ARCHITECTURAL

DESIGN THEORY II
LECTURE 5
SPACE, SPACE USAGE AND
INTERRELATIONSHIP OF SPACES

22nd Dec 2014

Sat Priya school of Architecture & Design,

Rohtak

SPACE, SPACE USAGE AND INTERRELATIONSHIP OF

SPACES

Meaning of Space
Space is that nothingness around us that gets
displaced when ever an object is placed or
moved.
It can also be seen as the continuous extension
of vision with or without reference to the
existence of objects within it.
It is also seen as the interval between points or
objects viewed as having, one, two or three
dimensions.

22nd Dec 2014

Sat Priya school of Architecture &

Design, Rohtak

SPACE, SPACE USAGE AND INTERRELATIONSHIP OF

SPACES

Scale of Space: From

the atom to the
molecule, to the globe
and the galaxies.

22nd Dec 2014

Sat Priya school of Architecture &

Design, Rohtak

SPACE, SPACE USAGE AND INTERRELATIONSHIP OF

SPACES

Even atoms have space in them and also occupy

space.
So does everything that we see and can
measure.
In this large variation of space, Man uses a
particular amount of space.
The space that is immediately comprehensible to
Man and is usable by Man can be addressed as
Architectural Space.

22nd Dec 2014

Sat Priya school of Architecture &

Design, Rohtak

SPACE, SPACE USAGE AND INTERRELATIONSHIP OF

SPACES

The scale of the space used by Man can vary

from space as small as a space of a drawer, to a
wardrobe, to a toilet, to a room, to a set of
rooms, to a set of buildings, to a city.
The comprehension of spatial quantity by the
human mind is limited. It is easy to comprehend
a room or a street but the city can be
comprehended only as a two dimensional map.
At this stage the scale of space goes beyond
architectural scale to the domain of urban scale
resolved by urban planning.

22nd Dec 2014

Sat Priya school of Architecture &

Design, Rohtak

SPACE, SPACE USAGE AND INTERRELATIONSHIP OF

SPACES
Here are examples of a
small amount of space
that is being used for
some purpose. It is not
too difficult to
comprehend the size of
these spaces by the
process of perception.

22nd Dec 2014

Sat Priya school of Architecture &

Design, Rohtak

SPACE, SPACE USAGE AND INTERRELATIONSHIP OF

SPACES

Even these spaces can be

comprehended by the
human mind at a glance.

22nd Dec 2014

Sat Priya school of Architecture &

Design, Rohtak

SPACE, SPACE USAGE AND INTERRELATIONSHIP OF

SPACES

Spaces of these sizes too

can be understood and
appreciated by the human
mind at a glance.

22nd Dec 2014

Sat Priya school of Architecture &

Design, Rohtak

SPACE, SPACE USAGE AND INTERRELATIONSHIP OF

SPACES

Such outdoor spaces

can also be
appreciated in size
and context.

22nd Dec 2014

Sat Priya school of Architecture &

Design, Rohtak

SPACE, SPACE USAGE AND INTERRELATIONSHIP OF

SPACES

It is however difficult
to comprehend the
sizes of spaces at this
scale. These spaces
fall in the domain of
planners.

22nd Dec 2014

Sat Priya school of Architecture &

Design, Rohtak

10

SPACE, SPACE USAGE AND INTERRELATIONSHIP OF

SPACES

Architectural Space:

Space that is cognizable by the human mind.

Space that is used by human beings directly
The space can vary from the drawer to the
toilet to the theater to the campus.
Space that Man can relate to and measure by
the mind.

22nd Dec 2014

Sat Priya school of Architecture &

Design, Rohtak

11

SPACE, SPACE USAGE AND INTERRELATIONSHIP OF

SPACES

Methods of use of space by Man

Space exists. It is not created.

Space is only controlled by putting objects in it.
Man uses space by controlling, manipulating, playing
with, organizing and modulating spatial units.
A single spatial unit can be seen as a room and a
spatial organization as a building or a complex or a
city.
Even the smallest of spatial units is made up of still
smaller units.

22nd Dec 2014

Sat Priya school of Architecture &

Design, Rohtak

12

SPACE, SPACE USAGE AND INTERRELATIONSHIP OF

SPACES

Space Usage
Space is used by the body in different positions
and in the movement of the body.
Space is thus used for static activity and
movement.
There are thus two kinds of spaces: Static activity
spaces and circulation spaces.
For static activity some furniture or equipment is
required. Space is thus used by the furniture
and the space around it for the body to move
for approaching and using the furniture.
22nd Dec 2014

Sat Priya school of Architecture &

Design, Rohtak

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SPACE, SPACE USAGE AND INTERRELATIONSHIP OF

SPACES

Human beings have to perform different

activities, hence there are different kinds
of furniture.
Even within a category of furniture there are
different kinds to accommodate the
different body position needs.

22nd Dec 2014

Sat Priya school of Architecture &

Design, Rohtak

14

The reality of a house is not in the exterior

forms, as it is in sculpture, but in the
space within, in the space enclosed, within
which man walks and lives.
Frank Lloyd Wright

22nd Dec 2014

Sat Priya school of Architecture &

Design, Rohtak

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SPACE, SPACE USAGE AND INTERRELATIONSHIP OF

SPACES

Furniture for different

purposes: chairs as
an example.
What makes them
different?

