The Impact of Building Façade Colors on Sense of Place in a Residential Area
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.31185/wjes.Vol14.Iss2.865Keywords:
Building façade color, Sense of place, Place attachment, Place identity, Place dependence.Abstract
Building façade color plays a significant role in shaping urban culture, city image, and residential experiences. Yet, in many urban planning practices, the significance of building façade color is often overlooked or treated as a secondary consideration, despite its potential to enhance or detract from a sense of place. This study investigates building façade color, isolating it as an independent variable, examining hue, saturation, and brightness as main factors influencing the dimensions of sense of place, namely: place identity, place attachment, and place dependence. Multiple digitally manipulated building façade color photographs were prepared according to the HSB color model, with data gathered through a semantic differential questionnaire supported by multiple-choice and dichotomous questions. the results indicate that the existing façade color, white/neutral, forms the strongest place identity and attachment. Among the simulated color variations, participants reported a stronger sense of place for cool blue and the warm yellow façades. Color characteristics also influenced emotional evaluations, where a more positive emotional response was recorded with low-to-mid saturation (25%-50%) while brightness preferences varied by façade hue rather than exhibiting a uniform optimal range. The study was conducted in the Royal Empire Apartments complex in Erbil, providing a real residential context for examining these effects. These findings highlight the important role played by building façade color in shaping a sense of place, emphasizing the need color design to balance carefully against contextual fit, perceptual comfort, and user preference.
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