ANY, 23- Diagram Work- Data Mechanics for a Topological Age (1998)

7/21/2019 ANY, 23- Diagram Work- Data Mechanics for a Topological Age (1998)

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E torCynthia C. Dav dson

Gue t E oBen va Berkel

Ca o ne Bos

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2/59

Septembe as everyone imerica but me seemed to pla

the lives ound the tele isedhome r n re ord race betweenM rk M Gwire a dS am ySosa, a sm l item appe ed

e r V Notes col about baseb w eaki g

havoc w h he etworks newprime me season. App en yFo had c ce ed a ig y promoted"K ng o the l"inorder to a baseb g met at became u even f whenMc w e ed to it a homeru TheT quoted Da d

il ch irm n of oxB oad as g, as say g,"Network te e ion hasbecome about eve t-iz ngprogr i g [ a cs m ne]

n other words the event andthe potenti l o the event top oduce he e pe ed thatis the ever seen eforeat rac s iewers to a medium

s i g, a way to estab shdif eren e rom other jo rnals

n lateSeptember, he theo-rist ( nd orm footb ll player)K.Michael ay led a Wed-nesday ght event c ed

c ec e eory o i o-d e the book h tec re/Theo /sin e9 8 at Col biaU versit The even ng was asprawl o person l re sce ces p tuated h r domstateme tson t eo y, l o w c s ved o h d releaseo the 808 page ome. Most o

he spe kers were represented he book, hence or the au

ce, the event was a lit le kesee g history in e m k ng. The eve t of the book itse is

s o d o isto one ha o o y s gges s a cri cal pa

or rea g arc tec e theorysi e 968 b t that also begi sto c ve out a story or thejo l a emblage.

Dear Readerthat, with the prol eratio o

hoice made possib e y cableand satellite T is strugglingto keep its trad t onally la rgeaud en es

so med t at C"added ho to he [E yAw ds tele ast to m ke itmo e of an event his raisesques o s abo t j s what o -st tes he idea o event today

a d makes appa en e e ision'sm ipulative aggra dizemento n ev t order to att act

ewe s th ts seem gmport n e O co seABC

tele s on has made a eve tout o "Mo day ight

ootb l or ye s i h abe rded o y d westerns ger bellowing" re youready or some footba l!? as ithe battery o games that playedacross he set o S day nevertoo place. he eve t s c eof the Monday ght g me,

wh ch week y att a s morete e sion ewe s th yo er sports progr mseems oerase the v ue o the g esthat preceded it

Eve zing, to be truthf l, is somethi g ANY waspredi ated o when we beganpub ication 1993 a tho gh we d 't use that erm A Y was 't j s a y magazine b amagaz ne that p od ced liveeve ts in order to be perceived as n even itsel , withs ngu arly ocused thema cinvestigations o a chite tu e The staged event was a way toattrac at e tion and, i pub

Coi ide t lyi not iro -y the"e d o a emb agethe

iti l theory jo n that Hayshas e ited s nce its fou g in

987, was a so o eds Not with ev t or

y k d of fa fare b tro gh t e grape e es

Hays to d me the e tors hadag eed o end p licatio thn ber 4 w h occ

some me 200 oOckm n ites iArch te tureC u e194 9 8 he compa io vol me toA h e u e/T eo y, istory is as m h amatter of arrivals as departures In our ast mo ng t re, even a pen ng dep t e

woyears hence sig s hebegi ning o a h s o yS cenearly every a em ageeditor isincluded in the ook, the

ou nal s va ue as an event isestablished eve be oreits demise

s od ct on oA te e/T eo yHays asO km be ore is learlyaw e o the p a e o s h anthology i histo He w ites:

ho gh I believe that the most mpor n e s of c tec e

heory are n l ded here,havenot ied to reprod e he mostused te ts, or an olog e story as it re lly happe ed.Rather I have ra on ly re on-s cted e istory of itec-

e he yan attempt toprod ce heon epof a

story w ich is a q te -ferent ma ter Reg r less of whether ays producedthe

co ept or a oncept, wit isa d Oc s books chitec-tu etheory has its ow history

ow parti u arly i the U.S. The very a t o t is su cess

s caus ng it to g ow increas-ng y ap t om e b l gnA te t e tu eO anlists Foucau t's h stori l task

of" estio ng the do umento ask, What is a rchitectu al

doc me t given that therelationship between written,grap ic a d b l record . . ispart c larly in ri ateI deed, the moveme tof architecture theoryaway from the buildi gand toward a practi e inand of itself, for of va e, creas ngly over ooks the bui d ng tse f;that is it forgets o see theob ect/ event that is the c l-m na on o the wri ing, rep-resentatio a d pra tice that

Sp i o chu he * The e, Hays's de n onory as" n appet te or modi -ing nd exp n ng re i y adesire to org e a ew

o resonated i e realve even of what I co d phys-

ically see Br es hi s tele-s opi g spa es, w ich or eperspec ve on the viewi gsubject St d g on the center

ne at he ba k of the nave ofSorenzo I essed mat e-

ma ics so d d void pro-por ion l sys ems worked out

o achieve perspectival perfec-io Walking hrough a side

aisle the paired pilas ers a dcol s lickering in and outo my periphera sio I

came to the cross ng, whereBrunellesc sudde ly adds are ang l pie e, a kind os ot o accommodate the equired n er o chapelsa d support the dome above.

h s see g anomaly alertedme to the aut r gor o hegray sto e o white walls, a despecially to Br nelles hi sclear desire to orga ize anew vision

