smells. For instance,
the full understanding of wood is often achieved
by a perception by its smell and its texture
which can be appreciated by both looks and
feelings and by the way in which it modulates the
acoustics of space.” 5
If designers do not take full sensory
perception into account, then the
spaces being created can become
1
Juhani Pallasmaa, The Eyes of the Skin:
Architecture and the Senses, 3 ed. (New York:
Wiley, 2012), 35
2
Jasmien Herssens “Haptic Design Research:
A Blind Sense of Place,” Katholieke Universiteit
Leuven Press (2011), 1 http://www.aia.org/aiauc-
mp/groups/aia/documents/pdf/aiab087187.pdf
(accessed September 10, 2012)
3
Pallasmaa, The Eyes of the Skin, 18-19
4
Pallasmaa, The Eyes of the Skin, 14
5
Joy Monice Malnar and Frank Vodvarka,
Sensory Design (Minneapolis: Univ Of Minnesota
Press, 2004), 24
unengaging rather than an active
experience to the occupier. Although
humans inherently experience natural
and urban environments in a multi-
sensory way, architect Jasmien
Herssens argues, “few architects
consider the haptic, olfactory, gustatory
and auditory senses while designing.”6
This statement acknowledges the lack
of multi-sensory considerations that are
taken within the architectural design
process, and calls for the utilization of
the other senses.
Perception
Comprehension of a place
relies not only on the sensation (the flow
of data received through the sensory
organs), but also through perception
(the data after it has been processed
and interpreted).7 A full spatial
understanding cannot be achieved
using visual cues alone, but must draw
upon the understanding of “sensation
and perception” together. People should
“build up the shape of the world rather
than recognizing it as the source, which
stares into the face.”8 Ultimately, people
become more knowledgeable about
architectural spaces through individual
experience and engagement. Haptic
perception is the result of the information
our skin receives from the surroundings
environment resulting in the
understanding of tactile, thermal, kinetic
and pressure properties. For instance,
Herseens states that haptic exploration
allows individuals to focus on particular
points of specific information throughout
a space, whereas vision gives a
simplistic overall understanding just by
turning the head.9 According to
Pallasmaa, an individual’s sense of
reality becomes strengthened and
articulated through the constant
interaction of the senses.10 Humans
experience three different kinds of
sensory response: involuntary immediate
physical response, a response
conditioned through prior knowledge of
its source, and a remembered sensation,
which can reconstruct a past response.11
A much deeper subconscious
understanding of spatial interaction
should be considered when designing
spaces. Blindness or visual impairment
serves as a means to critique the visual
dominance that exists in architectural
design and works in the direction of a
multi-sensorial experience.
6
Herssens “Haptic Design Research,” 1
7
Malnar and Vodvarka, Sensory Design, 21
8
Malnar and Vodvarka, Sensory Design, 25
9
Herssens “Haptic Design Research” 2
10
Pallasmaa, The Eyes of the Skin, 44
11
Malnar and Vodvarka, Sensory Design, 21
The Visually Impaired
How does someone without sight
or with a visual impairment experience
space? Individual who are congenitally
blind cannot perceive space through
descriptions of form, volume, and
color, since they have no prior
experience with it. They can only
perceive volume through sound and
touch.12 About 80% of those
considered to be legally blind have
some useful vision.13 People with a
moderate visual impairment but
considered blind use large forms and
color to assist in navigating themselves
though their environment. Without
immediate visual recognition of space
the visually impaired must “build up the
shape of the world around”14 them using
their remaining senses. This
successive method of cognitive space
forming creates a grounded sense of
awareness in their environment through
8 9
piecing together sensory perception.
Blindness never improves hearing or
haptic ability, but increases the
motivation to increase spatial perception
using alternate senses.15 Using aural and
tactile qualities along with simplifed
visual layouts and geometries can
reinforce spatial awareness to ease the
stress that the visually impaired endure
while navigating unknown spaces.
Without spatial understanding,
perceptual barriers can form, which
prevent recognition of essential
wayfinding information and limit the
abilities of the visually impaired.
The senses can build a cognitive
connection to allow for the full
understanding of a space, but in order to
assure that those with visual
impairments can successfully navigate
through a building, certain regulations
have been implemented. The Americans
with Disabilities Act of 1990, has
fulfilled the need for code by setting
requirements such as stair tread size
and design, detectable warning
surfaces, hallway sizes, and restrictions
on protruding object height.16 Using
sensory design in conjunction with these
elements of code can create inclusive
environments for those of all visual
capabilities. Disability arises when
environmental barriers (social, politcal,
physical, or sensory) prevent a person
12
Fondation de France/ICOM, Museums Without
Barriers: A New Deal for Disabled People (New
York: Routledge, 1992), 87
13
Elga Joffee, A Practical Guide to the Ada and
Visual Impairment (New York: Amer Foundation
for the Blind, 1999), 11
14
Malnar and Vodvarka, Sensory Design, 25
15
Barry Blesser and Linda-Ruth Salter, Spaces
Speak, Are You Listening?: Experiencing Aural
Architecture (Cambridge: The MIT Press, 2009),
35
16
Joffee, A Practical Guide to the Ada and Visual
Impairment, 40
with impairments from functioning in
society in the same way as an
able-bodied person.17 If these standards
are widely adopted, and spatial cues
and designs define regularity, then there
will be a control over uncertainties which
can disorient someone with a sensory
impairment.
Engaging Touch
Haptic qualities of material can create
a spatial sensory construct through
physical qualities such as tactility,
density, elasticity (resistance to
pressure applied) and weight as well as
sensory qualities such as color, texture,
pattern, and temperature. Hapticity
18
plays a major role in non-visual
perception of space, and can also
enhance the spatial experience for the
sighted. Unlike the other senses,
haptic body movement enables people
to modify and manipulate their
environment, creating a more direct
engagement with the building and
occupier.19 The physical act of touch
creates a mental map for objects in
space. French writer Jacques Lusseyran
describes his haptic abilities after going
blind:
You can go very quickly, with your eyes. You can
