Welcome. A Multisensory Approach to Architecture

The talk will be held in English and will take place at H19: 00

The Swiss Institute presents a discussion with Alice Hollenstein and Isabella Pasqualini, moderated by Evelyn Steiner (Salonnière Salon Suisse). The talk will be crowned by the performance Si tu vivais ici tu serais déjà chez toi ('If you lived here, you would already be with you') by Romy Rüegger with the performer Giulia Crispiani.

Through neuroscience, cognitive science, psychiatry and philosophy we have learned more about ourselves in the last few decades than the rest of human history, but the understanding of how design affects our mental and physical states is still very crude. In Western thought, although space appeals to the entire spectrum of perceptual phenomena, a visual understanding of the art of building prevails. How can we design living spaces that incorporate and stimulate all the senses and that allow a multiplicity of interactions beyond the orders of social distance? What can one learn from other disciplines as diverse as architecture, phenomenology, and neuroscience? Is it possible to design spatial gestures that welcome us? Urban psychologist Alice Hollenstein and scientist Isabella Pasqualini discuss how the built environment affects our behavior, our thoughts, our emotions, our well-being and why it is so important to understand the engineered qualities that arouse our feelings. our empathy, and generate a sense of community.

After the discussion, the artist Romy Rüegger will present his performance Si tu vivais ici tu serais déjà chez toi ('If you lived here, you would already be with you'). In his performative works, the artist confronts space as a physical experience. How do built spaces influence the conception of identity? With Si tu vivais ici tu serais déjà chez toi, Romy Rüegger focuses on a residential complex intended for single or working women built in Zurich in the 1920s by architect Lux Guyer, who was the first woman in Switzerland to carry out a practice independent architectural. Using texts and archival material, the artist explores the ways in which architecture has determined ideas about working women and the reality of their lives.

The event is presented as part of the Salon Suisse 2021, entitled Bodily Encounters. This is an official collateral event at the 2021 Architecture Biennale, organized by the Swiss Foundation for Culture Pro Helvetia. Talks, readings, performances, cultural events will be presented.