1. real estate
2. apartments

Applied mathematics in Engineering, Management and Technology 2 (5) 2014:146-156
www.amiemt-journal.com
The Effect of Tall Facades Complexity on the Aesthetic Quality of
Urban Landscape (The Case Study: Tehran-Iran)
Mehrdad Karimi Moshaver1, Hamidreza Abrar Asari2
1
Assistant professor of Architecture, Department of Architecture, Faculty of Art and Architecture, Bu-Ail Sina University,
Hamadan, I.R.Iran
2
M.A student of Architecture, Department of Architecture, Faculty of Art and Architecture, Bu-Ail Sina University, Hamadan,
I.R.Iran
Abstract
High-rise buildings facades due to their scales are among the most prominent
elements of the urban landscape; hence, they can be utilized to improve the urban
landscape. Despite the efficiency of high-rise buildings, they have the potential to
cause problems such the urban landscape disruption as well as eliminating the order
of urban space. Since today, tall buildings are considered as effective phenomena in
modern cities, the enhancement of their aesthetic quality can improve the aesthetic
quality of urban landscape. Hence, the main purpose of this paper is to investigate
the aesthetic relationship between formal characteristics of high-rise buildings and
people’s and experts’ preferences. One of the factors associated with the beauty of
high-rise buildings is their complexity which has rarely taken into consideration in
scientific studies. Therefore, it is attempted in the present paper to find the
relationship between complexity of towers facades and their aesthetic quality. The
main variables of the research include the level of complexity, the openings model,
and the color of tower. Statistical analyses by SPSS were used to assess the people’s and professionals’ opinions concerned
with determining the impact of complexity on aesthetics of high-rise buildings. The results show that both people and
experts prefer vertical openings for towers. Also among the experts, less complexity is more favorable while from the
ordinary people’s viewpoint, the opposite is true.
Keywords: high rise construction, urban landscape, high-rice facades, aesthetics, complexity
1.Introduction
Today, the cities as destinations of potential tourists are very concerned about their images; in fact, studies on
tourism literature, postcards for sale to tourists, and television images show that the urban landscape is a very
important component in creating the image of a city. In most cases, high-rise buildings are the most prominent
part of an urban landscape (Heath et al., 2000). High-rise buildings can be utilized as a catalyst to improve the
urban landscape (Tavernor, 2007). High rise construction is a phenomenon patented in the late 19th- and early
20th-ccentury. The first steps in building skyscrapers were taken in Chicago in the 1880s (Sadughiyanzadeh,
1992; Taheri, 1996).
On the other hand, high-rise buildings can cause problems such as destroying the organization and order of
urban space (Golabchi, 2001). Actually, destroying the order of urban space leads to reduction of urban
aesthetics quality. However, high-rise buildings are considered as the phenomena of modern cities (El-Ghul et
al., 2010) and due to their scales they have the ability to significantly affect the order of space in urban
landscape (Seyed Sadr, 2005). As a result, it is possible to improve the aesthetic quality of urban landscape
through enhancing the aesthetic quality of high-rise buildings.
2.High-rise buildings definition
2.1.Defining the high-rise buildings based on their height
One of the criteria used to determine the height of high-rise buildings is the availability of fire equipment to
them. Various standards have been defined by different countries; in Germany, Denmark, and some other
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European countries, the height of a high-rise building is considered 72 feet or 21.60 meters which is equivalent
to the height of an eight-story building. In Iran, this height is equal to 23 meters (Kami Shirazi, 2013).
2.2.Defining the high-rise buildings based on their locations in cities and regions
According to the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat in the United States, a high-rise building
regardless of its height and stories number is a building that its height significantly affects one of the aspects of
using space or its construction plan (Aminzadeh, 1997). In England, any building affecting the city skyline is
called a high-rise building (Mayor of London, 2001), but according to the definition of high-rise buildings in
Switzerland, each building which is extremely different and higher than other surrounding buildings is called a
high-rise building. In fact, urban planners and designers usually define the buildings higher than 10 stories as
high-rise buildings (Kami Shirazi, 2013). The most comprehensive definition of high-rise buildings based on
the urban landscape approach and approved by this paper is the one used in England and Switzerland that the
buildings affecting the city skyline and extremely different and higher than other surrounding buildings are
called high-rise buildings.
