Critical & Researches 1: Atmospheres of Space: How Environments Shape the Self

Olafur Eliasson – Your rainbow panorama

When we enter a room, a gallery or even a narrow corridor, we rarely think consciously about how that environment is shaping our mood. Yet the idea that no space is neutral has become central to architecture, philosophy

and contemporary art. The way a place feels, whether oppressive, comforting, energising or unsettling, is not a simple matter of walls, materials or dimensions. It is a matter of atmosphere.

What is an Atmosphere ?

Philosopher Gernot Böhme describes atmospheres as “felt realities” that arise in the encounter between people and their surroundings (Böhme, 1993). Atmospheres are not simply personal impressions, nor are they properties that objects hold independently. Instead, they are relational qualities, something we experience together with the space. Think of the charged stillness of a cathedral, or the jittery brightness of a crowded underground station. These atmospheres are staged, but they only fully exist when someone is present to feel them.

Architects such as Juhani Pallasmaa and Peter Zumthor have extended this thinking into design. Pallasmaa (2012) critiques the dominance of vision in modern architecture, arguing that we live through space with all our senses, through touch, sound, smell and memory. Zumthor (2006) speaks of designing atmospheres rather than buildings, places that linger in the body long after we leave. These perspectives remind us that architecture is never inert, it always carries emotional weight.

Personal Space, Emotional Space

Atmosphere is not only about grand public architecture. Our lived environments, from bedrooms to buses, continuously impress themselves on us. Migrating between cultures, dealing with illness, or experiencing panic attacks can sharpen this awareness. Panic often distorts perception itself, vision tunnels, colours heighten, patterns destabilise. In those moments, space becomes charged with unease, demonstrating that the environment is not a passive backdrop but an active participant in experience.

Philosopher Sara Ahmed helps us understand this further. She writes about emotions as sticky, attaching themselves to objects and spaces so that they guide our orientations towards or away from them (Ahmed, 2004). A dimly lit alley, for instance, can carry the sticky residue of fear. A warm kitchen might become sticky with comfort and memory. In this way, emotions are not only inside us but also distributed across the environments we inhabit.

The Politics of Atmosphere

This raises a critical point. If atmospheres shape us so strongly, then those who design, curate or alter space carry significant responsibility. Philosopher Arnold Berleant (2010) argues that environments can either foster participation and wellbeing or enforce alienation and control. Similarly, Jacques Rancière (2009) suggests that art and design distribute what is perceptible, structuring who feels included or excluded. In this sense, atmospheres are never just aesthetic, they are political.

Consider the difference between a prison cell and a library. Both are rooms with walls, doors and lighting. Yet one atmosphere is produced through surveillance and restriction, the other through openness and study. The affective charge is built into the design itself, and it profoundly influences those who inhabit the space.

Why This Matters for Art

For contemporary artists, the idea of atmosphere opens a powerful way to think beyond representation. Instead of showing an emotion through a figure or symbol, the artist can stage an atmosphere that the viewer feels directly. This might be the suffocating density of an installation by Doris Salcedo, the dazzling immersive environments of Olafur Eliasson, or the unsettling textures of Anselm Kiefer. In each case, atmosphere is the medium through which meaning is produced.

Conclusion

Understanding atmospheres means recognising that our sense of self is inseparable from the spaces we move through. We are constantly negotiating between environments that comfort, unsettle, inspire or oppress us. By paying attention to these atmospheres, artists and designers can challenge the assumption that space is neutral and reveal how profoundly it shapes who we are.

The question, then, is not simply how do we feel in space but how do spaces feel us into being.