Fundamental Concepts of Architecture : The Vocabulary of Spatial Situations

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it is warm, in contrast, we expose larger areas of the body,

spreading ourselves out in order to maximize contact with

the air; we prefer places where we can occupy more space.

In architecture, we experience temperature through ambient

air and thermal radiation, but also through touch. Through

material qualities in particular, warm or cold surfaces con-

vey expressive qualities through their contrast with our own

body temperature, contributing to special atmosphere and to

the impression made by objects. They make it possible, for

example, to create attractive cool areas in the warmer rooms.

Particularly effective are impressions of warmth generated by

> synaesthesia, effects that emanate from warm or cold ma-

terials, > light and > colours. The clichés of ‘warm’ wood and

‘cold’ steel, however, are not always accurate. Wood, to be

sure, has less heat conductivity than steel, but need not nec-

essarily be suggestive of warmth. Such effects are dependent

upon the type of wood and its treatment, e.g. smooth finish,

high-gloss paint, or sharply angular forms. Indeed, the synaes-

thetically transferred effects of warmth or coldness become

fully efficient only when they are supported by corresponding

real temperatures.

> form character, heaviness and lightness

Alongside the preeminent significance of the window for

> views into and out of buildings and for admitting > light

into interior spaces, physical characteristics also contribute to

the way in which we perceive and experience it; relevant as-

pects include the windowpane’s function as a membrane (1),

the significance of the window frame and its extensions (2),

the placement of the window within a room (3), and the acts

of opening and closing (4).

1. The plane of the window determines the placement
   of the separating and connecting pivot between interior and

Weight

Window