Last week while I was hiking, I stopped to take a break and look out at this view. After I took a breath and sat down I realized I was in a little cubby hole, surrounded by overhanging trees and brush with a large open window that faced a view of the mountains that is unseen from the road. After a few minutes I realized that I was sitting in a perfect example of prospect refuge. Prospect refuge is a theory of design that refers to the need to feel safe and protected in one's own enviroment while being able to see whats going on or coming at them in the future. It provides a place of REFUGE while you take the time to assess the PROSPECTS of the future. This is an element of design that can often be overlooked because its appeals to our subconous need to protect ourselves, families and food from oncoming threats.
Prospect Refuge comes into play in some of the areas in our home that we spend the most time and are intimate like bedrooms and the kitchen. This kitchen, while very pretty and light, might make the user feel slightly uncomfortable because they are exposed to the outside without a place to hide and look out at it. It looks more like the prospect of outside is invading their refuge.
A true refuge would be a secluded or semi-enclosed enviroment that has an outlet to observe the outside without putting the user in any true sense of peril. Something even as simple as the sketch to the right of a window with curtains is an example of a prospect refuge.
Last week while I was hiking, I stopped to take a break and look out at this view. After I took a breath and sat down I realized I was in a little cubby hole, surrounded by overhanging trees and brush with a large open window that faced a view of the mountains that is unseen from the road. After a few minutes I realized that I was sitting in a perfect example of prospect refuge. Prospect refuge is a theory of design that refers to the need to feel safe and protected in one's own enviroment while being able to see whats going on or coming at them in the future. It provides a place of REFUGE while you take the time to assess the PROSPECTS of the future. This is an element of design that can often be overlooked because its appeals to our subconous need to protect ourselves, families and food from oncoming threats. 
Prospect Refuge comes into play in some of the areas in our home that we spend the most time and are intimate like bedrooms and the kitchen. This kitchen, while very pretty and light, might make the user feel slightly uncomfortable because they are exposed to the outside without a place to hide and look out at it. It looks more like the prospect of outside is invading their refuge. 
A true refuge would be a secluded or semi-enclosed enviroment that has an outlet to observe the outside without putting the user in any true sense of peril. Something even as simple as the sketch to the right of a window with curtains is an example of a prospect refuge.
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