3.The urban landscape
The urban landscape can be studied based on functional, identity, and aesthetics aspects, but in this paper, the
aesthetic aspect is further considered.
4.Aesthetics
The term can be studied in three levels of taste, sensation and perception based on the concepts that Alexander
Gottlieb Baumgarten discussed (Pazouki, 2005; Grouter, 2004). Some discuss the aesthetics of built
environment based on two formal and symbolic dimensions. According to this theory, anything related to the
geometric structure of the environment as well as the issues such as the role and influence of shapes,
proportions, rhythms, scales, and so forth are included in the formal dimension of aesthetics. Also, anything
which causes people to perceive the meanings of the environment is studied in the symbolic dimension of
aesthetics (Lange, 2002). Tangible aspects of space including eye-catching body of space or arrangements as
well as the quality of colors and materials are among the cases generally discussed in aesthetic studies of urban
landscape (especially in studies related to the physical aspect of aesthetics) (Rezazadeh, 2007; Mahmoudi,
2006; Mansouri, 2008). Therefore, in the aesthetic study of high-rise buildings, the improvement of visual
quality of cities including factors such as the fitness and harmony of buildings with the surrounding
environment, materials, and design styles can be specifically considered. It should be noted that studying the
aesthetic factors of urban landscape is not related to the buildings themselves but their link with context and
environment (Karimy Moshaver et al., 2010).
Since there are strong and various evidences that the aesthetic issues are the most important factors in
evaluating the quality of the environment (Dornbusch and Gelb, 1977) as well as due to expanding the
knowledge regarding the impact of high-rise buildings on the aesthetic quality of urban landscape, the tendency
to legislate rules considering the aesthetic effects of high-rise buildings as their primary or only purpose has
increased (Delafons, 1990; Habe, 1989; Preiser and Rohane, 1988). As a result, recently in the design
legislation, more than 98% of design controls are performed on the visual features of the building as well as the
quality is judged according to the same controls (Habe, 1989; Stamps, 1999).
5.The effective factors in high-rise buildings architecture in the urban landscape
The study on the aesthetic aspect of urban design has being started by many theoreticians such as Hermann
Maertens and Camillo Site from many centuries ago (Ladd, 1987). Whenever the personal and private space of
individuals in the street is affected by the oppressive atmosphere; the environmental stresses can be displayed as
the fear of closed places, the fear of suffocation, and the fear of restriction (Ketil Rod et al., 2009). Currently,
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the theoreticians of urban planning use words and terms such as sympathetic, compatible, historically
remarkable, the sense of place, identity, and complex while evaluating and analyzing a street landscape; such
descriptions end to extensive qualitative and subjective discussions as well as limit objectivity (Stamps, 1997;
Tucker et al., 2005). It should be noted that the mentioned terms and descriptions are used for determination of
buildings fitness and future development of the urban landscape (Vic D. I., 2001; DIPNR, 2004).
6.High-rise buildings shape
The shape of high-rise buildings is considered as one of the most influential factors of formal aesthetics in the
beauty of urban landscape (Stamps, 1991; Asgarzadeh et al., 2012; Takei et al., 1977). In this regard, using the
sharp stepped pyramid forms is the best combination in relation to the surrounding environment while using the
narrow and tall buildings is more attractive (Rafizadeh, 2005); on the other hand, using simple and regular
forms is one of the effective factors in creating more desirable visual forms and façades due to its order and
combination with surrounding buildings and creating balance and unity (Golabchi, 2001). In order to improve
the formal aesthetics of high-rise buildings, it will be effective to utilize 3D illustration and multilateral
assessment of near and far visions of the public sphere and surrounding streets (Tavernor, 2007) , and respect
the pattern of alignment and urban open spaces (Supplementary Planning Guidance for Newcastle, 2005).
7.High-rise buildings height
The height of high-rise buildings affects the aesthetic preferences (Stamps, 1991), because increasing the height
of buildings creates more closed spaces and as a result, the environmental stresses will increase as well (Stamps
et al., 2005). Increasing the height of buildings also causes to create the limited spaces. The solutions to reduce
this effect include making open spans within the high-rise buildings and changing the height according to the
proximity to short and high buildings (Rafizadeh, 2005).
