RESEARCH
Designed for the Senses – Centred on People.
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Research
At Emkaan, research is where design begins. Our research department studies how people perceive, feel and live within the spaces we create — across architecture, landscape and interior design.
The five senses
Designed for the Senses
A space is never only seen. It is touched, heard, breathed and remembered. Light moving across a wall, a texture underfoot, the scent of a garden after rain, the quiet of a courtyard — these are the moments that shape how a place makes us feel, long before we can explain why.
Every question we ask places the human being at the centre. By studying how the five senses respond to space, material and nature, we gather evidence that guides more thoughtful, more humane design decisions.
Our findings feed directly into our practice and are shared with clients, collaborators and the wider design community. Each study is shaped with the people it is meant to serve — and we invite you to be part of it.
01
Sight
Light, colour and form. What draws the eye and settles it.
02
Touch
Texture, temperature and weight. The space under the hand.
03
Sound
Stillness, rustle and echo. How a place is heard.
04
Smell
Earth, leaf and air. The memory a space leaves behind.
05
Taste
Harvest, herb and gathering. Landscape as nourishment.
Current study · Ongoing
Plants & the Five Senses
EMKAAN is conducting an ongoing research study exploring how people experience plants through the five senses, and how these responses can inform more human-centred approaches to landscape design.
Share how plants make you feel — what you notice, touch, hear and remember. Every response brings us closer to landscapes designed around people.
Duration · About 10 minutes | Free drink on completion | Open to everyone
Take part in the studyThe survey
Tell us how plants make you feel
Your answers go directly to our research team and are used only for this study.
Good architecture is not noticed first — it is felt.
Research enquiries & collaborations
info@emkaan.com