A research team at the University of Toronto at Scarborough worked with several European designers to see what sort of spaces pleases our brains more.
Fast Company reports that the team, led by psychologist Oshin Vartanian, found that people are “far more likely to call a room beautiful when its design is round instead of linear.”
Hence, when Philip Johnson first visited the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, designed by the curve-master Frank Gehry, the tears he reportedly shed were caused by the building’s design tapping into some primordial human emotional network.
To conduct the study, the team slid people into a brain imaging machine and showed them pictures of rooms and buildings. They found that oblong couches, oval rugs, and looping floor patterns were universally seen as beautiful by all men and women who participated.
One of the many conclusions Vartanian and his team found was that human brains associate sharp lines (and sharp objects in general) with a threat, so curves signal a lack of threat, or safety.
Learn more about the research at Fast Company.
Related Stories
| Jun 19, 2014
First look: JDS Architects' roller-coaster-like design for Istanbul waterfront development
The development's wavy and groovy design promises unobstructed views of the Marmara Sea for every unit.
| Jun 19, 2014
NCARB study: Architects getting licensed at younger age
A new report from NCARB shows that the median age of people at initial licensure is at a 10 year low.
| Jun 19, 2014
Singapore's 'Tree House' vertical gardens break Guinness World Record
The high-rise development will have a 24,638-sf vertical garden, breaking a Guinness World Record.
| Jun 18, 2014
Design tips for Alzheimer care facilities
A new white paper from the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America and Perkins Eastman details best design practices for residential care settings for individuals living with Alzheimer’s disease.
| Jun 18, 2014
BSB Design Reinforces Client-Focus Legacy With Recent Changes
His 26-plus year history with BSB Design paired with his client relations skills and operational and organizational acumen make Swift well-suited to perpetuate the legacy of founder Jack Bloodgood: That everyone deserves to live in a home designed by an architect.
| Jun 18, 2014
Largest Passive House structure in the U.S. to be built in Oregon
Orchards at Orenco, a 57-unit affordable housing complex in Hillsboro, Oregon, is the first of a three-phase, three-building complex.
| Jun 18, 2014
SOM's twisting tower wins design competition for Sweden's tallest skyscraper
The skyscraper, which will reach 230 meters and is named Polstjärnan, or "The Pole Star," is to be built in Gothenburg, Sweden.
| Jun 18, 2014
Study shows walkable urbanism has positive economic impact
Walkable communities have a higher GDP, greater wealth, and higher percentages of college grads, according to a new study by George Washington University.
| Jun 18, 2014
Ware Malcomb names Sorensen Engineering Regional Manager
New hire will oversee firm's civil engineering practice in Los Angeles, San Diego, and Irvine.
| Jun 18, 2014
JLG Architects hires 31 to keep up with 'shale gale' work
Construction boom fueled by 'shale gale' brings rapid growth to North Dakota firm.