glide. Excuse me; I don’t want to scold or insult
you, but I am obliged to say: you glide too
quickly. This ends up becoming a frightening
temptation for you. Fingers don’t glide. With my
fingers I can know this table. I am obliged to feel
my way around it. That is to say, I make my
fingers explore all its parts, one after another,
until at last I know it all, completely. 20
Touch breaks down individual
components to cognitively recast the
whole. In Image of the City, Kevin Lynch,
describes an image of a place through
elements such as landmarks, paths,
nodes, edges and boundaries.21 These
principals can be applied to a haptic
context by taking into consideration
material characteristics and form. For
example, a tower can be a visual
landmark in the same way the texture of
a city square can become a haptic
landmark.22 The Bauhaus encouraged
exploration of textural sensitivity and
educated design students by having
them engage with a material repetitively
to create a mental pallet for an
understanding of material choice.23
Tactile sensitivity has diminished with the
availability of computer-generated
simulations of materiality in modern
Ungar. “Cognative Mapping: Past Present and
17
Future.” Cognitive Mapping Without Visual Ex-
perience, (Edited by R. Kitchin and S. Fredund-
schuh, London: Routledge, 2000) 11
18
Malnar and Vodvarka, Sensory Design, 201
19
Herssens “Haptic Design Research,” 2
31
Devlieger, Patrick. Blindness and the
Multi-Sensorial City. (Antwerp: Garant, 2006), 33
21
Herssens “Haptic Design Research,” 2
Herssens “Haptic Design Research,” 3
22
23
Malnar and Vodvarka, Sensory
Design, 145
design software, which allow for
materials to be placed as a skin over a
building quickly and
interchangeably.
Touch can serve as an important
teaching tool for the visually impaired as
well as those who have full ocular ability.
Those not fully capable of ocular
perception should become comfortable
with tactile exploration at a young age.
Without being taught these techniques
they can feel detached and
uncomfortable with the world that
surrounds them, causing social isola-
tion. The way in which the sighted are
educated does not include this kind of
haptic involvement since vision and
auditory information are able to be used.
This process is not as personal as the
one those with a visual impairment
undergo. In order to wayfind and
comprehend their environment, the
visually-impaired have to gain
10
information through haptics. In this
respect the blind can teach the sighted
to rediscover the volumes, outlines, and
surface treatments of a space in a more
direct and sensitive way.24
Aural Perception
The blind can grasp the size and
character of a room based on the sound,
echoes, vibration and breeze of the air,
however the sighted often ignore these
perceptual clues.25 “Architects of the
past knew a great deal about the effects
of sound and worked with it in a positive
way. Currently modern designers often
know little about sound and try to reduce
the amount they have to contend with
it.”26 With this, a transfer from developing
hi-fi soundscapes (defined and
informative sound that produces clarity
and understanding of an environment) to
lo-fi soundscapes (auditory distinctions
between spaces that cannot be defined)
has occurred. Currently, the use of
standardized sound walls, ACT, and
even introducing unnatural
environmental sounds, like Muzak, have
“blinded our ears.”27 Interaction with
sound in space engages occupants
and develops a sense of spatial volume,
scale, and physical orientation.
Pallasmaa states that “buildings do not
react to our gaze but they do return our
movements and sounds.” He continues
with an of example of the sound of water
dripping in an ancient ruin supporting
his belief that “the ear has the capacity
to carve a volume into the void of
complete darkness.”28 This reactive
24
Fondation de France/ICOM, Museums Without
Barriers, 133
25
Fondation de France/ICOM, Museums Without
Barriers, 87
Malnar and Vodvarka, Sensory Design, 140
26
27
Malnar and Vodvarka, Sensory Design,143
28
Pallasmaa, The Eyes of the Skin, 54
nature of sound creates an auditory
dialogue between man and space. By
listening, an occupant can perceive an
environment through sensitivity to
temporal changes in reflection,
refraction, absorption and dispersion.29
This argument shows a way in which a
volume’s size and scale can be
understood in a non-visual manner.
Unlike the static presence of a physical
structure, aural perception can become
dynamic and adaptive through changes
in sonic behaviors and sound sources.30
Jacques Lusseyran describes his
new-found perception of the ocean after
going blind:
I remember well when I first arrived at the beach
two months after the accident. It was evening,
and there was nothing there but the sea and its
voice. It formed a mass which was so heavy and
limpid that I could have leaned against it like a
wall. It spoke to me in several layers all at once.
The waves were arranged in steps, and together
they made one music, though what they said
was different in each voice. There was rasping in
the bass and bubbling in the top register. I didn’t
need to be told about the things that eyes can
see.31
Lusseyran feels that he does not live in
a world of darkness, but instead one of
light, illuminated by the objects and
people around him that are activated by
his movements and his non-visual
senses. To sculpt a space with sound
successfully, an architect must create
continuous informative auditory
information, proper reverberation for
conversation, and create distinguishable
acoustic character and zones.
Conclusion
Although the dominance of the eye
has helped shape modern design, the
incorporation of the other senses can
increase the experiential value and
connectivity of architectural spaces.
Haptic and auditory sensory perception
allow for an engaging dialogue to occur
between the building and the occupant.
For the visually impaired, these senses
provide crucial information that can be
understood through an active cognitive
process. Since those with low vision or
blindness are more attentive to the
non-visual senses, their experience can
be useful in designing cognitively
engaging and human-centric
multi-sensorial environments. The
knowledge and experience they can
provide from their alternative perception
of architectural space can influence a
movement to design beyond what our
eyes acknowledge. As a frame of
reference, the visually impaired provide
architectural researchers and designers
with a useful perspective on the process
of developing experiential qualities in
built form.
31
Devlieger, Patrick. Blindness and the
Multi-Sensorial City, 31
11
 DESCRIPTORS
Visual Dark/Bright Saturated/Neutral Perspectival/Flat Intimate/Vast Solid/Void Detailed/Minimal

