AIA DESIGN THEORY- Jan/Feb 2010

by Rebecca Falzano
Photography Trent Bell

Architect Dominic Mercadante
and the building as a spatial journey

To Dominic Mercadante, a building is so much more than a building; it’s a rich and varied spatial experience made up of sequences that are carefully sculpted to complement and contrast with one another. Mercadante explains how a building goes from a collection of spaces to a sculptural work of art.

Q: What are the fundamental aspects of our experience of architecture?
DM: There are two. The first is the building as object. From this perspective we view the building as a sculptural object in the landscape and appreciate it much in the same way we admire other sculptures. We walk around the structure with the goal of enjoying and understanding its external form—its overall shape and the play of light and shadow across its volume. The second aspect is more experiential and is best understood as the building as an assemblage of spaces. The emphasis is on our direct experience of the building through time. As we move from space to space our perception of the one we are entering is colored by our experience of the one that we are leaving. All aspects giving form and definition to a space are involved here: there is the shape and proportion of the space itself, the relative solidity or transparency of its walls, floor, and ceiling as well as the colors and materials used to define and articulate these surfaces. This is true not only of the building proper but of the spaces we create in the landscape to accommodate the building.

Q: What is meant by positive and negative space?
DM: Positive space is the volume physically enclosed by the building, while negative space is defined as the implied rooms created by voids in the building mass. An L-shaped building, for example, creates an implied exterior space bounded by its two 90-degree-adjacent wall surfaces. An architect will use the exterior wall surfaces of a building to help define the exterior rooms and will often consider the placement of ancillary structures (garages, guest quarters, studios) to help bound and define an exterior room.

Q: Can you walk us through a building’s spatial journey?
DM: Our experience of the building takes us from the exterior rooms (driveways, walkways, courtyards) through transitional spaces (terraces, open and covered porches) into the enclosed spaces of the built volume. A good architect will sculpt this experience, carefully shaping the nature of each space to complement or contrast with the next in the sequence. For example, the driveway might terminate in a large courtyard space defined by the building or buildings as well as large landscape elements, trees, shrubs, or mixed borders. Built objects, fences, stone walls, or simply a light post might also be used to help imply the presence of “walls.” From this exterior room we might step through a small lawn area or garden onto a covered porch creating a bridge between the open outdoor space and the enclosed volume beyond. Inside the building, each room in form and color will guide the traveler through a rich and varied spatial experience. A large space will feel more expansive and bright when we come to it through a smaller, darker room. A room with a vaulted or very high ceiling plane will draw the eye up, while a large space with a lower ceiling will push the eye forward, perhaps out to a special vista in the landscape. The palette of tools is almost limitless—and through dialogue with the client and an appreciation of the building site the architect can shape a spatial journey that moves the building beyond a well-laid-out assemblage of spaces into a sculptural work of art.