8.High-rise buildings location
The location of high-rise buildings plays essential role in aesthetics of urban landscape. In Tehran- Iran, the
citizens’ preferences regarding a high-rise building respectively include the visual position, the construction
quality, and the concept and meaning of the building (Karimy Moshaver, 2010). Accordingly, there are different
opinions about the location of high-rise buildings: Rafizadeh (2005) believes that a scattered view of the towers
will improve the quality of the urban landscape; another study shows that the coordination of conventional
residential complexes with their surrounding environment can provide more favorable residential environment
in comparison to high-rise buildings (Azizi et al., 2007); in the study done by Karimy Moshaver et al. (2010) it
is emphasized on the single towers instead of cluster ones while Tavernor (2007) believes that the accumulation
of high-rise buildings as cluster towers in a specific place has improved the beauty of urban landscape in
England.
9.Human scales and high-rise buildings
To consider the human scales while constructing the high-rise buildings helps to create a sense of security in
individuals and increases the interactions inside and outside of the buildings (Rafizadeh, 2005).
10.The high-rise buildings view and its impact on urban perspective
The impact of high-rise buildings on urban perspective include: 1- the view of city from the upper floors, 2blocking the view (casting a shadow), 3- the reduction of privacy such as construction of a tower in a
neighborhood which disrupts the relation between private and public spaces and people’s sense of security there
(Rafizadeh, 2005). To assess the impact of high-rise buildings on perspective, they should be evaluate based on
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three aspects including the panoramic view, the visual cone (the visibility of the big elements), and visual
corridors (the visibility of the recognizable features) (Tavernor, 2007). Due to the importance of high-rise
buildings effects on urban landscape, in The London Plan 2004, thirty four strategic points have been specified
that their visibility should not be affected by high-rise buildings (Tavernor, 2007). In another research which
investigates the people preferences regarding the view to the urban landscape through corridors created by highrise buildings, it is emphasized that preserving some of visual corridors with limiting the height is preferred to
constructing uniform buildings with different views; however, environmental landscape plays important role in
people’s preferences (Zacharias, 1999). In addition, there is another study showing that the desirability of highrise buildings views at day and night are respectively due to watching landscapes and loss of some visual details
in the city skyline (Nasar et al., 2010).
11.The impact of high-rise buildings on aesthetic quality of space
Since one of the functionality of a façade is to make relation between observers and the building, the façade
color should be chosen carefully to strengthen the relation; in fact, it is recommended to apply bright and clean
colors (Rafizadeh, 2005). Regarding the decoration of facades, the studies show that adding more details to a
façade leads to its complexity and results in sense of unrest in observers (Tavernor, 2007; Pall J. et al., 2013).
Actually, to achieve the maximum homogeneity between high-rise buildings and urban landscapes, the
decoration of facades should not exceed 60% of facades ((Mahghoub et al., 2013). In addition to the mentioned
cases, lighting and focusing on night view can also improve the quality of urban landscape (Supplementary
Planning Guidance for Newcastle 2005).
There is another study investigating the new concept “visual dominance” (meaning the reduction of time needed
to view a subject); in this study, the factors affecting better visibility of a high-rise building have been assessed
using GIS and analyzing 1- the increase of the contrast between buildings and surroundings, 2- the height of
buildings affecting the skyline of a city, 3- the historical value of the surrounding environment, 4- the viewing
angle of observers (Ketil Rod et al., 2009).
Another research studies the oppressive or frictional urban landscape in which the oppression or friction means
the environmental stresses putting pressure on residents. The results of this study show that the increase in the
solid volume of a building and the limitation of visibility to the sky causes the friction to increase; however,
trees can moderate this effect. The calculation of solid volume of buildings, their decorated facades, the number
of their stories, and the skyline results in a relation among these elements so that the less the solid volume of a
building is, the less oppressive urban landscape will be. In fact, the resulted relation depends on the observers’
location and their altitude above the ground level (Asgarzadeh et al., 20120). A study done by Kaplan and
Ulrich (1989) regarding the comparison of natural and artificial scenes showed the superiority of natural scenes,
but the comparison of natural scenes with each other showed the superiority of scenes with divergent content.
Regarding the natural scenes with the same content, the results also showed the impact of the forms on the
superiority of the scenes. Therefore, the factors such as the emotional quality, the enjoyable environment, and
the calming environment can significantly affect the superiority of the scenes. In this regard, the scenes of a city
in which the buildings exclude the visible vegetation elements are ranked at lower priority by individuals
(Lange et al., 2008).
