Page 32 —
COLORADO REAL ESTATE JOURNAL
— March 2-March 15, 2016
B
uildings are as much
a part of our cities
and communities
as the people who inhabit
them. Aside from the great
outdoors, there is nowhere
we can go without interacting
with the built environment;
nearly all of our daily
activities take place in a
building that was designed by
an architect.
How we choose to design
our buildings and cities can
profoundly affect our lives
– they impact our senses,
our vitality, our behavior
and, ultimately, represent
our ideals and values as a
society. As such, architecture
professionals consider human
nature an integral part of the
design process.
For architects, human
behavior is one of the first
components we look to
understand and accommodate
during the design process.
If you challenge people to
reorganize their innate
patterns and behaviors to fit
into a particular space, no
matter how well that project
is designed, it will eventually
fail.
The recent design trend of
open office and communal
space provides an excellent
example of space before
people.
While being a theoretical
solution to sparking
collaboration and creativity
among workers, the shared
space model can disregard
the occasional need for
private, quiet space. This
can result in frustration for
workers who just need some
time to concentrate or make
an important phone call. It
can also decrease employee
productivity and overall
satisfaction.
However, people-first design
will both support and adapt
to the undeniable patterns of
human behavior.
For example, by providing
a balance of private spaces,
common areas and right-
sized meeting rooms, the
Gensler-designed Alliance
Center in downtown Denver
optimizes space utilization
to accommodate for both
individual concentration
and group collaboration. By
providing both a beautiful
and naturally functioning
space for people to work in,
the building improves overall
worker productivity and
satisfaction.
As suggested by Karen
Harris, AIA, “Good design is
not always obvious to most
people in their everyday lives.
It does, however, become
extremely obvious when
it makes
life more
difficult.”
This also
is apparent
in childhood
and old age.
Harris,
who
concentrates
her design
work on
identifying
aging-
in-place
strategies,
believes the connection
between physical and mental
well-being is strong, and
can be enhanced through
proactive and thoughtful
design.
“When one is able to
navigate their physical
environment with confidence,
it translates into confidence
in other aspects of their
lives,” Harris continued.
An increasing amount of
scientific research is proving
that physical challenges
within limits are very positive
for overall health.
As noted by Bill Holicky,
AIA, seniors who walk on
cobblestones have fewer
accidents than those who
primarily walk on smooth
surfaces. Therefore,
providing seniors with an
environment where uneven
walking surfaces are available
would be an appropriate
design response to improve
the quality of life for this
particular user group.
It is the keen ability of
architects to weave these
necessary, yet pragmatic,
elements into their designs to
create effective and desirable
spaces. The need to balance
the consideration of how
people will use a space, and
how to maximize the success
of the experience, while
simultaneously providing for
the aesthetics and the joy
of a well-conceived design is
part of the art and craft of
architecture.
The best buildings are both
relatable and stimulating –
allowing people to interact
with them at the human
scale, while still inspiring and
referencing something above
and beyond our physical
reality.
One such example is a
mixed-use building like Taxi
2 in Denver’s River North
neighborhood.
Designed in collaboration
by David Baker, FAIA, Alan
Eban Brown, AIA, Will
Bruder, FAIA, and Harry
Teague, AIA, obvious care
was put into the first floor of
an otherwise very sculptural
building. Elements such
as varied windows, siding
changes, structural columns,
inverted umbrella awnings
and large concrete seat
blocks increase the building’s
complexity while ensuring its
function at the human level.
The impact of technology,
the influx of residents to the
state, and other societal and
economic changes ensure
there will be an evolution
to the built environment
and human experience in
Colorado in the coming
years. It will be interesting
to see how Colorado’s built
environment responds to
these changes. Will our
buildings have a more
positive impact on our well-
being? How will our design
standards adapt to new ideas
about efficiency, comfort
and function? And how will
our buildings change us in
return?
Perhaps this advice from
Winston Churchill is all we
need for now: “There is no
doubt whatever about the
influence of architecture
and structure upon human
character and action. We
make our buildings and
afterwards they make us.
They regulate the course of
our lives.”
s
Angela M.T. Van
Do, AIA, LEED
AP BD+C
President,
AIA Colorado
