10.4. Passageway View

Aus Pattern Language Wiki

Within your building’s Circulation Network, be careful about the placement of passages.


10 4 01 Passageway View.jpg


Problem-statement: People tend to assume that in walking from room to room, we are focused on the utilitarian goal of moving, while we only care about a view when we arrive in a room. This is exactly backwards.


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Discussion: In fact, when we occupy a room, we are often engaged with tasks that distract us from views: talking to others, reading a computer screen or printed material. It is when we are moving that we are most aware of our surroundings, and most affected by the views they offer.


In practical terms, this means that the common pattern of a dark central hallway feeding a chain of rooms on each side — known as a “double-loaded corridor” — is a terrible pattern, cutting us off from experience of the outside world, and the rest of the building. A better pattern is to wrap passageways along the exterior walls for at least part of their length, and to cluster rooms in a more complex configuration.


The field of graph theory, from mathematics, gives us some insight on this issue. In graph theory, both the nodes and the connections are equally important. In functional terms, connections such as paths are equally as important as destinations that are stationary nodes. In terms of architectural cognition, our vision of spaces changes as we move through it, forming what have been termed “isovists.”1 Previous generations of design tended to focus only on static nodes and to neglect the dynamic connections and the experience of the shape of space as people move between them. We need to pay attention to this crucial aspect of space and movement once again, by designing these transitions with equal care towards the experience and wellbeing of the user.


10 4 02 Passageway View.jpg
Left, a typical “double-loaded corridor” passageway, offering no views other than a dark corridor. Right, a passageway offering views of the exterior, and perhaps other parts of the building.


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Therefore:

Do not make long, dark passageways that offer no views to the exterior. Instead, connect at least part of each passageway to the exterior, offering views from windows.


10 4 03 Passageway View.jpg


Use Framing to connect passageways to the outside, and to other parts of the building. Provide Human-Scale Detail and Local Symmetry to create geometric richness and complexity…




¹ Graph theory and the concept of “isovists” have been applied to understanding architectural space and movement experience by a number of investigators, notably Bill Hillier and Michael Batty, both of University College London. See for example Batty, M. (2001). Exploring isovist fields: Space and shape in architectural and urban morphology. Environment and Planning B: Planning and Design, 28(1), 123-150.



Mehaffy, M. et al. (2020). PASSAGEWAY VIEW (pattern). In A New Pattern Language for Growing Regions. The Dalles: Sustasis Press. Available at https://pattern-language.wiki/.../Passageway_View



SECTION I:

PATTERNS OF SCALE


1. REGIONAL PATTERNS

Define the large-scale spatial organization…

1.1. POLYCENTRIC REGION

1.2. BLUE-GREEN NETWORK

1.3. MOBILITY CORRIDOR

1.4. 400M THROUGH STREET NETWORK

2. URBAN PATTERNS

Establish essential urban characteristics…

2.1. WALKABLE MULTI-MOBILITY

2.2. LEVEL CITY

2.3. PUBLIC SPACE SYSTEM

2.4. BIOPHILIC URBANISM

3. STREET PATTERNS

Identify and allocate street types…

3.1. URBAN GREENWAY

3.2. MULTI-WAY BOULEVARD

3.3. AVENUE

3.4. SHARED SPACE LANE

4. NEIGHBORHOOD PATTERNS

Define neighborhood-scale elements…

4.1. STREET AS CENTER

4.2. PEDESTRIAN SANCTUARY

4.3. NEIGHBORHOOD SQUARE

4.4. NEIGHBORHOOD PARK

5. SPECIAL USE PATTERNS

Integrate unique urban elements with care…

5.1. SCHOOL CAMPUS

5.2. MARKET CENTER

5.3. INDUSTRIAL AREA

5.4. HOSPITAL

6. PUBLIC SPACE PATTERNS

Establish the character of the crucial public realm…

6.1. PLACE NETWORK

6.2. WALKABLE STREETSCAPE

6.3. MOVABLE SEATING

6.4. CAPILLARY PATHWAY

7. BLOCK AND PLOT PATTERNS

Lay out the detailed structure of property lines…

7.1. SMALL BLOCKS

7.2. PERIMETER BLOCK

7.3. SMALL PLOTS

7.4. MID-BLOCK ALLEY

8. STREETSCAPE PATTERNS

Configure the street as a welcoming place…

8.1. STREET AS ROOM

8.2. TERMINATED VISTA

8.3. STREET TREES

8.4. STREET FURNISHINGS

9. BUILDING PATTERNS

Lay out appropriate urban buildings…

9.1. PERIMETER BUILDING

9.2. ARCADE BUILDING

9.3. COURTYARD BUILDING

9.4. ROW BUILDING

10. BUILDING EDGE PATTERNS

Create interior and exterior connectivity…

10.1. INDOOR-OUTDOOR AMBIGUITY

10.2. CIRCULATION NETWORK

10.3. LAYERED ZONES

10.4. PASSAGEWAY VIEW



SECTION II:

PATTERNS OF MULTIPLE SCALE


11. GEOMETRIC PATTERNS

Build in coherent geometries at all scales…

11.1. LOCAL SYMMETRY

11.2. SMALL GROUPS OF ELEMENTS

11.3. FRACTAL PATTERN

11.4. FRAMING

12. AFFORDANCE PATTERNS

Build in user capacity to shape the environment…

12.1. HANDLES

12.2. CO-PRODUCTION

12.3. FRIENDLY SURFACES

12.4. MALLEABILITY

13. RETROFIT PATTERNS

Revitalize and improve existing urban assets …

13.1. SLUM UPGRADE

13.2. SPRAWL RETROFIT

13.3. URBAN REGENERATION

13.4. URBAN CONSOLIDATION

14. INFORMAL GROWTH PATTERNS

Accommodate “bottom-up” urban growth…

14.1. LAND TENURE

14.2. UTILITIES FIRST

14.3. DATA WITH THE PEOPLE

14.4. INCREMENTAL SELF-BUILD

15. CONSTRUCTION PATTERNS

Use the building process to enrich the result…

15.1. DESIGN-BUILD ADAPTATION

15.2. HUMAN-SCALE DETAIL

15.3. CONSTRUCTION ORNAMENT

15.4. COMPLEX MATERIALS



SECTION III:

PATTERNS OF PROCESS


16. IMPLEMENTATION TOOL PATTERNS

Use tools to achieve successful results…

16.1. FORM-BASED CODE

16.2. ENTITLEMENT STREAMLINING

16.3. NEIGHBORHOOD PLANNING CENTER

16.4. COMMUNITY MOCKUP

17. PROJECT ECONOMICS PATTERNS

Create flows of money that support urban quality…

17.1. TAX-INCREMENT FINANCING

17.2. LAND VALUE CAPTURE

17.3. EXTERNALITY VALUATION

17.4. ECONOMIES OF PLACE AND DIFFERENTIATION

18. PLACE GOVERNANCE PATTERNS

Processes for making and managing places…

18.1. SUBSIDIARITY

18.2. POLYCENTRIC GOVERNANCE

18.3. PUBLIC-PRIVATE PLACE MANAGEMENT

18.4. INFORMAL STEWARDSHIP

19. AFFORDABILITY PATTERNS

Build in affordability for all incomes…

19.1. INTEGRATED AFFORDABILITY

19.2. COMMUNITY LAND TRUST

19.3. MULTI-FAMILY INFILL

19.4. SPECULATION TAX

20. NEW TECHNOLOGY PATTERNS

Integrate new systems without damaging old ones…

20.1. SMART AV SYSTEM

20.2. RESPONSIVE TRANSPORTATION NETWORK COMPANY

20.3. AUGMENTED REALITY DESIGN

20.4. CITIZEN DATA