Harnessing ones consciousness…

Yes, so I am back again, to defend my profession. To project our importance as architects in building homes.

I don’t think architects build homes. But it’s a fact that architects build spaces, which in turn build lives. And these lives then build homes.

“It’s not about decorations, but about bones,” explains architect/author Sarah Susanka. You need a good basic skeleton into which you can pour your personal things. “The skeleton can either enhance or deaden what you bring into it. Most people don’t even know what to look for, but they know it when it’s there.”

This skeleton doesn’t mean four walls, but the flow of spaces reflected by the owner’s needs, mood, hobbies and in today’s times, luxury.

I know by now all of you who aren’t of this field would be wondering, what the hell are these SPACES I am talking about? Don’t worry it’s absolutely normal. Even after three years in architecture I don’t think I have understood the magic of spaces completely.

Space is something that the architect envelops, creating a wholly human and finite environment within the infinite environment of nature. The concept that space can have a quality other than emptiness is difficult to understand.

This space is characterized by few elements, they are, mass, light, scale, colour, texture and the occupants that relate to it.

These spatial experiences, governed by these elements express somethings which are common to everyone, though they are not always consciously grasped. 

So, here comes our job in building homes. We consciously harness these elements of space together to give a spatial as well as a personal experience that touches the person living in the house, making it into his home along with his loved ones.  Hence, according to me the responsibility of converting a house into a home is a mutual effort of the the designer and the user.  Without such collaboration of the designer and the user our spaces either become mere empty showcases of architectural egos or seem meaningless.