The Naturalness of Space: A Phenomenological Reading in Bamboo Architecture

Author : nurhilal burak

Abstract :This study explores how the concept of naturalness is constructed and experienced within contemporary bamboo architecture in Bali through a phenomenological perspective. Rather than treating bamboo merely as a sustainable material, the research approaches it as a spatial interface that mediates the relationship between human perception, environment, and material presence. The investigation focuses on how architectural space enables an embodied sense of being within nature by dissolving physical boundaries and integrating environmental phenomena such as light, air, and texture into spatial composition. The main proposition of the study asserts that bamboo architecture does not represent nature but coexists with it as a simultaneous mode of being, where spatial naturalness is shaped through bodily and sensory perception. Through this approach, the materiality of bamboo becomes part of a living ecological process, reinforcing balance and continuity rather than visual imitation. The aim of the study is to reveal how architectural form, structure, and atmosphere collectively construct this sense of naturalness within the tropical context of Bali. The research analyzes visual and drawn representations of bamboo buildings to identify formal and perceptual attributes that enhance openness, transparency, and environmental fluidity. The methodology is based on visual-phenomenological analysis, integrating formal and sensory readings derived from photographs and sketches. Parameters such as proportion, rhythm, material transparency, and light diffusion are examined to interpret how the experience of naturalness emerges through architectural space. The analysis demonstrates that bamboo structures embody a phenomenological condition where space and nature form a continuous field of interaction. Ultimately, the study concludes that bamboo architecture expresses naturalness not as an external reference but as an internalized mode of spatial existence. Through its organic forms and material permeability, it transforms the idea of nature from a visual background into a lived, experiential dimension of architecture, allowing space itself to become an extension of the natural order.

Keywords :"Bamboo architecture, phenomenology, naturalness, spatial perception, Bali"

Conference Name :International Conference on Architectural Conservation, Engineering and Cultural Heritage (ICACECH -25)

Conference Place Bratislava,Slovakia

Conference Date 29th Nov 2025