HOUSE AS THE OWNER IDENTITY REFLECTION

Architecture could defined as an knowledge that creates a place consist function and aesthetics, and also need an inspection about human behavior. The unification between human behavior and architecture itself is a physic-environment architecture design. In this case, architecture can function as fasilitator of human behavior either or blocked the human behavior itself.

Human behavior belief as an unmeasurable things. Related to phsycology, human behavior can classified into two aspects. Behavior in plain view ( sitting, sleeping, talking, etc ) and behavior unplain view ( motivation, attitude, etc ). Those behavior indicate an existention of human being, that is interaction of human with others and also interaction of human and its surrounding.

Considering the reality that imagination and idea, or something has planned in architectural design can be different after occupied in function aspect. Therefore, we need to learn about human behavior in designing a place for them. Abraham Maslow, 1943, has classified a stages of hierarchy of needs:

• Physiological needs


• Safety / security needs


• Social ( belonging ) needs


• Ego ( esteem ) needs


• Self-actualization

Those levels have to be fulfilled from below before it can reached the next level of human needs. This hierarchy of needs influence the development of architecture and became certain culture in human behavior in order to shape they surrounding and buildings.

According to Maslow, human being are never satisfied with their achievement. After one need fulfilled then another higher need will appear, and they are try to reach it. The most basic need is physiological need. Physiological need is the basic need which have to fulfilled for maintaining human’s life such eat, drink, sleep that can influence mind and also attitude. Human being can not satisfied and feel uncomfortable when this basic need not fulfilled yet. Safety / security need, this level can reached after the physiological need fulfilled. Safety / security include feeling safe from crimes, economic, health, and freedom of fear. Social ( belonging ), human being need love, they will create a family to love, friendship with others, join an organization, etc. Ego ( esteem ), this kind of need is about to be accept or respect by others, and want to give contribution to other people in their job either or in their surrounding. The highest need is self actualization. This need can be reached after the all needs below have fulfilled. People in self actualization level are creative people, spontaneus, love to solve a problem, have an authority, accept all reality, and respect to their own life.

According to Van Romandt, architecture is a space for human being to live with happiness feeling. Also we can say that a house is a place that human being live in with happiness feeling. Happiness in architecture related to human behavior is difficult to define. However, maslow’s hierarchy of needs can help to describe about happiness and its relation in architecture development specifictly in order to shape a house.

According to Maslow’s hierarchy of need, after human being have fulfilled the basic needs, then necessity of a house is one of human motivation to reach a better high quality of life. With the possession of a house, even though it is a small house, authentically the owner has had a control about the space which can be arranged suitable for them. The space will give a response to the owner and so does the owner give response to their space. So, there is a connection in both sides in order to create a comfortable place in the house. Not only to avoid the weather such as rain and sunshine, but also too give composure, happiness, and even to create a memory about whole things on their lives.

A house can reflect the identity of the owner. In this case, people ussually judge the other people based on their property. Material achievement became a symbol of success. But as we know, house is more than material success, house is a necessity. In hierarchy of needs, house is in the basic need. No matter how good or bad the condition of the house, people need it as a shelter from their surrounding threats. And after the basic need has fulfilled, then human being begin to develop their house into a better house, either on the condition ( exterior house ) or inside the house ( activities ). Refers to the photos in page before, we could see exteriorly the different between the house that has fulfilled the hierarchy of needs and the one that not fulfilled yet. A house should reflect prosperity of the owner, and also the hierarchy of needs can be the indicator of the prosperity of human being.

However, there is an aspect that hierarchy of needs can not be seen as a material success achievement. Happiness, as Van Romandt said, is an important thing to create architecture in order to shape a house. In this case, people do not have to fulfilled a certain level to reach the next level or reach a couple levels above. For example, people do not have to fulfilled the physiological and safety needs to reach a social ( belonging ) need, it can be run simultaneously. It is about how people feel sufficient or feel happy about their lifes and property. So, we can not say that simple small house mean the owner not fulfilled the hierarchy of needs yet. Or we can say, the owner have sufficient with finished in social ( belonging ) level, so they don’t have to move to other higher level such esteem and self actualization needs. Therefore, hierarchy of needs has a strong relationship with human being’s happiness. Shape of the house can be considered through hierarchy of needs and happiness of the owner.

YWS