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> depth. Coarse plastering allows shadows to be cast across
the surface in raking light, making a velvety impression and
darkening colour. While opaque layers of paint obscure tran-
sitions between materials and seams between constructive
elements, the original surface structures betray the underly-
ing material, suggesting its greater depth and inner structure.
Surface graining, for example, generates an impression of
continuous > porosity. In ‘showing through’, the surface be-
comes a ‘flattened depth’ or a ‘shallow space’. When a virtual
> interspace between surface and spatial depth is suggested by
a special wall construction, the result may be irritating forms
of visual stimulus.
Many different expressive effects emanate from surfaces;
they are responsible, for example, for the impression that a
> facade makes on a beholder, for example when rustication,
a polished natural stone cladding, or a coat of paint provide
very different signals concerning a building’s character. Sur-
faces play a special role as well when it comes to generating
> atmospheres. Smooth surfaces reflect sound and light in a
harsh manner or mirror their surroundings; they allow rain to
roll off, and make it easy to lose one’s footing. Their atmos-
pheric character forms a counterpart to textures formed by
soft mesh or woven materials that offer strong acoustic ab-
sorptive capacities and greater adhesion. Here, it is often dif-
ficult to distinguish between undeniable effects and superficial
clichés. The smoothness of cool surfaces is often associated
with the sterility of the operating theatre, and correspond-
ingly, wall-to-wall carpeting with cosiness. Yet it is only a
differentiated perception, in particular through the direct ex-
perience of touch, that reveals a surface’s true effect. The > in-
vitation character of surfaces is evident in particular on floor-
ings (> ground). Rugged, slippery, stony or soft floorings call
for differentiated approaches to walking. Through > cover-
ings designed to conform to an occupant’s tastes, the surfaces
of interior rooms often reflect an individual’s personality.
Personal accessories are for the most part distributed across