A Good Spatial Massage – Compression & Release

Looking for a good spatial message, similar to a body massage?

“We become attuned to constant stimuli. A sequence of spaces with unwavering similarity tends to move into the background of our perceptions. Sometimes this is desirable, often it is not. Compression/Release is a change in the experience of space by a physical spatial impact upon the senses.

A very low ‘ceiling’ (overhead plane) or a narrow ‘hallway’ suggests a compression on our perceived experience. Immediately upon entering a higher ceiling plane (as we cross a threshold for instance) the senses are released to explore the now relieved volume. Compression/release is like wearing a pair of slightly too tight shoes. We slowly adapt to the shoes and are not really aware of their impact upon us until we take them off, often with a well-deserved sigh of relief.

This isn’t to suggest that space become unpleasant, and then more pleasant for contrast, but that spatial use is more a participant in the overall experience. Movement through a compression/release sequence may be compared to a massage in which muscles are compressed by educated hands and then released into relaxation. A constant pressure would become tiresome to muscles and sensation.

Lowering the ceiling and the experience of the closer wall in a hallway before entering a small bath space, may change the size experience of the bath space to appear larger by comparison to the hallway.

Leaving the bathroom we move back into the lowered and wall/compressed ‘hall’ for a moment or two, until the compression is sensed, and then we enter the larger public space – and again the release is felt. In this way a well-conceived environmental sequence massages us all day in an ever-re-stimulating play of volume series experience.

In this way the compression/release sequence has a powerful impact on response and can aid in the development of work-or-architecture events.” -an excerpt from by SpaceTherapy® co-founder, Roger Richmond’s book, Manipulating Spaces – What We Do To Them and What They Do To Us. Copyright ©1997 – Purchase of this book is available upon request.

Not only can there be a physical compression/release, there’s also available a photo and acoustic aspect. Light and cool colored surfaces, for example, seem to recede. Dark and warm surfaces seem to advance. Painting the walls in your entry space a darker and warmer color than your living room will increase the feeling of being ‘hugged’ upon entering, and released as you move into your living room. Painting the entry ceiling a darker and warmer color than the same height ceiling in the living room will increase the compression/release experience,  and also cause the living room ceiling to feel higher than it’s actual overly compressive height.

Similarly, moving from an acoustical soft space into a harder/sharper space will be experienced as a good compression/release massage.

Think also about how the effective placement of furnishings can create a compression/release spatial massage that adds a soul enriching experience to your daily life. More on these interior design techniques and how they inform ‘sticks and stones’ architectural design decisions will follow in future blogs.

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