Why Our Brains Love Curved Buildings

Some of the coolest, most interesting building out there garner so much attention not for their height, but for their wild curves and odd shapes. Trace explains why we're so drawn to this type of architecture.

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Why Our Brains Love Curvy Architecture
"When the great architect Philip Johnson first visited the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, designed by Frank Gehry, he started to cry. "Architecture is not about words. It's about tears," Johnson reportedly said."

Impact of contour on aesthetic judgments and approach-avoidance decisions in architecture
"On average, we urban dwellers spend about 90% of our time indoors, and share the intuition that the physical features of the places we live and work in influence how we feel and act."

Visual elements of subjective preference modulate amygdala activation
"What are the basic visual cues that determine our preference towards mundane everyday objects? We previously showed that a highly potent cue is the nature of the object's contour: people generally like objects with a curved contour compared with objects that have pointed features and a sharp-angled contour."

Bowerbird builds a house of illusions to improve his chances of mating
"The male peacock is well known for its courtship displays, during which it fans its colourful tail feathers to attract a mate."

Why Architecture Matters

How the Brain Experiences Architecture
"Remember the time you first visited the Lincoln Memorial in Washington? You passed from a busy world to the quiet of Henry Bacon's architectural setting."

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Building with Cardboard
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[bluebunnyicecreamify]

I think straight lines make thing look professional/clean and curvy makes it look more welcoming and cozy

[micahphilson]

I love sharp angles, fixed, perfect lines, and a shiny!

[emmelinaaudigier]

Thank you. I have always wondered why I was attracted to houses with interesting shapes rather than square boxes. My ex-husband thought that it was because I always was able to choose the most expensive choice in any given situation. I'm glad to find out that this is not the case, and it's just my biological instincts kicking in.

[Gutatto]

i like gentle curves mixed with sharp edges and straight lines.

[ivo]

Oh, god. I love that black sharp-conered sofa. It's just BEAUTIFUL.

[Jannetta]

This channel is brilliant, they deserve more subscribers.

[Korokukanas]

The hall of columns you showed were great totally felt it there :D

[joooaomorais]

It doesn't need to be more expansive to be beautiful, that's one of the points that makes a good architect

[princeofexcess]

Pretty awesome (literally) also makes me think of how language evolved with certain sounds associated with sharp edges (like the k sound) and others associated with rounder objects (b sounds) also makes sense when you look at the letters like k and b themselves. Interesting how it all connects

[ShawnRavenfire]

A lot of Las Vegas casinos make their interiors curved in such a way that you always have a glimpse of the next area without seeing all of it at once. This way, you always feel like there's "more to see, " and makes you want to stay longer. They also don't have any clocks.

[xmodalloy]

I think you guys should have included some pictures of EarthShips. That's some BEAUTIFUL architecture. :D

[Rhino-n-Chips]

Whoa, you just brought up some interesting and relevant topics to discuss about this video, that caught me off guard in the midst of people talking about minecraft, boobs, and being first.

[whitirock]

We fear of a building doesn't make it bad or disliked, it stimulates the mind and draws attention. More triangular architecture is being built too. Fear causes wonder, not disgust.

[SSDragon]

HEY! my major is architechure! but i cant explain why we like curved buildings/better looking buildings. i just love designing houses for the most part

[einargs]

... brilliant showmanship. I'm stealing some of the ideas.

[rsuffridge]

Agree. Clean lines and solid color. Order in my chaos.

[eclipseslayer]

The Basis of All Forerunner Architecture is sharp angular designs!

[KaiWolf]

I enjoy making things beautiful in architecture

[Pikolata]

Exactly my thought after reading the title!

[TheAndrew]

i agree, i prefer the "futuristic" shapes too also simple colors like white and black