Cohesiveness of a built fabric and perceptual implications

Abstract

Human mind is known to be one of the most powerful processors. This processor possesses a unique ability to identify patterns in and among various objects that exist in the physical world. This ability has enabled the human being to visualize surroundings of self not as individual units but as a whole, which could be interpreted as a congregation of individual blocks. This is the point at which the concept of “cohesiveness” or, the “state of sticking elements together” was developed. This research was conducted with the aim of further generalizing the concept of “cohesiveness within a built fabric” along with its relationship with users’ perception. This study was based on the city of Kandy, the capital of the central province of Sri Lanka. It is a city in which economic, social and cultural characteristics directly interact or co-operate with traditional settings and values. A survey was conducted on a sample of 50 people, to extract the essence of their opinions on the cohesiveness of a built fabric. The data interpretation of the research has exhibited a close relationship between cohesiveness and user perception. Basically it is only the user of any built fabric, by whom the city’s level of cohesion is determined. It has further established the need for a strong concern on the users’ perception in building in adding to, or altering an existing built fabric. As the conclusion, the study revealed some interesting aspects which imply that the cohesiveness of built fabrics is defined and determined by the users.