Architecture as Atmosphere

Architecture is a complex process of spatial and temporal organization, which is conceived, developed, felt, and communicated also (and above all) through its atmospheric manifestations. Atmosphere is the essence of affective qualities we sense in our surroundings that confers identity and meaning to a situation or place. In the last three decades, investigations about atmospheres — aimed at comprehending, experimenting, and representing their expressive properties — have been drawing remarkable attention. From the end of the 20th century, some scholars have even observed an ‘atmospheric turn,’ a ramification of the more general ‘affective turn’ that bloomed in the Humanities in the early to mid-1990s. There is an ever-increasing enthusiasm for the atmospheric approach in architecture: today, atmosphere represents a crucial element for design practice and critical discussion, as well as architectural teaching. It satisfies the pressing need for bodily felt experiences and emotionally arranged ambiances.