Natural refuge symbolism includes enclosed spaces, vegetation, contained fire and climbable trees with large canopies. Appleton argues that we seek and experience as pleasurable the juxtaposition of prospect to refuge in our environments. His theory is especially relevant when applied to analysis of built environments. One important example is the work of Grant Hildebrand, professor of architecture and art history at the University of Washington. In The Wright Space , published in 1991, Hildebrand analyzes the spatial characteristics of Wright's major houses and finds consistent patterns of prospect and refuge and important evidence of the Kaplans' concept of mystery and skillfully relates them to the naturally occurring relationships between complexity and order.
Architecture is, and always has been, fundamentally a powerful symbol of refuge.
The composite built world, however, is often refuge without prospect, complexity without order, hazard without mystery. If this news is not met with great enthusiasm by everyone, perhaps it is because we do not like to hear that our efforts to turn wilderness into civilization have not been as good for us as we would like to think. The need for nature premise holds that we should not view the natural world as a place to be modified by built environments. Rather, the built environment should be viewed as a place to be modified by us according to preferences inherited from our deep history in the natural world. Julie Stewart-Pollack is a practicing professional designer with more than 17 years experience.