Buildings that feel good

Ziona Strelitz

June 2008
Code: 64211
ISBN: 9781859462966
160 pp
Hardback
£27.50

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What makes a building good? The question is the central challenge facing architects and ultimately can only be answered by looking at what worked well for those who know the buildings most intimately – the building's users.

Richly illustrated in colour, this refreshingly original book is packed with case studies of recent buildings that have been found to satisfy their users – buildings that feel good. This ineffable quality is the architect’s Holy Grail. It is rooted in the physical but mediated by human experience, and may only be judged after the building has been 'lived in' and stood the test of time. The trick is to identify the relevant characteristics that will inform new buildings before they are built.

Written by a highly respected briefing and design evaluation expert who specializes in optimizing the experience of building users, Buildings that feel good distils a set of hard-won lessons synthesized from years of real-world research. It argues that a powerful key to designing good buildings is to decipher consistent principles from users’ positive experience of existing buildings. The case studies include many recent highly-rated projects that cover a wide range of building types – offices, retail, industrial, infrastructure, sport and education. The lessons extracted are universal and provide valuable generic insights into the critically important briefing process.

Eclectic, thought-provoking and distinctive in articulating propositions of successful design, Buildings that feel good is aimed at clients, architects, interior designers, construction professionals, related students and indeed anyone interested in the nature of spaces that are both effective and cherished.