Then we g o gh e Vespa ed s eets o ore ce

d oss ng he o o eomes oS Sp ito, one o

Br e esc 's last wor , oneseem g y o t om es

S ll ma hema y pre se e w ite w ls re now ed w hh l round hapels amed yg ay stone pilaste s that recede nto ea h space, reat ng a per-spe val dep t at fools heeye s s a r che work

S Lore zo, he eye d nc ngough t e e ade o ol s

ha mar hes o tin o slyaro nd he space. As e s orian Pete Mur ay w ites"Thesple id spa l e ect c eatedby e great ri g o co s

r ngro d e whole ch h is per-haps har ly o be app eciatede cept by a tu ly w gt ough i , o w ich wo dadd d by act y see g it.Be ween 1419 when o s u -tio ofS Lorenzo was egun,a d 1 , when the pl s for S.Spirito were approved,Br les i developed smathema c propor o g

sys em to de a spa com-p ex ty e dent e lat rch ch. One eels e i eren eupon e teringS Spirito b t it is

mpo t so toeethe di er-en e.As M ray writes,Ren ss n e c tec ure does

o evo e e awe o e o ccat edr s in Re a ss cech hes one has to ow whaone is looking at Re ss ce

r i ect re must be experienced as c itect re

b load of to ts wo dtes h r ew g arc i-te earc te ture is ot ev nt a me ia age; it's see ga onatello or a Mi he ang o,

t ing by theA ist o istoricrc itec s d r sts These s e

to ists e he aud ce for the20 h cent y stars whostruggle to m nta theirpr e ime ra ngs ag in t

e ev sion s even z ngu ess ke Jerry Se eld,

your show e omes a eve tFor today, not only ar hitect rebut eve media is viewed i astate of istract o . It re uiresnothi g less t eve t to

oc s ou a e tion,eve t o

2 .

registerthe leeti g mome t betweenpast a d future. c tect ehas a i on ly pro ided astage or eve b t mediacons tly oo g to e e ze,

r tec ure is on he verge obecoming he event its l hat

s the spe ta le T s not be what Bern d

Tsch had n nd when he o e 994 , wh e

" rc i ec re s as m ch abo tt e eve ts hat t e pla espaces as about he spa es thems ves r ite t re's espo seto me ia even ng has be to

away om heories e Tsch 's a d towa d t e spe -ta e s s c ect o

t a des re for a new isionot the tec e as h tectu eo he n ss nce, but

rc tectu e made to seize emome t History j dge

e legacy of t e b gspecta le, b whe e or not

rc i ectu e is now p a g tohe mediati d n is a pressi guestio or today


3/59

2 .6

As a boy I some mes wondered whether just loo ng a n ob jectcou d wear t do Was hedecay of o d bu ings due n part

o he fact hat people ha beenlook ng a hem for so ong If S perman s visio was e exa a-

on of masc e o lar powermi e was mel ncho y.

Before visi g e Acropo isfor he st ime I wondered:

Has the Acropo is ke so manyot er tour st dest na ions, beenso utterly t nsformed n o a

photo oppo tu ty tha t canno possibly ve p to e repro-d ctions of ts image Wou d I be

nderwhelmed y the ac aexperience of seeing theP henon and re u e n elabo

rate array of compensations postcards pictu es narrat es?

D ing the past year I haverepea edly stood on the Acropo is.

Every me i has seemed enselyre not less ha ea Yet, w e -ever I re n o Athens,seek are s r nce ha he Acropo iss here What do b do I seek

o ca m when I hec o seet ePar he on is s an ing un i n-

shed since I last saw it, or heh of the Acropo is has na lygi en way

Th s ie yre a on o heAcropol s has i s o n elabora elineage In "A isturbance ofMemo y on he Ac opolis " writte 9 36 Sigmund Freuddescr bed n episo e of "dereal-i at on" of n m uorestra gement hat he experi-enced upon r v ng at eh

9 4at t e age of 48 St ndi gon ts he ghts, Freud felt for amoment a he had ne er ybelieved he Acropo s re l y exist-ed. e he d ot remember ac -a ly do b ng its ex s ence, so whe e id is fee g of repu a-tion come from?

Freud's react on to s expe i-ence ook the form of a sp i in

s sense of self bet een one who elt the esi ue of isbe iefa a secon who wondered where t is fee ing came om

Freud's analytic second se fcon l ded ha h s isbelief wasn express on of his fee gs of

gu lt ha he the son of a relative y u successfu Jewish t ader

rrived whe e fa her couldonly have reamt of e g, a p aceassoc ated w t t e A ya is toric memory of Hegelia ism ndneoc assic sm rat er han themore triba forms of his upbring-ing is way, reud's v si s to

e c assica wor d const ted noed p a g ess on both a

rep ia on of his origin and anoccasion for se ex m na onThe wo of n quity pro-

vide Fre wi h ages ofhought ha he wo ld synthe

si e o a p ilosop c l ant ro-po ogy ased on a ose ide i -ca on be een the ontogeny ofthe ind v dual and he phy ogenyof species. e some mesdescribed c vil a on as "a pecu-

ia process which m k ndnde goes comp able to the

norma matu ation of the i d (Civ lizat on d Discon e t9 98 . ater ye s reud rec-ognized a his des e o s t

ome had been sparked by a

ensdescrip on of his father as t ebut of n Sem c b ying. het ip itse was repeatedly postpone but Rome appea edrepea e y Freud s reams If

he prospect of a tr p o At ens was no e expl cit s b ect of

reams ke e p to Rome is i dis u bed h s psyc c equi-li rium Freud des bed how heand his brother exper e ced a