Visuals Aural High/Low Pitch Quiet/Loud Clear/Reverberant Vocal/Non-Vocal Natural/Artificial Attack/Decay

SENSES
Haptic Static/Mobile Rough/Smooth Light/Heavy Porous/Solid Hard/Soft Warm/Cold

Blog: Kinetic Strong/Light Free/Restricted Indirect/Direct Level/Shifting Sustained/Quick Temporal/Constant

Davegiancarli.wordpress.com
Thermal Hot/Cold Dry/Humid Natural/Artificial Environmental/Source Radiant/Conductive Constant/Responsive

This wordpress blog has allowed

Olfaction Weak/Intense Stagnate/Fresh Appealing/Putrid Natural/Industrial Spicy/Sweet Invigorating/Soothing

me to organize and develop a Haptics Aural Senses Light/Color Layout Code

time line of work that displays the Central Vertical Braille and Railings
Color and High Contrast
development of my thesis idea Navigation Inset Wall Path Choice of Materials
reflect zone to Define Space
Circulation Core at appropriate height for
blind adults and children
from the original mind map to this Tactile Wall
Scale and Layout allow for Contrasting material bright-
Central Artery Path
(Sensory Wall)
book. reverberation that explain
program
ness to define important Grouping Similar Color contrast for signs
Smoothed Corners objects Functions
Braille Signage located in
Change in ground material’s Water feature or noise admitting key areas for public
Never put light sources Inset Wall as railing
tactile properties device to locate important buildings
behind hanging signs
circulation elements
Illuminated Path
Acoustic Shadows created by
Open doors and pushed in
thresholds
Basic Forms Color Light sensitive

Lack of Detail Harder to Understand

Envirement
Simple Layout Hallway and Room
Raw Visual Elements
Aid Physically Wheelchair and Walker Active Spatial Awareness Translucent Glass to
Minimums
Confusion friendly surfaces through use of cane or Reduce Glare
When Broken
Partically Visually Impaired echolocation Use of Ramps or
the
rs
Accessible Toilet
Clearstories instead of sloped ground
ro Exploration and Analysis Rely on Rules and Standards
Fo
and Sinks
To Navigate Kinetic

Aural
Gripped surfaces for movement windows: Less glare and less instead of stairs
Unknown Hieghted other senses
Tactile distraction
Prevent head knockers
Intrusive Elements Completely Blind
Visually Impaired
Traditional Scent As a Learning tool to Inset Wall as railing
Landmarks
Local
understand environment Stair requirements prevent
Guide Dog Circulaton
Purely for Identification ID Cane
Mechanics Procession Memory Information
injury
Body
Cane
Touch
Proportion
Distance from Devices Response Orientation
Ground Blind Cane Public Transit
Main Paths/ Intersections

Angle Technological Aid

Natural Materials (connection Quiet or appropriate Colors for Soothing

Independance
From Body
Spatial Understanding
Changes in Relaxation Intimate Sized Spaces
Relationship to Protection Simple Complex
to nature) Acostic Environments for with defined thresholds
Spaces
Floor Height
Ground Negative Spatial

Postive Spatial
Elements
Open Space Reflective private space Glare reduction
Guiding Elements
Know What’s 2’ Use Reverberation and Elements
Water
Appropriate Lighting levels
Ahead Doesn’t Help with Materiality to Gain
Hanging Objects Spatial Understanding Material Defining Space Overloading Senses
Musical properties to space
Defined Path Controlled Sound
Vegetation for Low Vision reading
Original Mindmap Developed Mindmaps