Table 1: the factors influencing the aesthetics
1- Complexity (including form, height, façade,
Formal
and color)
aesthetics
2- High-rise buildings location
3- High-rise buildings scale
Height-human scale-the solid volume of
The factors influencing the high-rise
Security
building- form- angle of view-entropy- façadebuildings aesthetics
vegetation
Vegetation-open space-skyline- the solid
Amenity
volume of building
Overhanging
Contrast with background- view-height
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There are less works done in the field of formal aesthetics especially regarding the concepts like complexity;
hence, the present research attempts to investigate the facades of high-rise buildings as one of the complexity
factors. In this regard, the various factors affecting the complexity and perception of facades are also assessed.
Complexity
Table 2: the factors influencing the aesthetics
1- color, 2- materials, 3- openings, 4- the façade setback, 5- articulation, 6Façade
segmentation, 7- the canopy, 8- geometric pattern
Taken from: Stamps, 1998, Haber, Heath et al., 2000
12.Complexity
The term of complexity is used in contrast with concepts such as simplicity or clarity which makes it easy to
understand a shape. For example, when the elements involved in a shape follow a geometric or simple and
understandable pattern, the number and variety of patterns used in the shape is low, and the observer can easily
understand the relation among the involved elements, the shape is describes as a less complicated one (Heath et
al., 2000).
Inconsistency in defining the term of complexity leads to diverse and uncoordinated behaviors regarding the
complexity (Stamps, 1999). The studies on the relation between the complexity and individuals’ preferences
indicate different results (Stamps, 2004). Some results show that there is an inverse relationship between the
complexity and individuals’ preferences while some show that the relation is direct (Imanoglu, 2000).
Another research studies the factors involved in the quality of urban landscape. The study has defined the
relation among the factors including the height of high-rise buildings, the solid volume of the buildings, and the
entropy effect. Entropy is a term from physics that refers to the amount of “disorder” in a system; regarding the
buildings, the more complicated the buildings are, the higher the entropy will be. So the study has made a
relation between the mentioned variables to measure the entropy, and consequently the complexity, to provide
solutions for restoring the quality of landscape (Pall J. et al., 2013). However, there is another physical factor
called ambient sounds which are involved in restoring the symbolic aesthetic quality of the environment (Evans
and Cohen, 1989).
Another study was conducted on 60 students graduated in Psychology. The study investigated if increasing the
perception of buildings complexity can increase the priority of selecting high-rise buildings? In this research, it
was focused on the articulation of the facades and canopies. The results showed that in the design of high-rise
buildings, architects should apply perceptible decorations and fewer details in the buildings profile as much as
possible. Also, they should pay specific attention to the form of canopies to prevent the complexity (Heath et
al., 2000). In this regard, there is another research assessing the effective factors on the facades complexity
using empirical research with the approach to façades setback, articulation, and segmentation. The results of
this research show that the most effective factors in creating a sense of complexity are façades set back,
articulation, and segmentation, respectively (Stamps, 1998). However, increasing the number of openings and
decorations in a facade causes the complexity of it to increase (Stamps, 1999).
It should be noted that in Stamps’ research, the assessment of façade has been performed through computer
simulation which can affect the results due to ignoring other involved factors.
13.The research question
What is the relation between the façade complexity (based on the variables of color and openings) and
the aesthetic quality of towers?
14.The research hypothesis
It seems that the higher the complexity is, the higher the aesthetic quality of towers will be too, but it reaches its
limit at a point and then the relationship is inversed; in other words, the higher the complexity is, the lower the
aesthetic quality will be.
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15.Research Methodology
To assess the impact of facades complexity on the aesthetic quality of high-rise buildings in the urban landscape
of Tehran, it was needed to select appropriate variables and case study. Based on the information collected
regarding the famous towers of Tehran, it was found that among different variables (including the color,
materials, openings, façades set back, articulation, and segmentation, the canopy, and the geometric pattern),
facades articulation and the geometric pattern are considered as dictated characteristics which are less able to
change; also, they have been addressed in the previously mentioned studies.