moment of dep ess on Triestepr o to t ng he boat toA hens, d re s episode o

erea za ion, ke d e s p ra-pr xes, d e experience of eu can y presen e withs mp oms of nconscio s primary though processes, h sproviding Fre d wi h the stu of

s own sel analysis.rece ye s he iss e of

memoryhas become a con-en ous one for psychoa lysis

Con oversy over Freu s ren nci-a on of t e se uctio theory, w t cla ms that he s ppressede dence of c i en's sexuaep sodes has co ncided w h bo hpub ic fasc a ion wi h chi dabuse and ncreased skep i smabout the acc ra y of epressedmemor es The pos odern pre-occupa on with te g stor eshas made it dif cu t to sepa ateh s oric uth om n ra ive

u psycho alysis and amore pragmatic, ra her rep-rese at on , approach o person-al memory sugges s t a whatever

works for yo is yo shouldhope for. The elabora e "work ofmy h n anc e Greece akes on agreater fas a ona e a whe

epresenta on nd t have lostsome of heir purchase Wh e it iscommonplace o nk of ree

myt o ogy a complex pro ec-on of the human psyche,

A hens one senses e socmagin ry of my h at work nd

observes ts his orical ime -s ons he A opol s he heateat its base, and thek a kosa econ e za ons of soci memo y,of e emerge ce of story ommy hey cu ate t e my h the autocht onous of e g born

of he e th. B l ke heh hatells a story of t e emergence ofh man zation om nat re,

he movement om my h o story now ooks more l ke a wo- way s ee

If mages of t e Par henon c r-cu ate comfor ably the postmode n iconograp ic economyepitom ed by he New o k coffee cup, e co ectio s be ween

he bu dings and e of eA ropo s resist all dere l za onsof t e mage L e he b ild ngs

e tse f seems bo h bu lt pd eroded t resis s faci e dis

ti c ions ha wo ld d aw earbo ndaries between na u l form

and he wor of cul e It s relation to the rock of eA ropolis hat m kes theParthenon e ec a l k betweenearth and sk be ween cu ral

dea a d primordial gen s ociand w ch ks s presen con

on o he abyssa me of mytYe even wh le e a g i s ies

he e r h he Acropo s gives amost power experience of the

world of rt Passing t ro gh t epropy aea, one enters to a worldof s one, sky stant mo ntains,

d wa er This is he powe of therc tec ral experiencenot

merely e er or of a b ldi gor a rban space b a who e

andscape monume a ed a dgi ng cohe ence to my a dmemo yEven he pos odernmoment, the Parthenon effective

y symbol es he ghes mbiions o h man c t e a d marks

a dec sive step s evol on.These days he P rthenon a perpe ual sta e of what the

Ital ans cal au a kind ofbu eaucra c a d tec olog ca

bo es sc olds nda few y rds of ack attest tog a iose ms of and lis lesse or at recons uct on, to aprocess whose pace bare yexceeds the entrop c e ects of

me ecay a po l tion and whose comp etion i s n more

a one way t n ableMore han ny ing e se he

A ropol s expresses e s ggleto end re me Wha was soq ic ly b i he 5th centuryhas gloriously endured what

ight ith some ony be ca led a

serie of "s rong sread gst ro gh history T e P henonshows he scars of war of deface


4/59

ment n e name of re igion, of v nd lism n e name of nat onal

u ure e effe ts of weath ,d, more recen y of pol ution

et some ow i s i l ra ates heb oom of pe petu l newness wh ch l ch no ed of thebui dings,"m kes em ever toloo ntouched by me, s

hough he u altering breath ofa ageless spir t had bee nfused

o hem Iron ly he intense w i eness o i s ma b es oday

n effec of ag g, ot of ne ness.W e t s rd o say t a the

A ropo s look u touched bye, t s not rea y a u n, not a

shadow of a former se hepresen e of he P r he on i thepres nt is what is so s k ng

so a as e P r henon hasbecome a ul r l s bo , t ispresence may be n ide lized onebut its powe today is s ngelycaught up n its ma nt nance ofp esence time

The s uggle ag i st me nd me has lways be n he sub-

ject matte of t e site d its

uildi gs d in fa t es a thee of ny idea of mon ment

The eze of e Pa eno eprese ts sce es of g ,or s ruggle,

hat even i St ce y C wereme t to s mulate historic memo y d to mark e con i ybetween m nd he gods asco nected by he heroes he a tof uild ng its sym o i ed heicto y ov he e s w ile

e co og aphy of he b d gco ected hat s r ggle to theGreek a sertion of h m y emetopes o e a eno (c s-eled o , for he most p rt in hee rly C ris i e a when e

mple of Athena convertedinto a chu ch of Ou dy) developed a n rra ve that established

he supremacy of A eniademocracy a d prov ded esource of the anathenaeicFes ival. t starts wit t e ba tleof t e gods agai st the gi nts,con nues h ough e bat es othe Lapi hs and Centa rs a con-frontation be een hum n va ues

and e bes al power of iolence out aso d ends i h

he ba e of he A he i ns againsthe Amazons a story ha ay

be n story and mro d oom has deve oped a

eo y of poe icag to desc i ehe s uggles of poet heroes

aga nst h fathriv s orB oom eve modern poe mustco f on he scovery that poet yis bo h ex er l a d l to

imsel He m st experi nce hesh me d terrible splendor o

u u al h ritage Co s uct ngs own ma ho Freudi myt ol-

ogy Bloom des ibes how"s ong poets res le i h eiprecu sors, even to the death,

a e g mps g the pr m ls ene of he poe fa 's o s w h e m se. or B oom themodern l e of re sion sm sba ed o creat ve o"s ongrea ings, on spr sion, swerveor i , nd the st o g poet is

he o e most suc ess l a rea ngms e t xts o is a h s

m wo d r hat these theoriesho d a p r a fascina on for

hose who wou d set hemselvesup as" g Dad es ontempo-r ry ch tec ure.