12 Adapted Games to haptic play

Dave Giancarli

Evaluation
• Gained understanding of the
alternative perception of the
visually-impaired.
• Learned about the specific
code requirements that allow
the visually-impaired to
navigate spaces easier.
• Learned about how art can be
cognitively and socially
stimulating for those with a
visual-impairment, particular
those in young developmental
stages.
• Explored thinking beyond visual
perception and understanding
space forming through the
auditory and haptic
characteristics and methods.
14
Conclusion
Although the dominance of the eye
has helped shape modern design, the
incorporation of the other senses can
increase the experiential value and
connectivity of architectural spaces.
Haptic and auditory sensory perception
allow for an engaging dialogue to occur
between the building and the occupant.
For the visually impaired, these senses
provide crucial information that can be
understood through an active cognitive
process. Since those with low vision or
blindness are more attentive to the
non-visual senses, their experience can
be useful in designing cognitively
engaging and human-centric
multi-sensorial environments. The
knowledge and experience they can
provide from their alternative perception
of architectural space can influence a
push to design beyond what our eyes
acknowledge. As a frame of reference,
the visually impaired provide
architectural researchers and designers
with a useful perspective on the process
of developing experiential qualities in
built form.
Hypothesis
If architects design with more
attention to the non-visual
senses, then they can
create environments that
stimulate full sensory
response and engagement so
that people of all visual
capabilities can navigate and
experience spaces freely,
without barriers. This can be
done through learning from
the haptic and aural
exploration strategies of the
visually impaired.
Methodology
Original Work
Experiments with glass and Ocular deprivation goggles - Frames of vision - (From Left to Right)
ocular distortion Loss of detail and depth perception • Total Blindness: Maximum vision loss without
ocular disconnect - Only tiny gradients of light
between floor and light sources are noticeable
• Information Disconnect: Simulation of what
person with blurring of vision and
complete lack of detail would exprience.
Color contrasts become emphasized
• Ocular Damage: Distortion caused if
foreign object scraps retina – streaking of light
and increased sensitivity to glare.
• Spotted Vision: Attempt to replicate glaucoma
Abstract Diagram Abstract Diagram like vision where large portions of the visual
field are missing, forcing the engager to only
experience small frames where blockage is
less.
15
Frames
Frame 1: Law and Code (ADA) Frame 3: How to Create Intimate Frame 4: Education, Art Frame 1: Law and Code (ADA)
Spaces in the City and the Blind
An exploration of the code that
to assist the visually impaired in In order to create a space that Precedents of blind-school’s
safety navigating a building. This utilizes multi-sensory developed an understanding of
study led to an understanding of characteristics that allow a how a building can translate
the lack of assistance that building’s occupants to sensory experience into
currently exists to fulfill sensory engage with it, the space must architectural language and built
exploration required by those who have a function that requires form. This combined with a new
lack visual ability. intimate connection such as an understand of the importance of
educational facility, or a place of art and music in the lives of the
Frame 2: Sensory Perception of relaxation and spiritual well-being. visually impaired inspired the
the Visually Impaired A focus on materiality within this program: Center for the Haptic and
type of environments, can produce Auditory Arts.
A study of the senses that the a full sensory experiences.
visually impaired use to navigate a
space, in particular the chaotic
cityscape. By harnessing their
sharpened abilities with auditory or
haptic senses, the visually
impaired can navigate the city in
a way equivalent to those who are
sighted.

16 17
Frame 2: Sensory Perception of the Visually Impaired Frame 3: How to Create Intimate Spaces in the City

18 19
 - Junction Point for high pedestrian traffic
- Easy access from Downtown Boston
- Access to residental South Boston
- Still in the developmental stages so prime real state space is avaliable

Site Options
- Newly buit buildings will follow ADA and be accessible for shared experience
- Most popular new area for development, new destination point for the city

Frame 4: Education, Art and the Blind Desired Characteristics

• Proximity to mass transit for

easy access for the visually
impaired + attract sighted Huntington Ave
The Avenue of the Arts

- Proximity to Art Schools and 5-10 minute walk to MFA

• Preferably located in an area - Creates an artistic atmosphere

being revitalized so prime - High Visibility and density of pedestrian traffic

- Allows for higher chance of community engagement

locations will be open - Location to transit- 39 Bus and Brigham Circle Green Line T-Stop
- Connected to main street and transit routes

• Revitalized area and new

- Replacing parking lot that gets little use

- Fills in an area of prime real state value

construction means ADA is - Filling in urban void

more likely to be implemented- Close- proximity to shopping, restaurants and retail

Ease of use for blind

allowing for a shared use - Proximity to hospital Porter loss/ physical therapy Source: Google Earth
for visionSquare Fort Point Chanel Source: Google Earth
community
- Visual Impairment due to traumatic injury or aging