22nd Dec 2014

Sat Priya school of Architecture &

Design, Rohtak

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SPACE, SPACE USAGE AND INTERRELATIONSHIP OF

SPACES

Besides the contextual differences the difference

is in the function these chairs perform. There
could be study chairs, office chairs, lounge
chairs, bar stools, drafting stools etc.
Each chair works by accommodating the human
body in a particular posture for some human
activity.
The chair will work, however, only if there is
enough space around the chair for it to be
occupied.
Spatial efficiency thus depends on the
choice of furniture
and its placement.
Sat Priya school of Architecture &

22nd Dec 2014

Design, Rohtak

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SPACE, SPACE USAGE AND INTERRELATIONSHIP OF

SPACES

The different kinds of furniture are made

to accommodate different kinds of
functions that need to be performed by
the users.
The spaces used by the furniture and the
space around these for the body to use
the furniture form spatial units or rooms.
These spatial units are designed for
Sat Priyafunctions.
school of Architecture &
different human

22nd Dec 2014

Design, Rohtak

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SPACE, SPACE USAGE AND INTERRELATIONSHIP OF

SPACES

There are therefore

different kinds of spatial
units (rooms) for
different functions
Like the bedroom,
kitchen etc.

22nd Dec 2014

Sat Priya school of Architecture &

Design, Rohtak

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SPACE, SPACE USAGE AND INTERRELATIONSHIP OF

SPACES

Some other spatial

units:

22nd Dec 2014

Sat Priya school of Architecture &

Design, Rohtak

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SPACE, SPACE USAGE AND INTERRELATIONSHIP OF

SPACES

Spatial Efficiency in interiors can be achieved by

choosing the appropriate furniture for the envisaged
function and then leaving appropriate space for the use
of that function. Additional space is also provided to
create the condition of comfort. Excessive unused space
will however give a feel of emptiness.
In interiors while space provide functionality and can
provide a sense of grandeur, it is the physical objects
used to organize space that will also generate the
intangible reactions to the spatial unit.

22nd Dec 2014

Sat Priya school of Architecture &

Design, Rohtak

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SPACE, SPACE USAGE AND INTERRELATIONSHIP OF

SPACES

Static activity and

movement spaces:
Note the space occupied
by the furniture and the
space left around the
furniture for the furniture
to work.
The quantity of space will
determine the spatial
efficiency.

22nd Dec 2014

Sat Priya school of Architecture &

Design, Rohtak

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SPACE, SPACE USAGE AND INTERRELATIONSHIP OF

SPACES

Different kinds of spatial units

are combined to make
different kinds of buildings that
serve different needs of the
users like hostels, offices,
hospitals, libraries, houses etc.

22nd Dec 2014

Sat Priya school of Architecture &

Design, Rohtak

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SPACE, SPACE USAGE AND INTERRELATIONSHIP OF

SPACES

Spaces in the exterior are occupied by buildings.

Here too, buildings to work properly need space
around them.
Buildings or spatial organizations are designed
to accommodate different functions. These need
approach roads and foregrounds and breathing
space around them.
These open spaces are treated with landscape
Elements.

22nd Dec 2014

Sat Priya school of Architecture &

Design, Rohtak

24

SPACE, SPACE USAGE AND INTERRELATIONSHIP OF

SPACES

Spaces around and

between buildings

22nd Dec 2014

Sat Priya school of Architecture &

Design, Rohtak

25

SPACE, SPACE USAGE AND INTERRELATIONSHIP OF

SPACES

Human activity and

space:
All spaces are
designed keeping in
mind some envisaged
activity.

22nd Dec 2014

Sat Priya school of Architecture &

Design, Rohtak

26

SPACE, SPACE USAGE AND INTERRELATIONSHIP OF

SPACES

Connection between spaces can

be direct, indirect and distant:
Direct: like drawing and dining
Indirect: Through a door or
through a corridor
Distant: At the different ends of a
building.
These connections are based on
their functional relationships like
dining and kitchen, bedroom and
toilet, directors office and the
secretarys space.

22nd Dec 2014

Sat Priya school of Architecture &

Design, Rohtak

27

SPACE, SPACE USAGE AND INTERRELATIONSHIP OF

SPACES

Volumetric and visual

understanding of
spaces:
Space is used up to a
particular height but a
certain volume of space is
required both for function
and feel. Too low a
height or too much would
make the interior
unpleasant.
22nd Dec 2014

Sat Priya school of Architecture &

Design, Rohtak

28

SPACE, SPACE USAGE AND INTERRELATIONSHIP OF

SPACES

Time and Space:

Spatial delineation keeps changing with
time.
For example the nuclear family house as
compared to a joint family house or the
placement of the television in the
bedroom or office computerization.
22nd Dec 2014

Sat Priya school of Architecture &

Design, Rohtak

29

SPACE, SPACE USAGE AND INTERRELATIONSHIP OF

SPACES

Architectural space is that which is used by the

human body.
Different spaces are organized for envisaged
function.
Spatial efficiency depends on the correct choice
of furniture and its placement.
Spatial units are connected: based on human
functions.
Different spatial organizations are designed for
different human functions.
The functions could be single or multiple.

22nd Dec 2014

Sat Priya school of Architecture &

Design, Rohtak

30

SPACE, SPACE USAGE AND INTERRELATIONSHIP

OF SPACES

Try to resolve your design problem as a

series of spaces organized to serve some
distinct human activity.
Resolve each space by determining the
furniture, its placement and the space
required around it.
Think of architecture as organizing space
by putting objects in space to make it
useful for an envisaged function.

22nd Dec 2014

Sat Priya school of Architecture &

Design, Rohtak

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The End

22nd Dec 2014

Sat Priya school of Architecture &

Design, Rohtak

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