The Balcony Balance
Even when we spend years of our hard-earned money on building homes for our families, our love for accessible outdoor spaces remains unchanged. The balcony of our house, or the terrace, that becomes our make-shift outdoor – a connection to the world, a place of relaxation and bonding, is a must. What is this influence that the ‘outdoor’ spaces have over us?
What has been often said and yet not enough times is the idea that man is a social animal. Humankind has always approached any problem given to it in a collective - a group of people working together towards a singular solution.
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This activity of social interaction happens outside our usual purview of safe and comfortable spaces - particularly our houses. ‘Stepping out of our comfort zone’ to socialize is imperative to us moving out of our homes to meet other people in common spaces, usually referred to as ‘the great outdoors’. This boundary between the indoor and the outdoor differentiates the activities that happen in these two spaces - intimate for the former, and social for the latter.
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And then comes the middle ground - the small piece of ‘outside’ that we attempt to bring into our homes - the balcony.
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The balcony, which varies in form to become a verandah, a courtyard, or even a terrace, is an essential architectural element seen or requested in almost every home. This is the place where the outside meets the inside, an open space that is accessible and comfortable at the same time. This love for outdoor spaces that architects have managed to mold into the shape of the balcony is one that has been observed since the Stone Age. Sunlight, pure air and interactions, be it with just one person - these aren’t just wants, these are our necessities.
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We, as humans surviving in this fast-paced world, are either restricted to a corner in our homes or our offices for the larger part of the day. This disconnect with the outside world can be harmful, unless we spend our spare time ‘outside’, interacting with friends or family and allowing ourselves time to relax and rewind. The accessible balcony comes to our rescue here - a space created outside the home but uncluttered by noise, traffic and unwanted interactions.
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The balcony raises us above the world, allowing us to reach closer to the sky and appreciate the vastness below. The homes we create are just tiny corners of this universe that we claim for ourselves, and the balconies that we design help us reach out into this massive universe, rethinking the fragility of our position every passing second. The balcony is our rebellion against the system of this world - a system that looks forward to locking us up indoors for hours in the end, just to be able to survive on this planet.
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Let us celebrate these tiny small pieces of the outside that we hold on to in our homes. Let’s celebrate this world as it comes to us - not in pieces, but as an entire experience.