• Area known for educational and

artistic cultures

• Mixed-use

• High population/density

• Area where a large building

footprint won’t be out of place/
be unaccepted Union Square Source: Union Square Huntington Ave Source: Google Earth
Master Plan

20 21
Porter Square, Somerville
Revitalization proposed for open lots
• Transit -subway, bus, bike, car,
commuter rail
• Residential and some
shopping; busy area
• 10 minute walk to
Harvard Square
• 5-10 minute walk to Davis
Square
• On Massachusetts Ave
• Proximity to Lesley University
(Art School)
• Plans to be revitalized:
there’s two large lots that are
being filled and repairing of
infrastructure
• On Somerville/ Cambridge line
22
Union Square, Somerville
Revitalization completed by 2017
Currently
• Oldest Square in Somerville
• Mixed use: Bars, Cafes,
ethnic restaurants
• Auto Oriented
• Industrial factories nearby
• Big box stores: Market Basket
• Nearby parks
Issues: Not close to the T and
many vacant lots, buildings, and
urban voids
Future: Transit Oriented Development
• New Greenline stop by 2016/2017 on
Prospect Street bridge
• One-way streets turned into two-way,
allowing for greater mixed use: retail,
residential and office
• Very close in proximity to Innman
Square, and a short distance from
Harvard Square and Kendall Square.
• Located near Somerville center where
there’s a library, schools and somerville
city hall
• Art events and farmers market during
the summer
23
Fort Point Chanel, South Boston
Revitalization completed by 2017
• Proximity to the ICA and
numerous artist live-work
spaces
• Artistic atmosphere
• South Station just across the
bridge + Silver Line
• On main street (Congress
Street)
• Proximity to harbor walk and
nature
• Mixed use with retail,
resturants, and lots of office
space
• Walkable area
• Junction Point for high
pedestrian traffic
• Easy access from Downtown
Boston
24
• Access to residental South
Boston
• Still in the developmental
stages so prime real state
space is avaliable
• Newly buit buildings will
follow ADA and be accessible
for shared experience
• Most popular new area for
development, new destination
point for the city
Huntington Avenue, Boston
Avenue of the Arts
• Proximity to Art Schools and • Close proximity to shopping,
5-10 minute walk to MFA restaurants and retail
• Creates an artistic • Ease of use for blind
atmosphere • Proximity to hospital for vision
• High Visibility and density of loss or physical therapy for
pedestrian traffic those with visual impairment
• Allows for higher chance of due to traumatic injury or
community engagement aging
• Location to transit- 39 Bus and
Brigham Circle Green Line
T-stop
• Connected to main street and
transit routes
• Replacing parking lot that gets
little use
• Fills in an area of prime real
state value
• Filling in urban void
25
Design Probe
This design probe conceptualized ways
to draw the community into the proposed
center for the haptic and auditory arts.
This building would create an inclusive
environment where the visually impaired
and the sighted learn about and create
art through their shared senses. Porter
Square was chosen as a site because of
its active pedestrian streets, nearby
transit, and artistic as well as
educational culture. A spine allows
people to flow through the site,
simplifying the programmatic order of
the building into one path, branching
off the main street. The spine splits the
functions of the building into public and
private areas, positioning the gallery and
social spaces near the front to be put on
display, and the more private spaces,
such as the library and classrooms, in
the back. The building’s primary
objective is to act as an experiential
medium, allowing its occupants to learn
how non-visual perception contributes to
spatial understanding.
26
Conclusion
Program
The proposed center for the haptic and
auditory arts will create an inclusive
environment where the visually impaired
and the sighted learn about and create
art through their shared senses. In this
way those lacking visual perception can
inform the sighted about the
under-appreciated beauty that haptics
and auditory perception can contribute
to the process of teaching and
creating art. The inspiration for this
program draws from the Italian
Università dell’Immagine which
specializes in the teaching young design
students to work with sensory perception
as a methodology.
Site
Porter Square was chosen as a site
because of its active pedestrian
streets, nearby transit, and artistic as
well as educational culture. This will
allow for the building to develop a
connection to its surrounding
community and allow for the possibility
of its ideas to have a cultural effect. The
goal for this space is to create a place
that inspires local artists and students to
expand their understanding of the world
and gain an alternative perception of it.
The large scale size of the site allows for
a long building that utilizes the proposed
central spine.
27
Design Method Objectives and Time Line
I discovered that by designing Physical modeling was not utilized as
I started off this semester trying to
explore an extremely broad subject in
inclusive spaces for those off all visual often as it should have. It might be Develop an inclusive space
architecture: how do people experience
abilities, I could develop a multi-sensory beneficial as an explorartion method in Contact Chris Downey Experiment and learn about where people of all visual
space? I wanted to discover what allows
architecture that would shift the position the Spring semester. Only two models – blind architect from how to incorporate dynamic, capabilities can
architecture to become more then just
of the occupant from observer to were built. The first exploration utilized California – potential active and passive touch into experience a heightened
the tectonic structures that form it. What
engager. different techniques that caused panes secondary adviser architectural form and experience sensorial experience
I took an approch that mostly of glass to distort vision. This was a
occurs in the area between a buildings
involved exploring literature and successful tool in allowing the sighted to
physical form that allows people to
interviews with my friends who are gain a better understanding of the expe-
engage with it? From this exploration I
visually-impaired. Through reading rience of visual impairment. The second
moved into a study of the senses and
numerous books on the subjects about was the design probe which allowed for
ocularcentrism within the perception of
the senses, ocularcentrism in design, the a large scale idea to connect the pro-
architectural space. Moving forward I
visually impaired, and how to develop gram and the building itself to the sight.
posed the question: Is there a way to
multi-sensorial architecture, I was able to In the future physical modeling should
decrease the dominance of the eye
educate myself on the discussions be utilized since it allows for a haptic
within an architectural space and
currently and previously held with in my and visual understanding of space
create an experience that can be Develop a methodology Gain full understanding
field of study. In thesis prep, I was able The program of a center for the
explored through all of the senses? By for diagramming non-visual of ADA regulations in
to implement my knowledge into collage teaching and learning of haptic and
studying the visually-impaired I began experience in model or relation to the blind
format to demonstrate my understanding auditory arts allows for the creation of a
to realize the aesthetics of sound and drawing form
through a visual method. I have to space that is desirable to people of all
hapticity which are under-utilized in the
develop a method that allows for the ex- sensory abilities. This space will allow
design process. The alternative
planation of the more then visual design me to implement my ideas and
perspective of space that the visually
and experience that I intend to produce. challenge those with full visual ability to
impaired experience on an everyday
Doing this will allow for the thesis to explore their other senses in a way that
basis was inspirational to me. WINTER BREAK SPRING SEMSESTER FINAL GOALS
become successful. is unfamilar yet exciting.

