Put headphones for better experience.

intuitive studio

Priyam Agrawal

feeling spaces

Snow Storm / Painting by J. M. William turner; 1842

Devil’s Gate Triptych / Photograph by Mark Ruwedel

Bruder Klaus Field Chapel / Peter Zumthor

Practice journal
places of the soul

journal entry 01 // one of the key question that I have been asking myself is to define what is good architecture to me. I for one, find it very challenging to define it in words, Like many aesthetic questions, whether we speak of art, music or poetry, it is hard to define exactly what is architecture and its environment. I will still try though....Architecture to me, is an environment or a perceived sensation of that environment. It is an ambiance that influences the emotional state of a person, their feelings moods and sensations. Good design to me is one that intends to find feelings rather than forms, where human emotions lie at the heart of its creation.

journal entry 02 // a rational or intuitive definition : design is an extremely personal and individual experience. My design comes from personal observations and experiences cannot be called as a strictly logical process. I believe, to create something that is so personal that is intended to move people and evoke human emotions, my own past experiences and personal feelings play an important role in designing in order to create new experiences through architecture.
It cannot be merely seen as solutions of pragmatism but is a conscious creation that is extracted from different aspects of our intelligence and personality and thus can be very intuitive in nature. Thus, Functionality of architecture cannot be measured whether or not it is a practical design, but radical consideration of the atmosphere it creates is a a function of design too.

journal entry 03 //atmosphere as a noun, adjective and verb: "a weather balloon rising high into the atmosphere." suggests atmosphere as a space or destination. But in architecture, atmosphere is generally a term that is used to describe an intangible characteristic that permeates our built environments. It is used as a term that qualifies a description of an environment or is preceded by qualifying adjectives.
However, I would like to engage with the notion of atmosphere with another added layer that describe it as a perception of a spatial experience. While it is a physical phenomenon, it also suggests an emotion of the space itself, something that would be experienced by one's body and understood in one's consciousness.

begin journey

journal entry 04 // spatial narratives: the role of embodied perception in the design can also be explored through the act of narration by introducing a factor of time in the journey. A narrative is defined as the organisation of a series for events, by exhibiting a trajectory for the individual and imagining possible events or visual frames in the complete experience. Imagery and building spatial themes, brings attention to the way people move through spaces and to the sensory perceptions that the building may generate.

journal entry 05 // memories in architecture: We as humans have an innate capacity to remember and imagine places. The link between architecture and my memories is very evident. Through a first-person approach to architecture, one imagines an experience that is inspired from personal possessions, intuitive and first-hand experiences which are referential to specific memories of the individual. I would argue that architecture alone cannot produce any emotion unless we associate it with our memory. Our childhood memory is a fertile ground for our imagination. Imagination is vital to make architecture that is essential to the lived experience

journal entry 06 // image driven architecture: A design that is based on a consideration of architecture as an idea would develop in a very linear fashion. Usually the process of design begins with the conception of architecture as an abstract whole and progressively moves towards a more visual dimension without their being any consideration of architecture’s atmospheric dimension. Pallasmaa puts this view forward by criticising such architecture. The quality of a building or a built ensemble cannot be determined in the final analysis by the eye or the central view point in a photo, the quality of architecture can essentially only be judged by spiritual presence.

journal entry 07 // the body and mind : any space and environment is perceived and experienced physically through the body while simultaneously constructed in one’s mind. The importance that one’s body and mind play in perceiving atmosphere in architecture cannot be understated.
To engage with both, the body and the mind, one needs to create an architectural experience that is a result of a subconscious engagement of all senses with the surrounding world. Philospher Bohme suggest the use of the human body not only as a fundamental measure of architecture but also as an instrument which absorbs and considers the architectural quality and the atmosphere of its environment.

journal entry 08 // subjectivity in perception: As much as an environment may evoke a universal feeling of atmosphere, for any particular individual the atmosphere they feel or perceive is always largely a subjective experience. "The way we see things is affected by what we know or what we believe” Ways of Seeing, John Berger. Thus as an architect I do not wish to authorise someone to feel in a specific manner in a space, rather architecture should act as a medium that invites emotion, simply allows the individual the ability to feel something through the work. Thus in that sense, the perception of such spaces, becomes a much more internalised experience.

journal entry 09 // sensitive surroundings : a consideration of atmosphere should not solely be restricted to one’s bodily engagement with the space and architecture, since an environment or the feeling of it can also be perceived in objects and their relationship to the context in which they are found. As architect Peter Zumthor suggests, an atmospheric work of architecture should “become part of its surroundings, because if it does not it abandons its atmospheric desire."
This suggests that one’s understanding plays an important role in understanding both the immediate and larger context in which the architecture and the individual self are situated.