More than meets the eye : a foray into designing architecture for the multiple senses

Abstract

RESEARCH QUESTIONS: How can architecture provide an increasingly multisensory experience for the betterment of the human psyche? How can this experience be a catalyst in the overall development of the deaf and the blind?

The research culminates in the design of a vocational training and development centre for the deaf, blind and the sighted in India.

The human body gifted with a plethora of senses. Along with the traditionally known five senses, the sense of balance, temperature, pressure and movement are the lesse known senses in the body. The body perceives the external environment via these senses of perception. Research proves that every experience that has the involvement of most of the senses is always deep and meaningful It gets deeply etched in the human mind. These senses work with each other to give a cohesive view of the environment. All the other senses compensate for the lack of any one. Research shows that as compared to experiences involving a single sense of perception, any experience involving multiple senses is always enriching.

Architecture is an applied and visual art. A beautiful building not only can be appreciated for its beauty but also for its utility. Pallasma emphasizes on the importance of multisensory perception in architecture. He claims that the senses connect our inner selves to the world through architecture. The Planning, massing, materials and textures are some design strategies that have the ability to formulate a long-lasting perception of the space. A slight change in any of the strategies could drastically change the overall perception of the space. Zumthor’s thermal baths would feel different if the cladding stone is replaced. This is a beautiful quality of architecture.

Due to their physical conditions, the deaf and blind understand architecture from a totally different view. In order to understand space, blind people have to hear, touch and feel the space. In the case of deaf people, vision and touch play a major role. All the areas within the space should be clearly visible. As their mode of conversation is sign language, the dimensions of the spaces should be sufficient for them to make eye contact and entirely visualize the person. As a multisensory approach is taken by the deaf and blind, their understanding of the space is more creative and rich than the able bodied.

Site: In the vicinity of the Khadakwasala Dam, at Pune, Maharashtra, India.