28 29

Evaluation Criteria
• Is the building able to be
navigated by someone with a
visual impairment?
• Does the sensory design
benefit those who are
sighted, creating an
inclusive experience for
those of all visual
capabilities?
• Is the building a flowing series
of spaces with understandable
transitions based off sensory
perception or do the transitions
become too confusing?
• How does the application of
haptic and auditory spatial
understanding translate into
architectural form?
30
Conclusion
Discoveries
• As a frame of reference, the
experience of the visually
impaired provides architectural
researchers and designers with
a useful perspective on the
process of placemaking. This is
because our unused sensory
potential is exemplified when
vision in not dominating the
understanding of a space
• Art can be cognitively and
socially stimulating for those
with a visual-impairment,
particularly those in young
developmental stages making a
center for the haptic and
auditory arts a beneficial
program that can become an
inclusive environment
• Code can only assist the
visually impaired to a small
degree since it does not take
into consideration alternative
sensory perception of space
Reflections Next Steps
This semester has been quite • How can this thesis be
challenging and exciting since I am implemented in a way that
analyzing a way of exploring the field of bridges between the theoretical
architecture in a multi-sensory ideas of multi-sensorial
manner. This has allowed me to gain an architecture and its real life
understanding of how spaces are execution?
experienced rather then how they
appear to be experienced in a digital • How can a building designed
model or on paper. I have noticed that for the visually impaired engage
most of the successful architectural someone who has the capability
works that I have been to, especially the of sight?
ones on my study abroad trip, utilize an
understanding of experience beyond • How can an architectural
what is seen. Those who pay particular methodology be developed to
attention to the sensory perception of represent non-visual spatial
space such as Alvar Aalto and Peter experience?
Zumthor have been a great inspiration to
the development of my thought process.
My goal of creating an inclusive space
for those who have visual impairments
and those who are sighted is not to just
aid the navigation abilities within the
building but to build an experience on
multiple levels allowing for the sighted to
understand what they are missing by
only taking space at face value.
31
Bibliography
Primary Sources
Blesser, Barry, and Linda-Ruth Salter.
Spaces Speak, Are You Listening:
Experiencing Aural Architecture.
Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press, 2009.
Devlieger, Patrick. Blindness and the
Multi-Sensorial City. Antwerp: Garant,
2006.
International Council of Museums, and
Fondation de France. Museums
Without Barriers: A New Deal for the
Disabled. London: Routledge, 1991.
Joffee, Elga. A Practical Guide to the
ADA and Visual Impairment. New York:
AFB Press, 1999.
Malnar, Joy Monice, and Frank
Vodvarka. Sensory Design. Minneapolis:
University of Minnesota Press, 2004.
Pallasmaa, Juhani. The Eyes of the Skin:
Architecture and the Senses.
New York : John Wiley & Sons, 1996.
32
Ungar. “Cognitive Mapping
Without Visual Experience.” Cognitive
Mapping: Past Present and Future, Ed-
ited by R. Kitchin and S. Fredundschuh,
13. London: Routledge, 2000.
Secondary Sources
Bahamón, Alejandro, and Ana María
Álvarez. Light Color Sound: Sensory
Effects in Contemporary Architecture.
New York: W.W. Norton & Co, 2010.
Barbara, Anna, and Anthony Perliss.
Invisible Architecture: Experiencing
Places Through the Sense of Smell.
Milano: Skira, 2006.
Bloomer, Kent C., and Charles Willard
Moore. Body, Memory, and Architecture.
New Haven: Yale University Press, 1977.
Joffee, Elga. A Practice Guide to the
ADA and Visual Impairment. New York:
AFB Press, 1999.
Espinosa, Maria, Simon Ungar, Simon
Angeles, Esperanza Ochaita, Mark
Blades, and Christopher Spencer.
“Comparing Methods for Introducing
Blind and Visually Impaired People to
Unfamiliar Urban Environments.” Journal
(Paginated) (1998):
1-10. http://cogprints.org/1509/
Gibson, James J. The Senses
Considered As Perceptual Systems.
Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1966.
Heller, Morton A. Touch, Representation,
and Blindness. Oxford: Oxford University
Press, 2000.
Herssens, Jasmien. “Haptic Design
Research: A Blind Sense of Place.” AIA.
http://www.aia.org/aiaucmp/groups/aia/
documents/pdf/aiab087187.pdf
(accessed September 10, 2012).
Holl, Steven, Juhani Pallasmaa, and
Alberto Pérez Gómez. Questions of
Perception: Phenomenology of
Architecture. San Francisco, CA: William
Stout, 2006.
Jay, Martin. 1988. “The Rise of
Hermeneutics and the Crisis of
Ocularcentrism”. Poetics Today. 9, no. 2:
307-326.
Jones, Caroline A., and Bill Arning.
