Rethinking the Relationship Between Architectural Representation and Spatial Experience Through the 12th International Architecture Exhibition

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.15320/ICONARP.2026.364

Keywords:

Architecture exhibition, Architectural representation, Experiential qualities of space, Experiential representation, Perceptual experience

Abstract

The experience of space has a multi-sensory structure realized through the movement of the body. This situation effectively discusses the architectural representations used both in the design process of the space and after it is built, through the concept of experience. Architectural representations are conventionally evaluated for their capacity to communicate formal and technical knowledge of space; their ability to convey the experiential qualities of space — what it feels like to move through, inhabit, and perceive a building — remains theoretically underdeveloped. This study investigates the relationship between architectural representation and spatial experience. Drawing on a cross-reading of phenomenological architectural theory, seven experiential qualities that structure spatial perception are identified: light-shadow, acoustics-sound, proportion-scale, color-texture, movement, temporality, and relationship with landscape. These categories form an analytical framework applied to the 12th International Architecture Exhibition of the Venice Biennale (2010), curated by Kazuyo Sejima under the theme "People Meet in Architecture." Using Luis Alfonso's "components of experiential representation" as the analytical instrument, each installation is examined by asking what experiential quality it represents and how that quality is communicated through the medium. The analysis demonstrates how all seven qualities are represented through the exhibition medium. This study contributes to the field by transforming phenomenological spatial theory into a structured analytical framework, empirically applying it to an architectural exhibition as a representational medium, and expanding the concept of experiential representation by situating it within concrete analytical categories.

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Author Biographies

Büşra Gürdağ, Osmaniye Korkut Ata University

Büşra Gürdağ graduated with a bachelor's degree from the Department of Interior Architecture and Environmental Design at Hacettepe University in 2011. She completed her master's degree at the same university in 2016 and her doctoral studies in 2023. She has been working as an assistant professor at Osmaniye Korkut Ata University since 2024. Her current research areas include interior design, architectural heritage, and interior architecture education.

Duygu Koca, Hacettepe University

Duygu Koca received her bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees in architecture from Middle East Technical University, Faculty of Architecture. Her doctoral research focused on the relationship between image production/identity/residential architecture in Turkey. She currently works and lectures on interior architecture/architectural inclusive design, residential spaces and design/research methods at the Department of Interior Architecture and Environmental Design.

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Published

30-06-2026

How to Cite

Gürdağ, B., & Koca, D. (2026). Rethinking the Relationship Between Architectural Representation and Spatial Experience Through the 12th International Architecture Exhibition. ICONARP International Journal of Architecture and Planning, 14(1), 348–370. https://doi.org/10.15320/ICONARP.2026.364

Issue

Vol. 14 No. 1 (2026)

Section

Articles

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