Abstract:
Architecture of fortification; iron bars and iron spikes, cinder blocks and
barking dogs, razor ribbon wires, glass spines and security alarms- The
city has been armed with apparent evidences all over the city. The built
fabric has been transformed into an ideal representation of
‘contemporary fears’ of citizens. Often people scare to use lifts, narrow
walkways, rear staircases, darken basements, high roof tops or largely
open public places. In such places they fear being murdered, abused,
abducted, or stabbed.
The investigation primarily measures the ‘required sense of safety’ in an
urban public realm with respect to the architectural design principals,
spatial and space related aspects. The four case studies of the research
will be focused on ‘public buildings’ filling the ‘research gap’ within the
field of study existed between two main levels of ‘city fabric’ and
‘individual dwelling’. The research outcome reveals the ‘controlling
power’ of ‘fear in space’ that has influenced user psychology and
behavior accordingly, including 21 integrated architectural aspects
behind the cause.
Concurrently, the investigation emphasizes possible design
interventions to diminish such negative impressions composing ‘positive
motives’ which supports public cohesiveness, interaction and free
movements in built-sphere in which architectural design becomes a
‘tool’ in order to manipulate ‘sense of safety’.
