Ocular Centrism and the Other Senses - Essay Example

?Ocular Centrism and the Other Senses In order to understand the theme of the article, it is important to become familiar with the point of view on modern architecture and the main forces that influence them. The author puts forward the idea that modern architecture is dominated by the sense of sight and been so for some period of time, that is, sight has been used as the primary means of making decisions with respect to the structures built today. In addition, hearing has been used to some extent in developing contemporary architecture whereas the other senses of taste, touch and smell have been largely ignored. The author traces such an ocular centric culture from the renaissance era during which individualism took shape and found more application during the industrial era of the 19th and 20th century that have led to the present technological dependence of mankind, however, he also cites a few examples of ocular centric architecture as early as the age of the Greeks. In addition, the author feels that significance given to the power of sight has been witnessed in the architectural structures and the culture of the respective periods. For example, a person with blindness is considered severely disabled when compared to one who is deaf. The ocular centric nature of succeeding cultures has not only led to an increasing dominance of sight and its influence of culture, it has led to ignorance of the other senses which has also influenced architecture by making it one – dimensional. In order to prove this point, the author examines various structures of the past that have qualities absent in contemporary architecture. For example, the author explains the use of light and shadows in some famous structures and how a lack or limited amount of light contributes to the aesthetic beauty of a structure. He also goes to propose that light in the use of today's structures invades privacy and has other effects such as limiting the creativity of the human mind. With respect to sound, he says that although it has been taken into account in today's buildings, they do not aid the effects of hearing such as its interactive ability which was incorporated in structures of the past. Similarly, the power of smell and touch have not only shown to be important factors in architecture, they are shown to have an influence on the human mind itself. Therefore, by ignoring these senses in creating architecture, western culture has also experienced a significant reduction in the qualities that is attached to these senses such as intimacy which is associated with touch, warmth associated with smell and interactivity associated with hearing, etc. Therefore, the resulting structures are one-dimensional in nature and do not engage the individual as intensely as with structures of the past. Hence, architecture needs to encompass the variety of senses and emotions experienced by an artist rather than the dominating sense alone. The author also establishes that art is as much an interaction between the viewer and the structure as it is with the quality of the structure alone. Ocular centrism has not only led to a one-dimensionality of the structures but also a corresponding quality in today's artists that significantly decreases the quality of contemporary art. Today's structures are built with the idea of optimality and rationality than through the experiences of the artist. The author also cites simple buildings such as hospitals and houses for this purpose (Pallasmaa, 285-296). Human Rootedness The author's remarks are significant because of the importance of architecture in human life. Architecture is a reflection of the characteristics of the culture of the particular period. It is the same reason architecture is studied in such detail while endeavoring to know about the nature of past civilizations. Architecture and other forms of art deal with questions that have been at the centre of man's imagination ever since civilization took shape. This is evidenced in the ancient cave paintings around the world to the relatively modern canvas masterpieces. Therefore, architecture represents the growth of a particular civilization and has significant consequences attached to it. Hence, it is important that along with human thought, human experiences and perceptions also advance. Since this is a product of the various senses, it is important that due importance is given to them. This is what the author refers to as human rootedness in the world and has shown its importance as the life blood of a civilization. As desirable as the qualities listed by the author are, it is hard to imagine that they will be readily implemented in the near future. This is especially in view of the present issues facing the world. Much importance is given to logic and for finding optimal solutions. These are dominated by the power of sight and hence the other senses are ignored leading to a situation as explained by the author. Such an influence on future artists is likely to mould them in the same direction. On the other hand, as history has demonstrated, iconic structures of architecture and other forms of art are created when they are least expected which could lead to resurgence in the multidimensional form of architecture as recognized by the author. However, despite the direction taken by the future, it is important to recognize and pay due attention to all the senses in the creation of art and architecture if not in daily life since the author has been able to clearly establish it as a weakness and shortcoming in today's civilization (Pallasmaa, 283-284). Works Cited Pallasmaa, Juhani. The eyes of the skin: architecture and the senses. USA: Wiley-Academy, 2005. Print. Read More