H s oric l ge re pai ngs ofe Acropo is ways show Athens

as p y sord ed, a d y ncompa iso to he Pa henonToday A hens appea s om eA opolis l ke a vast eld of broke sto es s t rubb e a

eld of debris ts own d rc pet of brow air. I m y ways, mode n A ens is ke LosA ge es automob le whose public space as plodedinto he spa e of he r d the

ul r pho e leav ng the

Acro o s to he ourists e

ci y s vast d spraw ng ext sion,f c on s n te me y

fo m of it, ne er pub c noprivate, c rry ng seve pass n-g s at o ce aking a t xi is somewhat like be ng he d os age Ea h

ip fo lows a k d of "do key spa h, w ch e ent y t kes youto your des na ion a co ding to

e river's o n i osyncrasiesa d e des atio s o e o epassengers e roads re co -gested w c rs wh e s ooter

nd motor ke a owsough a d e e dy m ca

spa e ltoge her g id g n dout of the es of cars e smapredato s mo ing rough a herdof gr zing im s I sp nt mostof ast s er A he s, work-

ng prim r y a my job site Aftera ew week w th a ent l

ied joini g e wo whe l pac .t was ex lara ng nd f more

aggressive than d i ing a c Ahe e d o he day wou d e u

om he job si e overed h heo y of po l ion, eager to

s m n he hote poo , ed wi ha u r st s s nse of sa s a on

Most of Ath ns seems to havebee built e 1960s d '70sThe a ch tec ure is for he mostpa t a b reau a c mod s ledating from e regime of hecolonels he bu l gs re gene -a ly a dir y w i e Perhaps one day

hey be ecupe a ed o newrratives d gain his orical

credibi i y as rba tex u e utor he most p r hey give mod-rn a ch tec u e a bad ame O

co se here are excep ons ea ea ou d he centr l m rketsgives a 9 h n ury avor todo ntow and s rem nds oneof he dependence of he on

f r ng, sh g, and e slaugh-t of a im sThe stori st s y eof gover ment nstitu on dmuseums asser s a to classic lA ens, even hough his st le is aprojection of German neoclass -cism One ca derstand whypos odern Gree r tects reso t e tongue in cheek abou

he po itics of c assi ism as a -ion l bu l g. On he k of

e Acropo is s a m nia reCy la i v age c ed A a o ka,built e 9centu y by he workers employed in the cons u tio of hose s me s

o l bu gs A a o ka is asi e of c l l nd soc co t:an eyesore fo ose who wou dmonume lize he A ropo is

nd a squa t s' ave a isnow g ni g some legit macy w e the po s of vernaand loc l bu di g is ris ng oexplo e hose pol cs wou d ead

to e comp exities of nationa -s o icts a ontempora y

society s more m rked by

T sh ue ce n most

Greeks would are o a mit. Agiant Greek ag ies on he

p ow o he A ropo s m k gi as a site of na ional ide y

My favor te ime o go up onhe Acropolis is rst i g the

mor i g, wh n t is e r y desered, but e most eau lmomen is s l t e ast houbefore su set, wh the gleam of

e set g su s e ec ed eAege n The he temples seemto g ve hu n measure to herhy ms of na re for beau-

is on y he gh ened by e amas of su rise, sunset moonra n, a d shadow To the moderneye he play be en he mono

hrome stone and e changi gig seems so teg a to e

beauty of he temples hat it ish rd o imag ne hem colored

omp e e d newOn top o he Acropo is

some mes th of e seemingy interm nable co s u tio ohe Get y C ter that w nabe

temple in the neo Medi e -

nea Per aps a ou se of ac ela ed ag ng wou d br g e

Get y i to a more symbio ic rela-ion with its na ral con ext as

ten g he i evitable erosio ofe te t sto do nce

Pe haps is s the so ce of myow a x eties about theAcropolis he scomfort ofa ow edg ng e pa ia chas uctures of ontempo ryar h te tu e nd e oedip l

a red embedded he s uc-res o "strong m s ea g. My

own p ivate pa riar hal oopco ec s the Getty to theAcropo s before return ng toNew York a few ye rs ago I worked on e Getty for super

ego Rich rd Meie , imse a ru-n so o e Corbusier da gim hrough sterile praise

he yo ng e Cor busier usedis t to he A opolis to con-

m h s own chi ec r l mbitions InV y e'O of 9 he desc ibed the beauties ofmonoc omy, e precision of aconst uction w t out app ren

o s and he ter ible power ofhe Part enon as"a mac ine

w ch g nds a d dominates eCor busier experienced a certa ntyr ny in the a thenon, efeences to w ch he subduedlater afts o his avel rrativeHe des ibed h s isit as a com-

a from whi h e emerged insome sense the oser, fo ced toco ede o he mas e y o tsh rsh poetr compensat o ,

e sought to on e ve of it o t-side re ty, as the"he oic is onof a c ea ve d A d as a pre-lude to an an ouncement of hisow ambi ion he add essedhimself to" hose who, w e

prac cing e art of c tec u e

nd themselves a a mome t inthe career somewhat emp y-headed, the co de ce deplet-ed by doubt before that task ofgivi ga ng form to iner mat-

e hese kindred souls helaimed, wou d" nderst nd e

me ncholy of my sol oq esamid rui s d my c gdi og es with silent stones

ike Freud Le Co busieexperienced a listlessness befo eh s rst vis t e p t off thec mb u til he end of his stday i Athens making a thousand excuses to his iend as to why e wou d no go up just yet Yea s later e Corbusier

vented is own d s u b nce omemo y on the Acropolis.A riving late to the 19 3 3C AMco fere ce A hens, he dis-

r ed his co eagues us"Ohdear I forgot a l about you I've

een on the Acropolis.

