Before we start the assignment, we decided to look on the internet at different readings that have interesting points about space and place, to gather inspiration for our project.
Here are the main points we gathered for each of the selected readings:
“It seemed to me that sense of place was actually composed of two quite different aspects. The first aspect, relationship to place, consists of the ways that people relate to places, or the types of bonds we have with places. The second aspect, community attachment, consists of the depth and types of attachments to one particular place.”
“Human behaviour, experiences and social interactions in public spaces are believed to be the result of the processes of the mind that are influenced by the different features of these spaces. These features may be physical, social, cultural or sensory but what they share in common is the power to affect people’s behaviour in, and experience of the public realm.”
“A space can be sacred, providing those who inhabit a particular space with sense of transcendence—being connected to something greater than oneself. The sacredness may be inherent in the space, as for a religious institution or a serene place outdoors. Alternatively, a space may be made sacred by the people within it and events that occur there. As medical providers, we have the opportunity to create sacred space in our examination rooms and with our patient interactions. This sacred space can be healing to our patients and can bring us providers opportunities for increased connection, joy, and gratitude in our daily work.”
https://workplacepsychology.net/2012/06/21/does-time-of-the-day-impact-moods-at-work/
This was a brief but concise accurate generalisation on how the time of day and its relation to mood is overall very relatable. The masses tended to be in a worse mood in the morning and evenings, and have a general peak in the middle of the day. This would be interesting to see the correlation between mood and how time is spent alone or in a sacred place.
http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-37444982
This article focused on time alone and rest, and how many people think they need more of it. They found reading, spending time in a natural environment, and being alone were the biggest forms of relaxation (in that order), and how 68.4% of people crave more alone time in their sacred place. Being alone, according to this study, is when people most emotionally reflect, and that we actually have busier minds during this time than time spent focusing on a specific task.
My thoughts…..
- The reference to community is really important as in the gardens we will be able to explore this sense of community as it is entirely a communal space. Even better, the whole space has smaller spaces within it, such as a skate park, tennis courts and playgrounds. It will be perfect in exploring how the community interacts, and how different people with the same interests can come together in these public spaces. And also, observing how people use the public space and make it private, using it in their own individual way.
- Love the idea of time of day – definitely want to explore this in our project. Setting up a camera in the same spot for a few hours to capture different activity is one of our ideas.