But how do you feel?

As we move through our daily lives, we inhabit spaces as we move from one to another. Our sensory perceptions are alert to our physical location as to what is going on around us, to the atmosphere of the place that directly affects how we feel. Inhabiting spaces that make us feel secure and comfortable is critical for our psychological wellbeing.

Dr Ross T Smith, Principal Lecturer in Architectural Design, visited the water village Zhouzhuang when he was working in China. In Zhouzhuang transport is mainly by boat, along the canals that serve as its streets and alleys. Zhouzhuang's canals, its traditional housing, and the rural way of life they embody, are protected to prevent this water village going the same way as so many others, replaced by urban sprawl. Zhouzhuang is one of those places that is engaging, a place that makes you feel alive, as you pass from a canal into a house, and through a succession of rooms, between light and dark, enclosed and open spaces.

Ross uses Zhouzhuang as an example of what designers today could consider in their practice: designing spaces that improve the experiences of the people who will inhabit those spaces by appealing to their sensory perceptions. That requires an understanding of how people apprehend, feel and relate to the world around them. That is his challenge and inspiration for this and the next generation of designers.