S my vast ignor ce of Greei ation re ize hat ese

houghts a e more li e r m a-o o a Rorschach pa

When I was abo elve I wasg ve a Rorsc ach es , nd o he sible su prise of the schoo psyc o ogist I ecog ed he NewYork P b i i y h i s a k-

g lions n one image af er s-u g he hen hmen of dea hand o e e r symme es onpr ious pages. What seemedshocking h ge of reg s erbe ee pr l fe rs rc ive

nd mo m nt now o ongeseems so s ge


5/59


6/59

s eet igh s. We cou 't underst d t e the mouth n ope i g ke y ot er a blood oweri g om he vei W i eD omo to e m of e de sity of the sc ol ing a t ght po n ofrelease col w e s e m gels dC of {S J ) ee d mensiona weave a ra e In he hu ch of G su Nuovo there is a clouds explosive hea en emerg ngb 1294 1323. It length of a s eet a d ed its el e- w ed bus of each p t hen of a sudden, a moment t at

m kof 1426. foot dth, pressing aga n t the opposed ea h ges g ea h res g on a gl s felt ha luc natory i s c a y I saw heT de- n he a g wal s as fi were bu ess ng t e ced re q ry box pa ked t bones gas ch mbers d t e so s at e e ed

n n nt of g e r bu d gs Or had it simply been aban My guidebook says, "See Naples d t e sky by way of he smokes acks.d by St i e o ed long ago nd somehow prol fer- die ha e my own sense of what t at nt bones sh bo es, ince se theo V vi s n 163 . h a a a ed like nes?Vines grew over and igh me n. Somet ing here exer s a ch ches e up ng ike owers or h d ofS J u , around , w app ng hemselves o dforce l e hunger and i s opposite a s orms ke esh or c ouds ike 2 9B op of t e met structure a blac sh ve s m taneous cons ic o d e gorge Vesu ius he mid le of t e ight het om d Di n n 305 . . . nd n The b oque: a h l uci a io hat me A struggle is t ng placeIfe as ro ng ecsta c pres ce of some ng

e tl h s erupts om t e center of t e dark As my blood has ch ged nto some so a e that i es a d po ds its wayq of t e b soon a you eave he in sta on it g t cker d da ker a concen rateup rough t e grou d; t e prese ce ofo h le d f begins to conjure ts f p, to splay itse fpus g t ough t e narrow ess of my some h ng dead that released om

t b u t o by out to make i s fabulous appe ra ce. e ns oo g for a way out. gravity ascen w ng s way up toS e of i The por deo st d outside t e Ciga ette bu ts nd condoms t so t e ligh .p n e of s at on is a gold white black eruption nea y nto the spaces bet ee e cob We saw s eet s ines w th t ny1 n and on S . 1 9 of esh, amo aof body par s emerging bles ones as if hey were ways me ceram c gures b g he red

e . A i o ight at o ce subs an d to be there Space s rele lessly ed pa nted clay mes surround ng themt r or a loud e. The p es of mer ngue in a up o blesto es pac ed with g rbage, The ames sho up aro nd their backs

om f t y past y shop a e brilliant y w ite s ee s u ed w th sca o ding d so ha hey looked l ke gs com ngB, I p y sweet gritty, cha ging la ry is density pu s t e body out of the shoulders

Ho r k n a t om voluptuous form to vapor. nder pressure Vein a d mus les are nS 9 8 00 he i l a ed esh, he clou e compression Breat is forced out of e of e me g of e iq idsugar e a fragments of desi e s ole l gs. Just before i s a gles the s ee not to of p

Th s city is carbo zed sme ls of eom a ba oque church be eate or erupt gasp ng nto the de r ous spacep e e . . . Prof of C at has passed t rough wa A s ck black sold a con aband on t e street of the piazza e U i of Nap not long o s

powder coats everyt ng the forests of erhead the clouds themse ves p rade M k sa d The g bage n Naples {1925) p ac a on he >asc o ng, the stones ofthe s eet he a oss t e sky, g i eri g nd oy ikeha a job o do n Florence the g bage w e p on ofdoor nobs the sh bo es piled up mo ie st rs emerging from imous nes has no ob In Rome the ga bage is e p , d a i d of atat V.aga nst a wa l the newspapers a d o ope i g ght. They roll ey s ide, or ament l, that's its ob n Nap es theme as ud t, e p im 5candy appers t at the nd has t ey revol e. hey too a e sig , g bage s s ruc ural holds t gs up . Te m l g t p m m 2wrapped a o d our legs O r eyes e es apees om the place to w ich he tcoheres it becomes rigid t expan at p a e of 18 2 (658s eam g n ide ou mouths, grit The b o ue aspi es to every jo t i re orces every ),m m at15 17 5!3 u

lacke ed faces of t e churches are l ke A man wal ed n frighteni g m ri crack, i exer s a force The walls would ), 3 {38 Fh .). 'tenemen buil ngs e a e ns de one e fash on up a d do i e f dow t ey removed t e garbage y i f "

heb o ue is see ng: a l quid geode, Piazza su Nuovo spe i g repe itive The b roque appears l ke the great tg im god. rhy m c no se se n a loud mech -ou pou i gsof white ste hat used o tYesterday Naples was maz ngly c voice He s ng tow d people as w e me up e id e of e igh wu d w o a at p a

