Archi blog

We move around and interact with our built environment- architecture influences how we perceive it and therefore how we behave within it. While the discipline is often discussed as being in the service of the public, most interior and urban environments are exclusive in terms of accessibility, hostility, and socio-economic boundaries. Given this, we can then ask the question; for whom is architecture being designed?

 

In the past, architecture has valued aesthetics and profitability over public service, where public spaces appear inviting, many are designed in a way that discourages a specific social group or behavior. This 'hostile architecture' (Petty, 2016) is typified by designs like 'anti-homeless' spikes, dividers and restricted seating to discourage people from using public spaces for prolonged periods, and to "encapsulate and express larger social narratives surrounding poverty and public control" (Petty, 2016: 3).Accessibility has been a recent concern, as whilst "universal design... Suggests environments will become usable by all individuals regardless of their age, ability, or other characteristics" (Mace, 1998) many buildings do not properly cater for disabled individuals; Mace argues that universal design needs to move beyond the legal requirements and promote 'equality, dignity and the human centered experience'. Here it can be seen that architecture is both enabling and disabling dependent on its design.

 

Jane Jacobs’ (1961) seminal work The Death and Life of Great American Cities argued for rich, socially interactive public space. She believed that the success of a city is linked to social interaction, walkability, and participation in the urban realm and she is perhaps still an important theorist to use in discussions on inclusive urbanism. Personally I believe that a priority for architecture should be human well-being before profit or aesthetics and that a public space should encourage people from diverse backgrounds to feel included, safe, and Comfortable within its limits. Architects and designers should have a responsibility to assess the way in which their work affects people physically, socially, and emotionally. Architecture cannot simply be aesthetically pleasing; it also needs to be socially just.