The scientists Christoph Hölscher and Victor Schinazi, invited by the School of Architecture in collaboration with Archiimpact, will be opening Foros 2016 “Origin”.  In their lecture, “Wayfinding: Spatial Cognition in Architectural Design”, they will be talking about how cognitive science and environmental psychology can help architects improve mobility in their buildings.

Christoph Hölscher, Professor of Cognitive Science at ETH Zürich, whose joint studies on the perception of space with Victor Schinazi have analysed such emblematic buildings as Seattle Central Library by Rem Koolhaas (OMA), is regarded as one of Europe’s most respected experts in applying his knowledge of this branch of science to the world of architecture.

On Monday 1 February, Swiss scientists Christoph Hölscher and Victor Schinazi will be opening Foros 2016, a cycle of public architecture lectures with the title “Origin”, organized by the UIC Barcelona School of Architecture. For this opening lecture, the knowledge platform Archiimpact has collaborated with the School.

Christoph Hölsher, Professor of Cognitive Science at the ETH Zürich, together with Victor Schinazi, will be showing, through their research, the reaction of the human brain to different environments and the way it is able to orient itself and find its way around a given space. Among other projects, they will be presenting reflections on their analysis of Seattle Central Public Library by OMA, showing how the design of space prompts different neuronal reactions that determine the mobility of individuals.

Neuro-architecture is an incipient field that combines cognitive science, environmental psychology and architecture. Hölsher, one of the few researchers in this discipline, is renowned for his prolific career. Since 2012 he has been a member of the governing board of the Cognitive Science Society and honorary senior research fellow at the Bartlett School of Architecture in London and, since 2013, Professor of the Chair of Cognitive Science at the ETH Zürich.

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