q iet a beau f but om ous absence ey w ked by followed them c edo ast 1 1t Street n New York. It was t r n to b fo d chu ch o onof s eet e as we w ed t rough t e a ter them unti t ey were out of r nge he Con Ed pl t et g out ste m It e l r. e iq o s to l zcenter, meta shop grates pu ed down It was a pe formance of o ate co ol happe ed w nter a normous rush e e. M

gh e spec c s nce of S nday ad o ate wro g ess he we passed g so nd a once I d sit up n bed-

tou ed e s nd d fo nd quit "c ty We wa ed up s eets be ween er- c ose by mIheard a horr d me a - d ough the icy dow see the ld a e T e tig ous w s at e c osed us o ei eri eaki g, ike wooden jo nts re e tpi sof w i e steam shooti g om of e r he m ng zside High above e s eet au dry wasless a d for o Was i a pros he ic he p ars of t e s a k Erup i g in e ce of e of iq- "'-

y g on h eds of lot es i es, imb, perhaps a wooden m? He was grea boi ing c ouds IVie a n a high id t zreleas g a fa nt ste m A met lic gold sw ngi g one m n a d iberate way b oque church there were ange s d om rich ce to b zlight fell some places the a as so as if to m ke noise ou of it. s ouds e ormous w i e spheres po a n T no co t ick wi h dus hat the gh mater al- hought gh ened me Mark thought ing om the tops of col u s A e ten by e cl =ized nto rays, you could almos take it that he was m ng he noise w h s sion of the idea of the capital an L z

n o yo mou The streets we e so jaw That frighte ed me more It was ot org c xplosio at the top of he col y 9 q o nH M ondensely packed w th sca olding hat i

speech t at errupted om h s mout m a vert al t g see g t e ligh I

k :could have bee igh Night wi hout but some h g nvolu t y, l ke a vapor t e ower erup ng om the st k the M & 969 , 3


7/59

2 . 0 Bool< Review ra e a a e ee a e a a ePr J P Pr $

A M r r ib r mi d i ibl d m n d tud ,

S e u te Se srb i r r d i 9 0

S th i f th r Art "v f r th P rt ill t i

P ri , wh h w d h v n-r t z d w d r

f r t i t r t n f rt ,t in t t th r rt rm , di id d nd i l t d t

w d i w iti n t rr it t r l t th t r t n d f r

i i r t, d i f r h rm " v vi Su t

ld q , d rt iub qu t r t , t bl

1958 P i li P li ti n, b d w th ttr diti t t w r f t tw h rl

ri d f thi r i x li-d b rd ,

i z e i P ei , 642) d b h r t d f i l f th t, f e e Ve s i es 8 ill 668w i m-

bi d m i , t r, ui i , w t rw , nd r w r id, d i d d r i i d, w l i t w v i

es m k st e k, t it m t f i W n rit f d w f m i th i , whi h i t 9 w

m u m b r t n rd t ti ll ffulti t n i f th r Th Phi i P vi n,

958 l W rld r, w t l itr dit , b ri i n it int t w tr ni m hP me e

iq e L C rbu r n m d t w r , w b rb w n r hit t (L C bu i r nd hi i t t, I ni

m r (Ed rd d X , i nd rr ( P t f r r , P A

d n in r ( t u t r f th Str b d C mL C rb d lw b rn d b ut r l t

ti , und, d it i it h tt t d i rti l r b h ti t d b i ht"

iv d d i 95 r f N

R , w r wr t rl r w r hit tu b dl d th u , f t w l , d i nt , i t mi r l f i ff b

T P e e iq ew iv d w f r f l , i r d L C r r d l d m t d b

m d r l r z t t t lm nt L C rb i r i d t r u d l f th buim d l h m m h, n it in r b blR b l i i l m n rni th w f wh wri n i lt d i v ti Y t, u l r d ri

dl , w i w d r l, il z m r hi f r n id d ut, L C rbu i r' ili

mbin th r i nd t tri , f r u th rr d l X n i w i t h ll i t th nl n v bl tr t r h r t with L C rb r

w d , f m f t h rb li r b l id, r h t i l l m d

tr i f rm, b d th ibiliti f t l d t , ili f r r tur in t t r ur f

i br d F X i , t r l i f thi r blr d l r t t r ,

i l tr i i X i h d tud d i Oli i r m iti l , d i r t bl i h d i f m i

( 95 54 w r d f 6 tru t , l in rt t i n t bl in t r nt t xt t t n t nl did

b r t r i d v d i d , l r m t r th tru t r f i t rv l , dur ti , dd timb w r d t rmin d b th li ti n f m

r r i , i ll th ld t n d d, tth li ndi i th r r r th r t tur l

t vil i t d ti n f h b i ldin w r i rt d t th di r

b tw r r u d l d m t ti l l ti

m l i t bli d b X i b tw und d i d r hi t r , ibilit , b li , d m t m l t


8/59

l

I-

he l a o ha a very ec c role n mo er t m c: t coce te an exa e a e u e erve a o e of e ra e e alonw th m c otonal com o t o n on Euro ean trume tat on the

nc o of o e t e u e of ea y electro c n tr men c a thee em n a the O e Ma te o etc to c c mvent t e l m a-

t on of e tem ere cale tha a ule everal ce tur e ofEuro ea mu c or the l a o t re form a a cenor e ce o of u broken tch o ble o ce ta n tru-me t uc a t n an the l e trom o e con a all f eq enc e ran e O e of Var e' earl e t com o t o t e 1922 23Hy er r s - he t tle of w ch ca e h e e t t e at al-

zat o of m c wa or a en em le of woo w an erc onc lu n a re to a w at he refer e to a bea t fu arabol c

