Utopia vs Dystopia

Utopia and Dystopia

wikipedia

utopia 

Utopia (/juːˈtoʊpiə/) is an ideal community or society possessing a perfect socio-politico-legal system. The term has been used to describe both intentional communities that attempt to create an ideal society, and fictional societies portrayed in literature. It has spawned other concepts, most prominently 

The word comes from the Greek: οὐ ("not") and τόπος ("place") and means "no place". The English homophone eutopia, derived from the Greek εὖ ("good" or "well") and τόπος ("place"), means "good place". This, due to the identical pronunciation of "utopia" and "eutopia", gives rise to adouble meaning.

dystopia

A dystopia is the idea of a society in a repressive and controlled state, often under the guise of being utopian. Dystopian societies feature different kinds of repressive social control systems, and various forms of active and passive coercion. Ideas and works about dystopian societies often explore the concept of humans abusing technology and humans individually and collectively coping, or not being able to properly cope with technology that has progressed far more rapidly than humanity's spiritual evolution. Dystopian societies are often imagined as police states, with unlimited power over the citizens. The word derives from Ancient Greek: δυσ-, "bad, hard", and Ancient Greek: τόπος, "place, landscape". It can alternatively be called cacotopia, or anti-utopia.

Hotels and its linkage with utopia and dystopia

We have searched 'utopian hotels' and 'dysopian hotels' respectively on Google and screen captured the small previews which exemplifies the concept of perception and opinion of the individuals.

'hotels'

'dystopian hotels'

'utopian hotels' 

-More human figures can be seen in the 'dystopian hotels' research compared to the 'utopian hotels'.
-Cool blue palettes is more evident in the 'utopian hotels' search as the colour blue symbolises peace, calmness and relaxation. On the other hand, warm colour palettes are visible in the 'dystopian hotels' search which can be defined as passion, fierce and destruction.
-The architectural language and its structural features in each thumbnail images are similar to each other within their grouped search. This emphasizes the notion of community and society within the site and the architecture.


Individuals' perception is an important factor for this topic. The way they accept and finalise their perception - be it utopia or dystopia - is the ultimate answer in which the ultimate city is.

With this research, we have searched books and journals and picked out the following pages which revises the 'stereotyped' concept of utopia and dystopia or what is generally imagined when we discuss the topic of utopia and dystopia.

'Cool Hotels' -Europe and America series.

The three pages above all encapsulates a moment of nature in summer season. There is a continuous flow of  openness, freedom, freshness and luxury throughout the series of pages. These instances of diction all embrace the idea of utopia and a place where you will want to be. Its calming and relaxing, very optimistic and paradise-like imagery portray warmth and beauty. 

With the same elements of 'nature', these series of spatial interior photographs contrast with the set above. The linear arrangement and intersection create a sophisticated and mathematical imagery. Yet the dark and shaded tones weigh a sense of seriousness to the image. Overall, the quality of optimism and brightness lacks.