Using design tools, it is possible to make the changes in variables such as canopies, materials, openings, and
vegetation more visible in towers. Since the impact of canopies and vegetation has been addressed in some
studies, the variables of color, materials, openings, and the aesthetic quality of high-rise buildings are
investigated in this paper. The independent variables include the color, materials, and openings; also, the
aesthetic quality of high-rise buildings has been considered as the dependent variable. To determine the range of
materials, color, and openings in Tehran towers, five famous towers including Jordan Tower, Tehran Tower,
Kooh 'e Noor Tower, Export Development Bank Tower, and Roma Residence Tower were assessed. Table 3
shows the collected data regarding the variety of materials, color, and openings among these towers.
Tower 1
Tower 2
Tower 3
Tower 4
Tower 5
Table 3: the variety of materials, color, and openings among the selected towers
Openings
Materials
Colors
Vertical
Stone - glass
Cream
Separate
Concrete - glass
Gray
Horizontal
Cement - glass
White
Vertical - integrated
Stone - glass - aluminum sheets
Light gray - blue
Separate
Cement-glass-stone
Buff - blue
Colors used in the towers include white, cream, light gray, buff, and blue as well as the materials include stone,
cement, concrete, glass, and aluminum sheets. The openings can be divided into vertical and horizontal
banding, integrated, combined, and separate. The combination of mentioned colors, materials, and openings can
be used to create different ranges of complexity.
16.The selection of case study:
The case study was selected from the five mentioned towers in Tehran based on the people’s opinions regarding
the most common and usually seen tower. To collect the opinions, a survey conducted among 20 people
graduated in architecture. In the survey, the images of these towers were firstly shown to the participants and
then they were asked to identify which tower could be represented as the most common tower in Tehran.
Twelve out of 20 people chose Export Development Bank Tower as the most common tower in Tehran.
In the next stage, to create complexity in the façade of Export Development Bank Tower, a design team was
asked to apply the changes in the openings, colors, and materials of the tower so that in each group of the
photos, the complexity changes from low complexity to high one. After observing the models designed by
3DMax and Photoshop software, it was concluded that the changes in materials are confused with the changes
in colors while assessing the printed models. Hence, the variables were limited to colors and openings. The
following figures were used as the final images for the questionnaire.
Figure 1: the priority of openings was researched through changing them into vertical, horizontal, and integrated
openings
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Figure 2: it was tried to create complexity by inserting additional elements
Figure 3: it was tried to create more complexity by repeating the vertical openings and disturbing their
geometric order
Figure 4: it was tried to create higher complexity by changing the segmentation of horizontal openings
Figure 5: the impact of color on complexity was assessed through adding the color to each image
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Figure 6: in image 1, it was tried to minimize the contrast between the color of sky and the tower through
selecting a neutral color for the canopy.
In image 2, it was tried to create a more homogeneous background through selecting the color of sky for the
canopy. In image 3, it was tried to create a contrast with the background through selecting a color contrasting
with the color of sky for the canopy
In the next stage, to evaluate the changes made by the design team, the population including 40 graduates in
Architecture and Urbanism and 20 of ordinary people were questioned. Several questions were proposed: the
first question was about the priority of vertical, horizontal, and integrated openings; the second question was
about the complexity of vertical, horizontal, and integrated openings; and the other questions were about the
priority of colors and their complexity in the body and canopy. The collected data were analyzed by SPSS
software and then Pearson's correlation test was used between the individuals’ first priorities and their education
levels. The results are as follows:
17.The research findings
Tables 3 and 4 briefly shows the results obtained from SPSS software regarding the priorities of both statistical
societies including ordinary people and experts. Tables 5-9 show the results of Pearson's correlation tests. In
fact, only the tables indicating a significant relation between the individuals’ first priorities and their education
levels have been presented.