Sensorium: Embodied Experience,
Technology, and Contemporary Art.
Cambridge, Mass: MIT Press, 2006.
Kreij, Kamiel Van. Sensory
Intensification in Architecture. Technical
University Delft, 2008.
Leuven, K.U, and Ann Heylighen
“Haptic Design Research: A Blind Sense
of Place” The Place of Research, the
Research of Place (2011):
http://www.aia.org/aiaucmp/groups/aia/
documents/pdf/aiab087187.pdf
Morash, Valerie, Allison E. Connell
Pensky, Andrea Urqueta Alfaro
& Amanda McKerracher “A Review of
Haptic Spatial Abilities in the Blind”,
Spatial Cognition & Computation: An
Interdisciplinary Journal (2012): 83-95
O’Neill, Máire Eithne. 2001. “Corporeal
Experience: A Haptic Way of Knowing”.
Journal of Architectural Education. 55,
no. 1: 3-12.
Révész, Géza. Psychology and Art of the
Blind. London: Longmans, Green, and
Co, 1950.
Robert Campbell “Experiencing
Architecture with Seven Senses, Not
One.” Architectural Record (2007):
65-66.
Vermeersch, Peter-Willem, and Ann
Heylighen “Blindness and
Multisensoriality in Architecture: The
Case of Carlos Mourão Pereira.” The
Place of Research, the Research of
Place (2011):
Annotatons
Blesser, Barry, and Linda-Ruth Salter.
Spaces Speak, Are You Listening?:
Experiencing Aural Architecture.
Cambridge MA: The MIT Press, 2007.
Blesser explores the phenomenon of
auditory spatial awareness rather then
the typically researched physical and
mathematical properties of sound. He
does this in order to broaden the issues
of the relatively unresearched topic of
aural architecture. The author uses
multiple lenses to filter his information,
from composers to musicians to
architects to the visually impaired.
Through the ideas of “passive acoustic
objects” (Blesser 2007, 2), “auditory
dialogues” (Blesser 2007, 16) and
“acoustic arenas,” we can better
understand the way that sound can
shape a space. Blesser believes that
aural architecture is dynamic and
adaptive because even though a
space’s physical form may remain static,
the sound sources and sonic behaviors
can change (Blesser 2007, 24). Using
the example of the visually impaired,
who have developed a kind of
echolocational skill set out of necessity,
the author explains how sighted people
can develop their auditory “muscles” in
a similar way. One simple example of
this echolocation is the “tonal color” or
reflection speed of low frequency back-
ground sounds that changes when we
get close to a wall (Blesser 2007, 43).
This example can be used to locate the
center of a hallway by balancing the
tonal color observed by the left and right
ears. Through implementation of aural
design techniques, architecture can
become more then just a utilitarian
space; it can transform into an
expressive art form that communicates
multi-sensorially.
International Council of Museums,
and Fondation de France. Museums
Without Barriers: A New Deal for the
Disabled. London: Routledge, 1991.
81-149
This book is collection of several papers
written by experts on the blind and the
senses. The authors discuss the
importance of allowing those with
disabilities (sensory or physical) to have
access to art and culture. The section
from page 81-149 discusses the visually
impaired and how providing those with
low vision or no vision with a chance to
learn about or create art can be
beneficial for their social abilities. Ever
since the Renaissance museums have
33
disabled touch from the experience of
the gallery, which discourages people
with visual impairments from visiting
museums. It is only on special
occasions that these places are opened
up to touch tours. One of the authors
explains how when a sighted person
occupies an art gallery they are draw
to what appeals to us visually and turn
away from what doesn’t. The visually
impaired cannot do this until they have
fully explored the piece and have be-
come acquainted with it. This kind of
haptic engagement is gives those
utilizing it a personal relationship to the
item rather then the disconnect that
would occur with ocular observation.
The main goal of the book is convince
architectural designers and owners of
museums to develop spaces that allow
for an inclusive nature and exploration of
art that would benefit all users. There are
numerous precedents that are discussed
as well as physically benefits to
experiencing art spaces through
multi-sensory exploration.
34
Leuven, K.U, and Ann Heylighen
“Haptic Design Research: A Blind
Sense of Place” The Place of Re-
search, the Research of Place (2011):
http://www.aia.org/aiaucmp/groups/
aia/documents/pdf/aiab087187.pdf
This paper focuses on haptic design
and its integration into the field of archi-
tecture. Ideas that are explored through-
out include active, dynamic and passive
touch. The writers encourage architects
toward a multi-sensorial architecture that
is not just limited to vision. Not only will
this improve architecture as a whole,
but it will allow for equal experience and
