ANALYSES OF THE PERSONAL SPACE FOCUSING ON ‘COCOONING’

−Toward the new furniture design in the public open space−

Abstract

In the public we usually shut ourselves up and stay in our inner spaces called ‘personal space’. Kato (1976) called the behavior ‘cocooning’ which means the silkworms make their cocoons as the safe comfortable spaces. In this study we had an idea what if people can ‘cocooning’ and show their cocoons somehow in the public? And we designed a set of ‘cocooning tools’ and observed ‘cocooning’ of the students in the campus open spaces. As results five different types of ‘cocooning’ were found. The students judged appropriate distance from the pedestrians and their face direction, and arranged the tools not only to make the places comfortable but also to camouflage their bodies and cocoons. We also discussed on the new furniture design that let users make own spaces in the public space.