Communication Design Quarterly Sep 2015

Light lies

Kathleen Connellan ; Damien W. Riggs ; Clemence Due

Abstract

Light illuminates but also reflects, and when the medium of glass is a dominant design material it communicates within the architectural space. In this paper we suggest that the transience of light and transparencies of glass posit a duplicity that is aesthetically seductive but communicatively misleading. Specifically, the central aim of the paper is to address where truth sits between reflections and reason in the glass surfaces of a mental health environment. To provide a framework the paper first covers a brief history of glass, engages with its technological properties, its language(s) of the inner and outer, its aesthetic effects in an architectural poetry of light, and the messages conveyed to vulnerable clients and careful clinicians. Then, using a detailed case study of a purpose built mental health ward in Australia, we explore how glass engenders visibility, security, surveillance and power, concluding with recommendations for future builds.

Journal
Communication Design Quarterly
Published
2015-09-17
DOI
10.1145/2826972.2826974
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Topics
qualitative research multimodality multilingual writers

Citation Context

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Also cites 11 works outside this index ↓
  1. 10.1016/S1353-6117(96)80087-4
     ↗
  2. 10.1191/1478088706qp063oa
     ↗
  3. 10.18848/1833-1874/CGP/v06/38298
     ↗
  4. 10.1177/0170840613495331
     ↗
  5. 10.1177/193758671300600408
     ↗
  6. 10.1177/1466424007087806
     ↗
  7. 10.24908/ss.v10i3/4.4276
     ↗
  8. 10.1162/10464880152632451
     ↗
  9. 10.1111/j.1447-0349.2006.00430.x
     ↗
  10. 10.1176/ps.2006.57.10.1376
     ↗
  11. 10.1097/NNA.0b013e31818ebfa6
     ↗
CrossRef global citation count: 3 View in citation network →

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