access for all people. By applying
Kevin Lynch’s classifications of
landmark, paths, nodes, edges and
boundaries to haptic design we can
realize that landmark can become
simply a defining “texture on a city
square.” This idea directly correlates to
interviews I have conducted with two of
my peers who are visually impaired.
Pallasmaa, Juhani. The Eyes of the
Skin: Architecture and the Senses.
London: Academy Group Ltd, 1996.
Pallasmaa feels that there is an
ocularcentrism in architectural design
that must be removed. He believes we
need to re-sensualize architecture by
being more aware of how material
choice effects space. In addition we
should also include ideas of hapticity,
aural perception, smell, taste, and
overall engagement into the design
process. Pallasmaa explains how
ancient Greek philosophers originally
stressed visual dominance and then
implemented fully into design during the
Renaissance. Visual dominance can also
be attributed to our change from an oral
society, to a written society, to a printed
society. The use of computer imaging
has flattened our senses and the design
process has turned into a “passive visual
manipulation, a retinal journey”
(Pallasmaa 1996, 12). Pallasmaa
believes the sense of reality is
strengthened through the interaction of
the senses, describing it as
“polyphony” or a melodic
accompaniment. The author’s writing is
passionately critical of the ability of sight.
Pallasmaa compares and contrasts sight
with the other senses throughout the
essay. For example, he describes the
eye as an “organ of distance and
separation” and touch as “the sense of
nearness, intimacy and affection”
(Pallasmaa 1996, 46). By addressing the
strengths of the other senses and how
to use them to shape space, Pallasmaa
has laid the guidelines to a dynamic and
engaging architecture.
Malnar, Joy Monice, and Frank
Vodvarka. Sensory Design.
Minneapolis: University of Minnesota
Press, 2004.
Malnar and Vodvarka explore the history
and implementation of architecture and
design that utilizes all senses. As with
most books in this discourse, the authors
are opponents of ocularcentrism, or
dominance of the eye in the perception
and creation of art and architecture.
Taking from J.J. Gibson’s idea of
perceptual systems rather in
independent senses, the authors
discuss how to experience a building
with the body as a whole rather then just
with a “wandering eye.” Malnar and
Vodvarka claim that utilizing an
understanding of sensory perception
can be beneficial to the design process.
For instance, the choice of textures
within a building are thought of mostly
for their appearance when their haptic
qualities such as texture, weight, thermal
properties, and density can create an
expansive pallet for the designer to work
with.
Morash, Valerie, Allison E. Connell
Pensky, Andrea Urqueta Alfaro
& Amanda McKerracher “A Review of
Haptic Spatial Abilities in the Blind.”
Spatial Cognition & Computation: An
Interdisciplinary Journal (2012): 83-95
This article explores how haptic senses
can allow for an exploration of space not
thought to be possible by the blind. The
authors argue that touch is more of a
focused and analytical way of
experiencing space, rather than sight
which is more global and contains a
wide field of information simultaneously.
Although the visually impaired may lack
the ability to be able to see detailed
spatial forms, they are still able to
process their environment equivalently
by using their haptic abilities. The haptic
method of spatial analysis works through
egocentric (using the body) and
locomotive (movement of objects around
the area) to help detect the full image of
a space. In the article they speak about
how independence in movement should
be encouraged at an early age.
Learning to use haptic and aural abilities
while young will increase the chances of
this independence.
Van Kreij, Kamiel.
Sensory Intensification in
Architecture. Technical University
Delft, 2008.
Van Kreij wishes to intensify the sensory
experience in architecture by bringing
attention to the value it adds to different
spaces. The author is an architect from
the Netherlands, and a current member
of studioDAT. From the concept to
execution of drawings, designers at
studioDAT focus in on spatial
experience. The aim is to create an
exciting architecture that is both spatially
interesting and interactive. (http://studio-
dat.nl/studio/). Van Kreij wishes to inform
us on how to design for more then just
the visual. He explains how the
“deprivation of sensory involvement, in
modern life (Van Kreij, 9) flattens our
engagement with our environment. Van
Kreij speaks of the sensory experience
as an “ongoing dialogue between
human beings and the entities that
surround us” (Van Kreij, 49). He thinks of
this experience as something that can
teach us to interact with our
environment, causing it to become more
dynamic.
35