In Plain Sight: A Sensory Art Studio For the Blind and Sighted Communities of Atlanta

Thesis (Master's)--University of Washington, 2014Architecture, inherently a multisensory art, is at risk of becoming visually biased in modern culture. Representation in the digital age primarily engages sight, fostering a preference for forms created solely to please the eye. This form of creation disregards the other senses, which distances the observer from the surrounding world, reducing their ability to internalize, and thus connect with, their surroundings. Conversely, an architecture that fosters a multisensory experience intimately links the built environment to ones sense of self, promoting connection between the observer, the space, the community, and the architecture as a whole. This thesis posits that the insertion of a sensory art school for blind and sighted individuals can have a transformative effect on the surrounding community. By shaping form through auditory, olfactory, and textural cues, the architecture educates its occupants in the pattern language of the senses, allowing for a deeper understanding of and connection to the built environment