CUA Faculty Member Milton Shinberg’s New Book: Bridging the Divide Between Design Research and Design Reality

 

WASHINGTON, DC  — Milton Shinberg, AIA, LEED AP, Adjunct Professor in the School of Architecture & Planning at The Catholic University of America and long-time practitioner, has a new book out, People-Centered Architecture: Design, Practice, & Education.

Shinberg has been on the adjunct faculty at CUA since 1978, teaching a wide range of courses, from all studio levels to inaugurating courses on graphic communication and technology. Since 2004, he has led Beauty & Brains, an inquiry into the junctures between the human sciences and architecture. Those junctures include neuroscience, neuroaesthetics, psychology, anthropology, and phenomenology.

He is on the Advisory Councils of the Academy of Neuroscience for Architecture and the International Arts+Mind Lab at Johns Hopkins University. Shinberg has lectured for programs in Spain, Brazil, and Italy, in addition to many talks for architectural conferences and the National Academies of Science. He has also contributed as a peer reviewer.

Praise from all quarters has greeted People-Centered Architecture by long-time architect and teacher Milton Shinberg. With 45 years of practice, and even more as an adjunct professor, the book is a compendium of well-curated information and insights that he has brought to his students and leveraged in his many professional projects.

“Out of decades of a successful and reflective architectural practice and teaching career come Milton Shinberg’s timely insights on pursuing human-centered architecture. Far from subjective observations, these discernments and recommendations are grounded in a nuanced reading of science, psychology, and education, and the thoughtful consideration of many other respected voices and perspectives.

“The result is a book that expands our understanding of design thinking, making, and pedagogy by inviting us to go beyond what we know. Using a friendly and engaging writing style, Shinberg brings us on a journey exploring the most relevant topics in today’s architectural world.

“This book will prove useful to the seasoned architectural practitioner or academic, the college student, and any ordinary citizen intrigued by the value and power of the built environment.”

Julio Bermudez, PhD, Architect, Author, ACSA Distinguished Professor of Architecture
President of the Architecture, Culture, and Spirituality Forum

Among the themes of the book:

  • Translating Current Research on Environmental Experience into Design Strategies
    With a background in science as well as architecture and art, and music, the author has developed an integrated framework to land in the real worlds of education and practice.
  • Deepening the Knowledge of Practitioners by Sharing Knowledge and Insights About the Sciences of People.
    Shinberg invokes neuroscience and the behavioral sciences, along with the cognitive underpinnings of aesthetics. The book argues and evidences that having a better understanding of beauty to help design with precision isn’t only possible; it’s essential.
  • Connecting Empathy and Wisdom with Design Excellence
    Architects can go beyond solving logistical design problems and aim high for wise architecture that helps people flourish.
  • Listening to Non-Architects and Capturing Their Wisdom for Better Design
    Using structured interaction to get below the surface of needs and wants, tapping hard-to-access experiences and insights, with techniques for using words and images to draw them out.
  • How Intuition and Design Accuracy Relate, Both Well and Badly
    The author probes the value of intuition in design, addressing how to leverage it and build on it, going beyond initial impressions to well-founded ideas. Design thinking usually begins with intuition, but shouldn’t end with it.
  • Warnings About Misapplication of Evidence-Based Design
    Architects need, and can access, assistance to help understand the power and the limits of Evidence-based Design. Conclusions can be misinterpreted and over-extended without deeper examination, leading to unintended consequences.
  • How to Forge Agreement from the Diverse Goals and Insights of Clients, Stakeholders, Users, and the Public
    Getting the design right the first time not only saves hours and design budgets. When the ideas arise through dialogue with clients and stakeholders, and users, an agreement that is durable can happen quickly. A much smoother, less contentious, more productive, and collaborative project process can result.

More information is available at https://www.miltonshinberg.com/people-centered-architecture.