Space Feel
Describe the experiential qualities of a space — how it feels to be in it, not how it looks. This is pure phenomenological description. If you need to build a case for the design to a client or jury, that's concept-narrative; this skill is the felt experience itself.
When to use
When an architect needs to articulate the phenomenological qualities of a space — for a brief, a competition narrative, a client conversation, or to clarify their own design intent. This skill describes what a photograph cannot capture: scale, weight, temperature, sound, the feeling of crossing a threshold.
Input
The user provides:
- A description of a space (real or proposed)
- A render or photograph
- A design brief with spatial qualities implied
- A simple request: "describe how this room feels"
Process
Read the space. Identify its primary spatial quality — is it about compression, openness, enclosure, transition, prospect, intimacy, monumentality?
Layer the senses. Move beyond the visual:
- Light: quality (direct, diffused, raking, dappled), warmth, movement through the day
- Sound: resonance, absorption, ambient sound (rain on roof, courtyard echo, city hum)
- Touch: floor underfoot (cold stone, warm timber, soft carpet), wall surface within reach
- Temperature: thermal mass holding warmth, cool draught from a high window, sun on skin
- Smell: timber, plaster, garden, concrete after rain
Use spatial concepts where they apply:
- Compression / release: low ceiling → tall space. The power of contrast in sequence.
- Prospect / refuge: the ability to see (prospect) from a position of safety (refuge). Window seats, mezzanines, alcoves.
- Threshold: the moment of transition between spaces. Door frames, level changes, light changes, material changes.
- Enfilade: a sequence of aligned doorways creating depth and visual rhythm.
- Raumplan: Adolf Loos's idea of rooms at different levels within one volume, each sized to its purpose.
- Poché: the thickness of walls as inhabitable space — niches, window seats, storage within structure.
- Ma (間): the Japanese concept of meaningful emptiness — the pause between elements that gives them meaning.
Output a description that makes someone feel the space without seeing it.
Domain knowledge
Zumthor's nine atmospheric properties
From Atmospheres (2006):
- The body of architecture — material presence
- Material compatibility — how materials work together
- The sound of a space — silence, intimacy, resonance
- The temperature of a space — physical and psychological warmth
- Surrounding objects — things that belong
- Between composure and seduction — the balance of calm and intrigue
- Tension between interior and exterior — the threshold
- Levels of intimacy — scale relative to the body
- The light on things — how light reveals material and space
Pallasmaa's key ideas
From The Eyes of the Skin (2005):
- Architecture is experienced through the body, not just the eyes
- The dominance of vision has impoverished architectural experience
- Material authenticity creates trust — "the patina of wear adds the enriching experience of time"
- "Every touching experience of architecture is multi-sensory"
- Peripheral vision integrates us into space; focused vision separates us from it
Scale and the body
- Spaces below 2.4m feel intimate, protective, sometimes oppressive
- 2.7-3.0m is the range where domestic spaces feel generous but not vast
- Above 4m, the body registers the space as public or monumental
- Double-height spaces work because of the contrast with what came before — a 6m ceiling after a 2.4m corridor is extraordinary; a 6m ceiling after a 5m corridor is barely noticed
Output format
A single descriptive passage, 100-250 words. No headers. No technical specifications. Write as if guiding someone through the space with their eyes closed.
What you don't do
- Don't describe visual appearance. That's what renders are for.
- Don't list dimensions and materials like a specification. Weave them into experience.
- Don't use "beautiful" or "stunning." These are evacuated words. Be specific about what makes it so.
- Don't write in second person ("you walk in and see...") unless the user specifically asks for a walkthrough format.
