|
Feng Shui, which literally means wind and water,
is the art and science of living in harmony with nature's forces. This
practice encourages the proper flow of energy and life forces for more
humane and livable environments.
Feng Shui is no longer just an ancient Chinese secret.
While slow to take root in the United States, it is now global and transcends
culture and politics. So say Barbara Dellinger and Bobbie Galate, interior
designers who explained Feng Shui to an audience of architects at a seminar
in early December hosted by the architect firm of Davis, Carter, Scott
in their Washington, D.C., offices.
"This
is not a fad," Dellinger said, citing the Trump Towers, MGM Grand
in Las Vegas, Sydney Harbor Casino in Australia, and several Bank of America
centers as representative of projects whose clients have employed Feng
Shui during their design. Countries in the Pacific Rim, Australia, Finland,
and the United Kingdom have embraced Feng Shui principles at varying levels,
and many architecture firms abroad include Feng Shui consultants on their
design teams. Anecdotal reports from the field now say U.S. corporations,
health-care providers, services organizations, and residential clients
are asking their architects about it. "We need to be smarter than
our clients, who read about Feng Shui in the [Washington]
Post," said one health-care facilities architect.
History and tradition
Feng Shui developed well over 3,000 years ago among rural people of China
who depended on its common-sense rules for their basic survival. They
used the principles to develop their settlements, plant their crops, and
even to site burial grounds. Studying natural elements such as river patterns,
terrain, and the shapes of mountains, helped this ancient civilization
understand the flow of the earth's energy and how it could affect their
daily lives.
Private residences, public buildings, towns, and
the Forbidden City itself all were planned according to Feng Shui principles.
Design elements were used not just for aesthetic reasons, but for more
practical concerns such as controlling interior temperatures, air flow,
and light, and protecting occupants and dwellings from flooding. Today,
Feng Shui has evolved into different philosophical schools. For instance,
the Compass System is the traditional feng shui, based on aligning the
elements and the cardinal points to parts of a room, building, or town.
The Black Hat system is a more recent development that uses a grid system
and intent to achieve balance and harmony.
Basic
principles
Dellinger explained that although it has roots in Tibetan Buddhism, Feng
Shui is neither a religion nor a superstition. It is an art based on harmony,
balance, texture, color, and style. It is equally a science, based on
astronomical and mathematical principles such as the golden ratio and
the golden rectangle and spiral. Feng Shui also incorporates philosophical
principles from the I Ching.
Feng Shui first became popular in the U.S. among
homeowners, but has made its way into large commercial projects, including
hospitals and other health-care facilities. Dellinger, who works for the
District of Columbia's Washington Hospital Center, said that in her experience,
many Western health practitioners are getting into Feng Shui because they
understand the environmentincluding the flow of energy and buildings
themselvesaffect people's health. These practitioners sometimes
find that traditional Western medicine is often not enough to help patients
or their families.
Intention is one of the guiding principles of Feng
Shui, Dellinger explains. By thinking it and designing it, we are creating
part of the energy that makes things happen. Other design principles addressed
through Feng Shui include balance (the most important element); symmetry;
ceiling heights; views; angles; shapes; and circulation patterns, for
which meandering paths and curves are preferred over direct routes and
sharp angles. In essence, Feng Shui is all about what nurtures a building's
occupants and makes them feel comfortable in a space. "As architects
and designers, we instinctively do a lot of these things. Feng Shui provides
the framework and the philosophy to support our instincts," Galate
said.
Copyright 2001 The American Institute of Architects.
All rights reserved.
|
|
Reference |
|
|
If you would like to learn more about Feng Shui, Dellinger and
Galate recommend the following sources:
Clear your Clutter with
Feng Shui, by Karen Kingston, (Broadway Books, 1999, recommended
for those who never read any books on the subject.)
The Western Guide to Feng
Shui, by Terah Kathryn Collins (Hay House, 1999)
Feng Shui Design,
by Sarah Rossbach and Master Lin Yun (Penguin USA, 2000)
The Practical Encyclopedia
of Feng Shui, by Gill Hale (Lawrence Books, 1999)
Feng Shui Chic,
by Sharon Stasney (Sterling Publications, 2000)
Healing Design,
by Hope Karan Gerecht (Charles Tuttle, 1999, advanced reading that
explores actual case studies and incorporates Compass School and
Black Hat)
Essential Feng Shui,
by Lillian Too (Element Books, 1996).
|
|
|
|
|