an y erbol c c rve ." ore ra ca y he com o eo s t o n1931, wh ch cal le for 37 m xe e cu o n ume t a wo

re for 13 laye t wa e r Eu o ean ece com o eaccor n to eterm ate tch (or w at t at e oc wa

eeme o e) a t e en ro uce t nc an k n aT e e concer e Var e o ma e a m ca t ume ew th a ra ma at on e ec a y a c at on w e at altra ec o e of o a a m cal truct re a re a t e rockcry tal at alway fa c nate m For eca e e a reamt o ,a com o t o re re t e r a cula u e of t mbreex eme lay of am t e an e erm ate tc wha woul

ecome electro c co c ete a elect oacou t c mu c LeCorbu er' tence t at e com o e t e mu c for the Ph lPav l on a y ave m the mater al o l t e to com o e o ly ece t e re t ePo me e t o i uea te ec c

yb m lt ack work o ta e t at clu e elec on ca ly enerat-e melo e torte or a mu c (t e or a be ymbol callya ro r ate, a t wa a or of re electro c ou ynt e zer"

n tr alo e, h ma chan a eve f a men of e oes e,al em t e from a er e o o ro te " f om everal

n re eake a ac e to the c rve of Xe a ' hy erbol carabo o e Ra ely a the me a or of arc ect re afrozen mu c" more accurate y e cr be a bThe v al com one ofthe av l o were o r o a m, col-

ore l ht n ef ect rojec e tenc e fo m a t ree meo a form tby ultrav o et ht e m w o e ma e were

cho en by Le Corbu er co te o a er e o t ll t at be byevok t e ro re of ma c v l zat o a ort of c nemat c

m eum w thout wall " re y al ra x' recent t eo za oof t e e fect of o o ra c re ro ct o o a h tory a ae -

et c e ce t o ; t co t ue w t a re re e ta o of a ocaly t cthreat to uma ty an c lm nate by of er the ult mate ot o to the worl ' roblem , re cta ly ollow e Cor u er'own t eor e of r a la n . Thou t e lm (w c o lo erex t ) wa not a o a e eve t c nemat c tory t oe ear ar-t c ar f ob que ntere t n t elat o or at er o relat o ) oVar e' m c Wh le t e a ort e wee mu c a a c ec re

av o o e of tr ctura omolo y, e m totally a yc ro ou w Va e' com o o , exce that they both ave the

ame u at o . hu e ec c e a o be wee t e v ua a t eau al h mu me a co a e" we e tota l y o u ou The oleof c a ce co trol e an o e w e a bee a cr c a fac or mo ern t ae t et c ever ce Ducham ' rea yma e an Breto 't eory of ob ect ve cha ce w th e o twar ava la l ty o a e aelec o c me a new men o wo be a e o t e ae het c ofthe o ou T ou the role o a y c ro c cre anc e haal rea y een rofo ly nve ate ex er mental c ema( o ab y ha of the et , a au ce ema e' 9Le mest j omme ?>the a ea ory wa e becom ce tra toco tem o a y ava t a e mu cal theory T e te m of t e ebatewe e e by t e ncrea m colo cal con ct between oCa e' lob a e o c ance o e a o w t t e oal of co o at-

n all ou rev o y co ere no e nto mu c o v nt e bar er betwee art a fe a P erre o lez' mo e e t ct-e u e o e aleatory, rema rmly w t e rub c of theE ro ea mu ca a o , to a ca y tra fo m er a o eca

o c m c ch a all t e m ca arame er of the to etc rat on am l tu e t mbre) are eterm e by a mo e o

con o e c a ce A mo e of chance o e a o o e ararely e e e e e a e wa co ce ve y Xe a : e a l cat ono mathemat ca mo e l to m cal com o t o o a ly a me oof com o on a e o the lo t of ra om eve t e a l a

toc a t c or ro ab l t c mo e of mu c. Xe ak te rate t ever e mo al t e of ma emat c , mu c an a c tectu e to all

a ect of work; n a e e o e m t cla m that h early m cwa fact f o e a c tectu e" or froze mat emat c ." com o on for t e Ph l Pav l o t eCo e H

ab rev at n bo o e y e o i ue)w c erve a a o t ofamb ent mu c to mark t e verbal tro uc o to t e ece wa anexam le of si e o r teT work er ve from e ectron ca yreco t te reco o b n n c arcoal creat an aleatory

attern of t oun a n other toc a c y tem , uc a ero e o e of cr c et or r a n ro wa a m ortant com o -

t on t ow r t lea me to a m o c t c m of t otherw e exem lary

t y. T e b er ly e a l Xe ak ' contr b t o to the ojec ;n ee ere a e many more a e on Xenak t an on e Co ere ar ePo e e o i ueEven ven Tre ' accuratetatement of e ea ty of arc ec ral rm w e e art e ofte

take cre for the wo k of a ta t a fact t at create rea te -o betwee e Corb e a Xe ak a cr cal y o l

exte beyo t e l m t o a ch tectural real ol k W leXe ak ' role com ete y re c tate the bo y of the text, w y

t that t e ubt t e o t e book oe not bear ame? An , vet e er nence of m cal eor e a well a t e o v ou ere for a c ec e w y Co r e H eranalyze an e e

t ec ca y m ca ex ence? n ee e t acketa ou ce , Th tota y a omate bom ar ment of color vo ce

o n , an ma e wa broa ca t w t a ace of war e concretee orc e trate by Le Corbu er a co ea ue to a cohe-ve 480 econ ro am " E eme tary ar thmet c woul ave e

