The sign on the door doesn't look good, pushing heavy doors doesn't feel good, and both can leave a negative impression upon your building occupants.
Image: gruntzooki | Flickr

The other night as I was approaching (to enter) a restaurant, a group of people happened to be exiting. And as they were making their way through the main doors, one of them exclaimed (with a lot of passion in her voice), “we had to eat a lot of food to be able to push these doors open” — the doors were just “so heavy“.

As it became my turn to enter, it also became my turn to hold the door and I quickly discovered just how right she was in her observation.

While this was a good restaurant…There were some lessons to be learned here.

As an architect you must make a concerted effort to go beyond the visual and aural senses — for, in the restaurant design that I recently experienced, it would have helped immensely if the designers had made their entrance/exit “gateway” feature more than just look good…because despite their best efforts to do this, once occupants interacted with the doors, their negative perceptions reflected badly upon the restaurant and their dining experience.

So much of architecture is a touch-based and tactile experience. Just think of how many times your occupants “touch” something (architectural details) while experiencing your building design.

It may help to actually walk yourself through their journey, while paying particular attention to what their sensorial journey will be like. For instance, what do they Read more

image: Incase Designs | Flickr

Productivity. Collaboration. Mobility. Globalization. Socialization. Culture.

Such are the buzz-words which describe the more modern workplaces of today. But where is this all going? And why?

One thing is for sure, computers are spreading. They seem to be everywhere. They’re getting smaller, more helpful and their interfaces are getting more intuitive. It’s no wonder that the surrounding environments which inhabit them now often allow for more mobility, productivity and collaboration.

But what about creativity? It’s an important factor — and one that should be addressed head-on.

I think that fostering creativity within office cultures is both fundamental, and too often under-emphasized and overlooked. After all, it is creativity that is the glue for so many office cultures today. Just think Google.

Within Google corporate cultures you can see how having a creative work office design literally feeds the Google work culture — ultimately leading to more innovation, better employee satisfaction, retention and outreach.

Here is a quick look around the Google Chicago office so you can get a glimpse of what I’m talking about (before I go on): Read more

Serghei Starus | Dreamstime

An article “To Tame the Belly, Mange the Brain” in The Boston Globe (November 19th, 2008) by Carolyn Y. Johnson discusses how eating is “as much about the brain as it is about the stomach”.  Given this, doesn’t it make you wonder about the importance of restaurant or your home’s dining room design? Since the act of eating is more than just about the flavor of the food — lighting, color scheme and air circulation all play a role in how your body ultimately intakes food.

If air circulation impacts food aroma or lighting impacts how appetizing the food looks, wouldn’t you conclude that architectural design plays a part in “marketing” the chef’s entrée to your body? If the food is perceived as being delicious, then your body will actually do a better job with digestion. As architectural design provides for a mouthwatering experience, the meal will not only taste better but will be digested better physiologically. 

Taste is only one part of how and why your body intakes food. Your brain, and therefore your other senses, also impact how well a food is digested. So, can good architectural restaurant design positively impact how patrons digest food, beyond its taste? If eating involves the brain (which it does) then the architectural surroundings are ultimately also important for healthy eating.