Emotive architecture – Sensory design evaluation of schools

Abstract

Post Occupancy Evaluation (POE) is an established process for assessing the thermal performance of buildings already constructed and in use. It could be argued that POE tends to focus predominantly on assessing whether a combination of building fabric and the mechanical and passive systems meet design aspirations for minimising occupant or user energy use for heating and cooling, and maximising thermal comfort and indoor air quality. Yet, POE rarely assesses the sensory experiences of the building users and their perceptions of how well a space works for its intended function. It is also rare to find a POE approach that gives equal weight to the technical performance of buildings and the satisfaction of inhabitants and their aesthetic experience of the architecture (Tweed, 2017). POE for Architects needs to be a different approach that incorporates user sensory ‘feelings’ that are informed by sight, smell, hearing, touch, and taste. The first author of this paper is an Architect with 30+ years’ experience, is award winning for his school design in Wales and works for Stride Treglown Architects in Cardiff. He is investigating the sensory experiences of buildings users in some of the schools that he has designed and that are in use. The data generated by this project will be used to enlighten his and their design of future school in Wales. Furthermore, this D.SBE project is timely since there are many new schools which are to be designed and constructed in Wales over the next ten years. Therefore, the Sensory POE approach developed during this work could enhance the services that Stride Treglown offers its clients, with a possible way in which clients can better understand their buildings in order that the users not only are more productive and happy, but also appreciate the architectural delight of a building and its spaces.