The Inner Studio - Riverside Architectural Press

THE INNER STUDIO
our intellectually oriented habits and ambitions. We do whatever
we can to superficially keep it happy or override its attempt to
contact us. Yet to ignore it leaves us split, with a belief structure
that identifies the body with the Third World and the mind with
the modern First World.
The body has been evolving for as long as consciousness itself;
it is full of creativity, intelligence, and wisdom and is capable of not
only following the orders we give it, but of sending us important
signals. Thinking, or intellect, is also vital to creativity, but is not
sufficient because it ignores much of who we are.
This mind/body imbalance is a hallmark of modern life and is
visible around us. At the same time, some great buildings or great
places touch us deeply and stir unknown parts of ourselves. Why
is this? It’s because they reach us on more than one level. Their
power to move us comes from their ability to include more of the
rich and complex levels that we unconsciously know ourselves to
be. This concept of ourselves as composed of a more complex
anatomy is supported by advances in psycho-immunology that
describe human beings as containing a physical body, an emotional
body, and a mental body all working in concert. The speed of our
lives and our habitual patterns of perception lead us to view these
distinct aspects of the self from a narrow, fragmented perspective.
Sometimes we need refuge from the weather, but we may also need
an environment that can provide a refuge for our nervous systems
or a place where our minds are free to roam.
When we relax, it’s natural to make contact with the different
qualities of each of these three bodies. Looking back on a day, it is
possible to see moments that have been very physical, other
moments that were plainly emotional, and other times that were
given over to thinking or reflection. All of these different parts of
the self appear to have been mysteriously and seamlessly invoked
and managed. We take for granted that when a part of us is leading,
the other parts of us conveniently agree to follow. It’s helpful
to understand our bodies as having different qualities. The physical
body is obviously denser and more centered in matter than, say,
the emotional body. The mental seems less constrained by matter
and is more receptive to ideas. Each body has an expertise, yet each
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