Comparing and Prioritizing the Effect of Facade Components on the Visual Clutter of Single and Urban Façades (Case Studies: District 4, 14, and 15)

Subject Areas : Urban planning

Mercedeh Tahmasbifard ¹ (Ph.D. Candidate, Department of Architecture, Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran.)
farah habib ² (Department of Architecture, Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran , Iran)
Zahra sadat Saeideh Zarabadi ³ (Associate Professor, Department of Urban Development,, Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran.)

Received: 2023-02-17 Accepted : 2023-07-23 Published : 2024-06-20

Keywords: Visual Clutter, Façade Architectural Components, Urban Façade,

Abstract :

     Nowadays, one of the factors that cause confusion and visual clutter is the presence of urban facades with an abnormal appearance. This heterogeneity is more visible in the facades of Iranian cities, especially in Tehran and in the vicinity of the main local streets. It is crucial to deal with the issue of which parts of the facade have caused visual clutter and to determine the most effective visual component of the facade in this regard. The current research has been carried out with the purpose of explaining the position of facade architectural components and their effect in creating visual clutter and comparing the effects in urban and single facades. The present research method is a case study, survey and coding. To achieve the objectives of the research, the effects of extensions, materials, windows, forms, style and ornaments, lines, and doors in creating visual clutter of the urban and single facade were investigated. To identify and compare the effects of components, questionnaires and field studies were used, and SPSS software and Friedman's test were used for analysis and ranking. The method followed in this research is innovative in the field of pathology and provides a model for the studies of the pathology of facades. The results of the research show that the difference between the impact of the criteria in creating visual clutter of the urban and single-facade and different sub-criteria of the single-facade and urban facade components are effective in creating visual clutter. By analyzing the results of Friedman's test, it was determined that the lines in the urban facade with a score of 5.28. and Extensions in a single facade with a score of 5/20. They have the greatest effect in causing visual clutter. Moreover, it has the least impact on creating visual clutter in the urban facade and single-façade door. Extended Abstract   Introduction:      Façade is the first part of the building that is perceived by humans in the first encounter with the building and plays an important role in shaping the urban image. Urban facades are designed on the scale of individual buildings by architects; But in the case of inappropriate design, its problems will be reflected in the urban space. The design of facades that is inconsistent with the background leads to creating visual clutter in the facades and the inappropriate design of single facades leads to the aggravation of this visual clutter. Considering the role of architects in this field, this problem should be examined from the perspective of architectural components. In this regard, the current research aims to compare and prioritize the impact of facade architectural components in creating visual disturbance, in order to inform architects and designers about how facade architectural components influence. In fact, the research seeks to answer the question: which of the facade architectural components and what characteristics of these components have the greatest effect on visual clutter in single facades and urban facades? And is there a difference between the effects of the components in creating visual clutter in single and urban facades? To answer this question, in this research, first, the components of the facade and the factors causing visual clutter were examined from the perspective of the researchers, and then the effect of these components on creating visual clutter was examined. Methodology:        The research is of the investigation type, studied, and coded according to a quantitative and qualitative approach. The main criteria of this research were extracted from the summary of the reviewed background and include 7 main criteria: extensions, windows, materials, form and volume, lines, decorations, and style, and doors. The research indicators have been determined based on the influencing factors in perception and visual disturbance proposed by York Grutter (type of components, number of components and relationship of components). A code has been assigned to each of these indicators to share and determine the most frequent indicators. then, seven criteria were compared as the main criteria in the view of selected streets in Tehran, by distributing questionnaires among experts. The data from the questionnaire were analyzed in the SPSS using the Friedman ranking test. The basis of the comparison of the questionnaire was the use of the Likert scale and the scoring of the criteria effects in single-facades and urban facades. Then, the indicators of facade components were also analyzed by coding and sharing codes. The criterion for selecting codes is Gruter's theory, which emphasizes the effect of the type, number, and relationship of components in perception and visual clutter. Results and discussion:         Friedman's test has shown that the criteria' priority and degree of influence in creating visual clutter are different in urban facades and single facades. The most influential priority in the visual disturbance of the single facades is the extensions and the lines in the urban facade. In contrast, the extensions in the urban facades and the lines in the single facades are both ranked as the fifth influence in the visual clutter. This difference shows the different visual effects of the urban facade and single facades on the audience when facing the city view. However, both in the urban facade and single facades, the door had the least amount of influence in creating visual clutter. Conclusion: According to the results, the influential components in creating visual clutter by the single facades are: extensions, windows, materials, form and volume, lines, style and decorations, and doors; While the influential components in creating visual clutter by the urban facade are: lines, materials, form and volume, style, extensions, windows and doors.  Regarding the effective indicators in the single facades, their type and number can play a role in creating visual clutter more than their relationship with each other. The results showed that the most effective component in creating visual clutter is the extensions such as panels and multiple extensions have the greatest effect in creating visual clutter in the single facades. Since the extensions are not part of the fixed components of the facade, it can be concluded that the window and materials are the most effective components of the facade in creating visual clutter in the facade design process. In the field of windows, the variety of shapes, multiple internal framing (partitions more than 9), horizontal non-alignment, the use of reflective glass are factors that cause visual clutter. In the field of materials, the variety of materials, their heterogeneous combination, and the use of colorful and modern materials can cause visual confusion.Also, the most effective components in creating visual clutter in the urban facades are lines. The most effective indicators are the roof line, the window alignment lines, and the lines resulting from volume porosity. These indicators show that in the context of the communication urban facade, the components are more effective than their type and number in creating visual clutter.

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