1---2name: space-feel3description: Describe the experiential, phenomenological qualities of a space — compression and release, threshold, prospect and refuge, light, sound, temperature, materiality — in the register of Zumthor and Pallasmaa. Use when an architect wants to articulate how a space FEELS, not how it looks, for a brief, competition, client conversation, or their own clarity. Say "how does this space feel", "describe the atmosphere", "the experience of walking through". For a design argument aimed at an audience, use concept-narrative instead.4---56# Space Feel78Describe the experiential qualities of a space — how it feels to be in it, not how it looks. This is pure phenomenological description. If you need to build a *case* for the design to a client or jury, that's `concept-narrative`; this skill is the felt experience itself.910## When to use1112When an architect needs to articulate the phenomenological qualities of a space — for a brief, a competition narrative, a client conversation, or to clarify their own design intent. This skill describes what a photograph cannot capture: scale, weight, temperature, sound, the feeling of crossing a threshold.1314## Input1516The user provides:17- A description of a space (real or proposed)18- A render or photograph19- A design brief with spatial qualities implied20- A simple request: "describe how this room feels"2122## Process23241. **Read the space.** Identify its primary spatial quality — is it about compression, openness, enclosure, transition, prospect, intimacy, monumentality?25262. **Layer the senses.** Move beyond the visual:27 - **Light**: quality (direct, diffused, raking, dappled), warmth, movement through the day28 - **Sound**: resonance, absorption, ambient sound (rain on roof, courtyard echo, city hum)29 - **Touch**: floor underfoot (cold stone, warm timber, soft carpet), wall surface within reach30 - **Temperature**: thermal mass holding warmth, cool draught from a high window, sun on skin31 - **Smell**: timber, plaster, garden, concrete after rain32333. **Use spatial concepts** where they apply:34 - **Compression / release**: low ceiling → tall space. The power of contrast in sequence.35 - **Prospect / refuge**: the ability to see (prospect) from a position of safety (refuge). Window seats, mezzanines, alcoves.36 - **Threshold**: the moment of transition between spaces. Door frames, level changes, light changes, material changes.37 - **Enfilade**: a sequence of aligned doorways creating depth and visual rhythm.38 - **Raumplan**: Adolf Loos's idea of rooms at different levels within one volume, each sized to its purpose.39 - **Poché**: the thickness of walls as inhabitable space — niches, window seats, storage within structure.40 - **Ma** (間): the Japanese concept of meaningful emptiness — the pause between elements that gives them meaning.41424. **Output** a description that makes someone feel the space without seeing it.4344## Domain knowledge4546### Zumthor's nine atmospheric properties4748From *Atmospheres* (2006):491. The body of architecture — material presence502. Material compatibility — how materials work together513. The sound of a space — silence, intimacy, resonance524. The temperature of a space — physical and psychological warmth535. Surrounding objects — things that belong546. Between composure and seduction — the balance of calm and intrigue557. Tension between interior and exterior — the threshold568. Levels of intimacy — scale relative to the body579. The light on things — how light reveals material and space5859### Pallasmaa's key ideas6061From *The Eyes of the Skin* (2005):62- Architecture is experienced through the body, not just the eyes63- The dominance of vision has impoverished architectural experience64- Material authenticity creates trust — "the patina of wear adds the enriching experience of time"65- "Every touching experience of architecture is multi-sensory"66- Peripheral vision integrates us into space; focused vision separates us from it6768### Scale and the body6970- Spaces below 2.4m feel intimate, protective, sometimes oppressive71- 2.7-3.0m is the range where domestic spaces feel generous but not vast72- Above 4m, the body registers the space as public or monumental73- Double-height spaces work because of the contrast with what came before — a 6m ceiling after a 2.4m corridor is extraordinary; a 6m ceiling after a 5m corridor is barely noticed7475## Output format7677A single descriptive passage, 100-250 words. No headers. No technical specifications. Write as if guiding someone through the space with their eyes closed.7879## What you don't do8081- Don't describe visual appearance. That's what renders are for.82- Don't list dimensions and materials like a specification. Weave them into experience.83- Don't use "beautiful" or "stunning." These are evacuated words. Be specific about what makes it so.84- Don't write in second person ("you walk in and see...") unless the user specifically asks for a walkthrough format.
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