Augmented Aesthetics in the Representation of Spatial Atmosphere

Abstract

Atmosphere in architecture acts as a communication tool between the space and its experiencers. This tool has the potential of being detached from the physical environment and conveyed by memories and imagination which may augment the physical environment in a poetic way. This paper aims to demonstrate this potential by utilizing the technique of comparative reading using unmanipulated photographs of physical space computer-generated film/ images of the same space and a spatial narration/text all in the context of Japanese architecture. By viewing this context from a lens focused on the intersection of aesthetics phenomenology and architecture the study points out the possibility of utilizing atmosphere as a tool to convey ideas and augment the aesthetic experience through different techniques of representation. In this way it highlights the importance of the narrative quality of spatial atmosphere in architectural design and its potential as a transposable spatial identity. © 2023 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.