Table 4: the results obtained from experts’ priorities
Group
The 1st priority
The 2nd priority
The 3rd priority
A
2
1
3
B
1
2
3
C
2
3
1
D
1
2
2
E
1
2
3
F
1
3
2
Group
A
B
C
D
E
F
Table 5: the results obtained from ordinary people’s priorities
The 1st priority
The 2nd priority
The 3rd priority
2
1
3
3
1
2
2
2 and 3
3
3
2
2 and 3
3
1 and 2
1
1 and 3
3
2
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Table 6: the correlation between the education level and the first priority
The correlation test of group B among experts
st
The 1 priority of group B
Education
-0.161
1
Pearson Correlation
Education
0.043
Sig. (1-tailed)
40
40
N
The 1st priority of group
1
-0.161
Pearson Correlation
B
0.043
Sig. (1-tailed)
40
40
N
Table 7: the correlation between the education level and the first priority
The correlation test of group D among experts
The 1st priority of group D
Education
-0.136
1
Pearson Correlation
Education
0.021
Sig. (1-tailed)
40
40
N
The 1st priority of group
1
-0.136
Pearson Correlation
D
0.021
Sig. (1-tailed)
40
40
N
Table 8: the correlation between the education level and the first priority
The correlation test of group F among experts
The 1st priority of group F
Education
0.149
1
Pearson Correlation
Education
0.017
Sig. (1-tailed)
40
40
N
The 1st priority of group
1
0.149
Pearson Correlation
F
0.017
Sig. (1-tailed)
40
40
N
Table 9: the correlation between the education level and the first priority
The correlation test of group B among ordinary people
The 1st priority of group B
Education
∗
1
Pearson Correlation
Education
−0.390
0.045
Sig. (1-tailed)
20
20
N
The 1st priority of group
1
Pearson Correlation
−0.390∗
B
0.045
Sig. (1-tailed)
20
20
N
According to the results, the most important findings are as follows:
1) In both statistical societies, the vertical opening is a priority in terms of aesthetic quality.
2) In general, the experts prefer lower complexity compared to the ordinary people in terms of aesthetic quality.
3) Regarding the integrated opening, the experts prefer lower complexity while the ordinary people prefer
higher complexity.
4) The vertical openings include higher potential than the other openings to create complexity.
5) It should be avoided complexity and segmentation in openings design.
6) The experts believe that using lower color combination is aesthetically more desirable, but the ordinary
people do not think so.
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7) According to the opinions of both experts and ordinary people, the more desirable color for canopy is a color
contrasting the background.
8) There is a significant relation between individuals’ priority and their education level regarding integrated
openings so that the higher the education level is, the less complexity for integrated openings is preferred. These
results are statistically true for both groups.
9) There is a significant relation between individuals’ priority and their education level regarding horizontal
openings so that the higher the education level is, the less complexity for horizontal openings is preferred.
10) There is a significant relation between individuals’ priority and their education level regarding the color of
canopy so that the higher the education level is, the higher complexity for canopies color is preferred.
17.Discussion and results
The initial studies showed that the complexity has been rarely addressed by the research done in the field of
symbolic aesthetics. In the next stage, the factors involved in creating complexity in high-rise buildings were
identified. The results showed that the facade of high-rise buildings is the most important factor involved in
creating complexity. The elements of façade were assessed and the openings and color were identified as the
most involved elements in facades complexity. Then, these elements were changed to evaluate their impact on
the complexity of the façade. According to the results, the research hypothesis regarding the vertical openings is
confirmed; in other words, increasing the complexity leads to higher desirability in the design of towers
openings. However, the desirability decreases after reaching its limit. In the design of horizontal openings, it
should be avoided complexity while there is the potential of creating complexity in vertical openings.
Regarding the tower body, the color complexity is not desirable while the color complexity is desirable for the
canopy.
Regarding the relation between complexity and the aesthetic quality, the variable of education level showed that
the higher the education is, the less the complexity is preferred, but this result is not true for vertical openings
and the color of canopy; therefore, the research hypothesis is true for them. Totally, there is aesthetically a
direct relation between the complexity and desirability among the ordinary people. The results also show the
differences between experts’ and ordinary people’s priorities. Since the experts mainly design for ordinary
people, considering the ordinary people’s priorities can help their designs be highly accepted. The following
design principles are recommended to improve the aesthetic quality of high-rise buildings facades and
consequently the urban landscape:
18.The suggestions for high-rise buildings design
1) Vertical openings are aesthetically more desirable for towers.
2) The vertical openings include higher potential to create complexity.
3) It should be avoided complexity and segmentation in horizontal openings as much as possible.
4) The color complexity is not aesthetically desirable in towers facades.
5) It is aesthetically desirable to use colors contrasting with the background for canopies.
6) According to the experts, the lower complexity is more desirable for integrated openings.
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