Visions of Architecture in the Context of Environmental Aesthetics

Abstract

Environmental aesthetics is one of the most impor- tant areas in the development of modern aesthetics. Today’s beliefs about the fragility of nature and the critical consequenc- es of human activity, primarily urbanization and pollution of the environment in which we live, have contributed to the growing awareness of the importance of preserving nature and its re- sources. Many sciences and disciplines, including architecture, conduct their research in accordance with the principles of sus- tainable development. Environmental aesthetics is based on the principles of sustainable development, considering all forms of environment: natural, built and social environment. Although the main topic of environmental aesthetics is the natural en- vironment, the research in this paper is primarily focused on architecture as a type of specific environment created by man. The aim of this paper is to consider the visions of architecture through critical examination of architectural theory and prac- tice in the context of environmental aesthetics, examining the relations of sensory experience of architecture, relations of ar- chitecture and theory, relations of architecture and other arts, as well as relations of architecture, science and technology. One of the key results of the paper refers to the critical and aesthetic observation of architecture, not from the usual angle of archi- tecture as a visual art, but from the point of view of the architec- tural and urban environment. Theoretical consideration of architecture from the standpoint of environmental aesthetics is one of the most important chal- lenges nowadays, precisely because architecture today oc- cupies large areas of our planet given the constant growth of urbanization and urban development whose consequences re- quire architects and experts to provide humane and sustainable solutions which will preserve, protect, improve and maintain all types of environments: natural, urban and social. Environmental aesthetics today is one of the key cultural positions from which society, art, science and technology form a common language for a better and sustainable future.