Horizontal_Circulation

Horizontal Circulation

The desing of horizontal circulation determines the basic shape and character of the entire structure. They are four practical requirements mentioned in the lecture, the first one is an adequate size of the circulation space, the second one is that the buildings have to be able to work good in any direction, the thrid is that the points of converging traffic must be expressed or marked in some way in the space, and last but not least, the fourth requirement is that changing levels must be clearly expressed.

The Prof. Watanabe mentions the Pennsylvania Station in New York (Picture 1) as an example for the first requirement of horizontal circulation. There are also mentioned two order buildings, The Centrosoyus Building in Moscow (Picture 2) and the Palais de Justice in Paris (Picture 3).

Picture 1

Picture 2 Picture 3

The horizontal circulation is very important because it can make us move in the right direction and it helps us know where is the end or the beginning of a building. The horizontal circuilation used in the architecture allows us to create a good and appropriate path. Using the horizontal circuilacion properly, we let a building to take us through it, creating climax, if it is the word, when we arrive to a specific point in the building.