The Role of Spatial Visibility on the Visitor Density in Exhibition Complexes (Case Study: Iran- Iraq War Museum)

Problem statement:

 Understanding and redefining the relationship between spatial configuration and the way audiences perceive and interact with their environment is a key area of knowledge in the architectural design process. In this context, the ISOVIST theory, based on analyzing and translating spatial characteristics and geometry, provides an operational framework to explore this relationship. However, it appears that the topological content of space has received less attention in this field, leaving some layers of the designer’s perception and audience experience obscured. 

This study aims to formulate and structure the geometric analyses of the Isovist theory to explain the relationship between spatial visibility variables and visitor presence density. It seeks to redefine the geometric-topological layers within cognitive-behavioral frameworks of space to better understand architecture.

This study used quantitative and analytical methods to examine the correlation between variables and values in the Iran-Iraq War Museum exhibition complexes. Field observations were conducted by timing and tracking visitor stop-and-move patterns using CCTV cameras. Data analysis utilized machine learning techniques based on regression models and significance testing for correlation. The study employed the concept of a topological graph of cognitive-behavioral systems, focusing on various museum sections, including exhibition, interactive, simulation, and recreational spaces.

The findings indicate diverse patterns of interaction between spatial configuration and visitor behavior across the museum’s four areas. Factors such as Z radial, 3d integration, visual dispersion, uniform distribution of the field of view, and curvilinear forms play a central role in forming audience experiences. The results suggest that specific and independent analyses of museum spaces based on their functions provide a more accurate understanding of the relationship between space and user behavior. Furthermore, this study underscores the necessity of critiquing and revising the space syntax theory to expand its applicability in the realm of non-geometric and topological cognitive-behavioral systems.