Scale

G. Adler has once said: „Scale is crucial for providing the right setting physically and psychologically, for human encounter and well-being.“
What exactly is scale? People talk about different kind of scales: super scale, miniature scale, monumental scale but most often about human scale but none of that means size. Scale means that something is compared with something else. It is relative size.
Every part of building has a size and that size is relative to something. Building itself is relative to something bigger, it could be its neighbouring structures, neighbourhood, city or even the whole area. There are different categories that the size of something can be relative to. First of all, relative to the whole. Secondly, relative to other parts. Thirdly, relative to the standard size and finally and most importantly, relative to the human size.
„Humans set the scale of a work of architecture in comparison with their own stature as human beings and with the ways their bodies may move.“ – S. Unwin
It is possible to answer why scale can hold such significance in our lives. It can be a device which helps achieve a quality that all good buildings possess: being at one „like“ something while also being special.
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