Environmental Psychology is the study of the relationship between an environment and how that environment affects its inhabitants. It examines the way in which both built and natural environments shape us as individuals. The field defines the term “environment” broadly, considering built and natural environments, social settings, and informational environments. Environmental psychology was not recognized as its own field until the late 1960s, when scientists began to question the tie between human behavior and our environments.

Intentional Spaces is an exhibition that examines how people arrange spaces with purpose, and examines how these spaces evoke an emotional response with the viewer. The imagery curated into this exhibition truly runs the range of environments: places of worship (modern and historical), architectural spaces that emphasize the smallness of human scale, ginormous sculpted garden topiary…down to very intimate scenarios: a man who built a nest for himself in the woods, a young monk addressing the Buddah in a cave-like temple, murals painted on walls of zoo cages.

Jurying this call-for-entries was a true pleasure; I was surprised at the variance of interpretation of the curatorial theme. There was a large amount of strong imagery submitted, but a real percentage strayed from the descriptive intent of the exhibition. Thank you so much for allowing me to think deeply about this topic (an intriguing one for sure!) while spending time with some amazing imagery.       

– Laura Moya