Surface, Edge, and Junction

Architects are used to experiencing buildings through plan, section, elevation, renders, and aerial photography. However, this is not the norm – most people experience buildings up close, at eye level. We notice how a doorway feels to pass through, whether a wall seems solid or hollow, and how certain materials meet throughout the building. These everyday experiences are shaped by decisions about edges, surfaces, and junctions between them. They may go unnoticed, but they subconsciously influence comfort, trust, and familiarity in a building long before questions of style or architectural intent arise.

Edges describe how a building situates itself. The meeting with the ground, the line of the roof, or the thickness of an external wall all establish expectations about use and permanence. A recessed doorway alters how a building is approached. A deep window opening changes how light and climate are moderated inside.