A Brief History
As Hansel Bauman notes, "We are codifying ideas that have been around for centuries" (O'Connell, 2012). Because the act of creating more usable spaces is a longstanding part of Deaf culture, it is difficult to give a definitive history of DeafSpace.
However, one starting point is Olof Hanson, a Deaf architect originally from Sweden who later settled in Minnesota, who, more than 100 years ago, designed buildings for Gallaudet University, such as Dawes House ("Making Your Space 'Deaf Friendly'," 2011) – originally a boys’ dormitory for the Kendall School, and currently housing the Gallaudet Research Institute. Hanson also designed Deaf clubhouses, public buildings across the United States, and even a hotel in Venezuela ("Making Your Space 'Deaf Friendly'," 2011). To give an example of the effect of his architectural style, the story of a Deaf couple in Minnesota is illustrative. Looking to buy a house a number of years ago, the husband came upon one that immediately appealed to him. The wife was equally taken with it, as it had fewer walls than was typical, creating an airy atmosphere, and plenty of windows providing an abundance of natural light. It was only after purchasing the house that they learnt that it had been designed by Olof Hanson. “The house gave the feeling of being deaf-friendly” ("Making Your Space 'Deaf Friendly'," 2011).
Fast-forward to the 1970s and the start of the Disability Rights Movement, which stoked federal legislative changes (in the US) in the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s that brought the concept of accessibility to the public’s consciousness in a way it had never been before ("About UD: Universal Design History," 2008). The Architectural Barriers Act of 1968 and the Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1988 are just two of several significant pieces of legislation that foregrounded accessibility ("About UD: Universal Design History," 2008).
Around the same time, rehabilitation engineering and assistive technology began to take off. ‘Assistive technology’ refers to devices designed “to enhance the physical, sensory, and cognitive abilities of people with disabilities and to help them function more independently in environments oblivious to their needs” ("About UD: Universal Design History," 2008).
These two currents merged in what has become known as Universal Design. Ronald Mace, an architect working at North Carolina State University, coined the term in 1997, defining it as “the design of products and environments to be usable by all people, to the greatest extent possible, without the need for adaptation or specialized design” ("About UD," 2008).
Mace went on to develop, along with a group of architects, product designers, engineers and environmental design researchers, the 7 Principles of Universal Design:
Principle 1: Equitable Use
Principle 2: Flexibility in Use
Principle 3: Simple and Intuitive Use
Principle 4: Sensory Information
Principle 5: Tolerance for Error
Principle 6: Low Physical Effort
Principle 7: Size and Space for Approach and Use ("The 7 Principles," n.d.)
(The Canadian Association of the Deaf has amended the 7 Principles to include the Deaf perspective. You can read more here. Principles 5 and 6 refer specifically to environmental and architectural elements that are part of DeafSpace.)
The influence of Universal Design on architectural practice as a whole is enormous. As mentioned earlier, Hansel Bauman of hbhm architects began working with Gallaudet’s ASL Deaf Studies Department – both teachers and students – in 2005 to create the DeafSpace Project, which in turn birthed DeafSpace Guidelines. In 2008, the Guidelines were put to the test in the new James Lee Sorenson Language and Communication Center. Some were less successful in practice than in theory. For example, rounded corners, intended to increase visibility, had the unforeseen effect of causing walkers to increase their speed and bump into people coming from the opposite direction (Wilk, n.d.).
Fast-forward to the 1970s and the start of the Disability Rights Movement, which stoked federal legislative changes (in the US) in the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s that brought the concept of accessibility to the public’s consciousness in a way it had never been before ("About UD: Universal Design History," 2008). The Architectural Barriers Act of 1968 and the Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1988 are just two of several significant pieces of legislation that foregrounded accessibility ("About UD: Universal Design History," 2008).
Around the same time, rehabilitation engineering and assistive technology began to take off. ‘Assistive technology’ refers to devices designed “to enhance the physical, sensory, and cognitive abilities of people with disabilities and to help them function more independently in environments oblivious to their needs” ("About UD: Universal Design History," 2008).
These two currents merged in what has become known as Universal Design. Ronald Mace, an architect working at North Carolina State University, coined the term in 1997, defining it as “the design of products and environments to be usable by all people, to the greatest extent possible, without the need for adaptation or specialized design” ("About UD," 2008).
Mace went on to develop, along with a group of architects, product designers, engineers and environmental design researchers, the 7 Principles of Universal Design:
Principle 1: Equitable Use
Principle 2: Flexibility in Use
Principle 3: Simple and Intuitive Use
Principle 4: Sensory Information
Principle 5: Tolerance for Error
Principle 6: Low Physical Effort
Principle 7: Size and Space for Approach and Use ("The 7 Principles," n.d.)
(The Canadian Association of the Deaf has amended the 7 Principles to include the Deaf perspective. You can read more here. Principles 5 and 6 refer specifically to environmental and architectural elements that are part of DeafSpace.)
The influence of Universal Design on architectural practice as a whole is enormous. As mentioned earlier, Hansel Bauman of hbhm architects began working with Gallaudet’s ASL Deaf Studies Department – both teachers and students – in 2005 to create the DeafSpace Project, which in turn birthed DeafSpace Guidelines. In 2008, the Guidelines were put to the test in the new James Lee Sorenson Language and Communication Center. Some were less successful in practice than in theory. For example, rounded corners, intended to increase visibility, had the unforeseen effect of causing walkers to increase their speed and bump into people coming from the opposite direction (Wilk, n.d.).
Learning from their observations of how people experienced the Sorenson building, Bauman and a team of twenty Gallaudet residents planned a competition to build and design the Living and Learning Residence Hall 6 (LLRH6), called “the first full-fledged experiment in DeafSpace design” (Hales, 2013). The five-story, 60,000 square-foot building was made by LTL, Quinn Evans Architects, and Signal Construction, and opened in the fall of 2012. One of the most notable features of this new building is the large assembly hall/living room, which has three sloped tiers, designed so that users have clear sight lines of the entire 100-foot length of the hall (Hales, 2013).
To see more images of Gallaudet's newest experiment in DeafSpace, click here.
To see more images of Gallaudet's newest experiment in DeafSpace, click here.