The eyes of the skin

1. BACHELOR OF SCIENCE (HONOURS) IN ARCHITECTURE
THEORIES OF ARCHITECTURE AND URBANISM
(ARC61303/ARC2224)
SYNOPSIS: REACTION PAPER (MARCH 2017)
Name: Yeoh Xiang An ID No.: 0322691
Lecturer: Nicholas Ng Tutorial Time:
Reader/Text Title: The Eyes of the Skin Synopsis No: 2
Author: Juhani Pallasmaa
Upon reading Juhani Pallasmaa’s “The Eyes of the Skin” regards to ‘Polemics’, this piece of literature attempts
to highlight the value of sensory experience in architecture, that there exists one central theme to all of
architecture: “The ultimate meaning of any building is beyond architecture; it directs our consciousness back
to the world and towards our own sense of self and being”. The act of constructing a building is not only putting
pieces together to make a end product, but it also impacts feelings and nature of the person, change the way
the person view architecture as a whole or even may effect the way they view their own life. In addition,
Pallasmaa makes it clear that architecture has close relation to improvement of one’s own life and morals
when he mentions “architecture has to address all the senses simultaneously and fuse our image of self with
own experience of the world”.
Firstly, another large factor of architecture in this book is that the senses play a large role in how we aspect
and interpret architecture. Besides that, Pallasmaa makes the claim that perception has made a negative
impact on how we design and construct building now, and have lost the “touch” sense, which make
architecture lost its spiritual and intimate feeling through this lack of “touch”. In my opinion, I think that the
sense of “touch” can be more than physical contact but also a feeling of being “touch”, as an architect
constructing a house to helps other less fortunate then ourselves and it moved me to want to help others who
needed things done. Thus, architecture has also made a huge impact in my life in a very positive way. Which
I think there lays a very spiritual part of architecture that has a moving impact on the designer life.
“What is needed most in architecture today is the very thing that is most needed in life-integrity”. Based on
my reading, I believe this quotes incorporate everything that Pallasmaa proposed to convey in his book,
seeing architecture in a multi-senses and with a spiritual viewpoint.
Word Count: 347 Mark Grade
Assessed by: Date Page No.