Water as Aesthetic & Narrative Device: Temple of Debod & Bosjes Chapel

Abstract

Water and architecture have a mildly complicated relationship. To consider water in relation to architecture in the way one considers the plan, verticality, light, climate, and acoustics is difficult.1 In that, water is typically the embodiment of the primary element to be excluded from architecture’s most primitive consideration, shelter. Water can serve a powerful sensory device, affecting light, climate, and acoustics to influence the feel of an architectural space.2 Beyond these elements of architectural design, water can be an imperative literary device, showing metaphor and facilitating interesting commentary on the architecture itself, culture, and narrative. The Temple of Debod (now in Madrid, Spain) offers an example of commentary on the architecture’s history and what its current scenario says about society. The Bosjes Chapel in South Africa offers a powerful metaphorical reading using water, similar to its ambiguous form and the multiple readings of its meaning.