o t e um of 6 econ ve t e a o o Va e' e t-m ute ece an Xenak ' wo m n e com o t o . T o t e eare e a vely m o o t t ue a t e m c of th coll aborat on rather t an the a c tect e (much le the lm), ha a the

eate t reverberat o an t u e erve c o er c ny.Fur hermore ve t e co certe ly mu t me a ature of he work,t wo l eem t at t e rofoun terrelat o be wee mathematc m c a arc ect re e tab e by Xe a w o after t

ojectwa o ear y a a o arc ec e n or er to co centrateo mu ca com o t on m ht have bee analyze omew at mo e

rec ely f rea er a te o a bee a toCo e HT ePo me e tro ewa a be a ees st e For at

t e very moment t at Le Corbu er be a after Worl War II, o beco cer e w h uc ae the c y the a ra cally ew ara mwa be e abl e , by o Ca e a other that woul o er anew mo el of art c co laborat on: e o al z n u ct ve ecen-tere un e arc ca , aleato y. O e of the na al event o ten e cy wa e fame 19 2 Black Mo nta n Colle e co ce teac o " co or an ze y Ca e w c arate art t c eveocc rre (m c oetry a nt n ) omet me multaneou ly ome-t me ucce ve y encounter r le by u e arc ze c a cePro uce x yea a terwar thePo me e tro uewa aa achro m of reater ntere t o ome o t a tha for t e

um of art T o t e Ph l Pav on aes m u st emay ave marke t e e o a tra on everal o t elemen were

o ce o urther ae t e c nve t at o : Va e'Po me e troew c rema n a key wo k of early e ectron c m c con

ere t e c lm at o of e com o er' l felon m cal que t o cre-ate ew ou mu c th t e f l llme t of the mu ca a e-

e re re earl er com o t o Xe ak ' u e of mat e-mat ca mo el mu c le to becom o e of t e ma or ex ementa com o er of e eco alf of e ce t ry; e a a of t e

l an o wa to ave ma y other n an at o notab y M chaelS ow extrao a y com at o o o a ma e h

966 67 mW ve e g a co t uou 4 m ute zoom yn-chro e to a o track con t o a e larly a ce n

e wave (a ou ack ha mo t te re er ofe lm, o e

o t e votal work o o war ava t ar e c ema, haveyet o con er t f m cal m cat o );a m e of new mo el o m xe an m l -

me a wo k f om ha e envonmental a t a tal at o art to

v r ual rea ty, ave ex a e t eot o of t e ow eco tructees mt u st e ;a a ly t e h -

tory of arc tecture t elf where t eor a c an t e ma emat cal ave o ten o e

o mo ern com c ty ha een e c ePerha t e e t ummat o o e er ta e ofPo me e t o i ewa of ere e t e arca tcal y or n e exe a m rat o y o e jour-

a t comme o the work h art,w e e o ma y vo are requ e " (2 T ean wer to ay obv ou a Tre b r l antlyreveal e or c ae t et c, an tr ct ralrea o w y th o

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9/59

R e Adam , x e r V e Empty Wo den House H i gevel e De ver Col a o, 1973- 977. Gela l er t x9 5 r e ser es De ver le e t e anad e d' rc te rCanadian e t e r A ectu e, n eal

C u esy Fraenkel Ga lery San an is R e t dams

"The American Lawn: S urface of Eve yday Up i hall T Am a Law xapp a a m ha pu l a m u p

L fe was exh bited at the Canadian Centre for a a ia A i T a mbl

Architecture, in Mont eal om June 16 to

Novembe 8, 1998. It was cu ated by Geo ges

Teyssot, Ricardo Scofidio E i zabeth D er,

Beatriz Co om n a, Alessand a Ponte, Mar ,

0

.

So mo

m ma sm

f th r j t st ti a art i th lat 1 60s As. und rs d by an a y riti minimalism, i ha lri d, th w that h r r d t as "lit alisthad ttl t d with an a sth ti r n r

r gular id al g m tri s nst ad, minimal-ism's s r usn ss is v u h d r by th a that

it is in r ati n b th t m d rnista nti g and m d rn s s u tu

that it ra st art d n s r l at s th si n it s s t u y S ally, lit ra st a tn iv s its l as ith n th th r t

as ir s t sta li sh its as an i d nd t a t ating with ith r

What b m s vid nt r m d's d s t n, rha sunwittingly, s that th b tw n siti n minima ism sta s

ut rat s xa y as an instan th b th and n i h rAgainst th m d rnist tax n my a ting v rsus s ul tur ,m nimal sm's b tw n an initial y b am d as ming ut

th r traj t y, th by und rmining b th and s s ndingay m d nist siti n Advan g a r rmativ r th -

atri al att t d t ward s a , n wh r rm s u d rst d asth nting nt al ut a r r rat n mbin d with

tain mat rial ss bi iti s (and x li it y n t ab t x r ssing tim l ss ss ntials ith r nstru ti n r a sth ti s>,minima ist ra ti s a diag rammati n s v ral s ns s, and r -vid an arly insta w r ng withi and aga nst a at g r alsyst m inimalism's r i i n m d rnism's at g r s ish nta in that t ann t b said t n m th m d s

ith r ain ing r s ul tur , t tw d a wh s m d nistd niti and arity ar always m ant t i t ba , v r i a -ly, an d al rigin "Art I trast t high m d rn sm's" nly that whi h is ali d rs, m nimal sm a tivat s th" nly di r n s ar a , and ns u nt y its h z ntal(" n thing a t r an th r ) hybrid an n y b dismiss d as asimu a ra! l a s i t th at r r bj th d by m d nist

iti s li ri dTh r ss ng th dis i lina y w th th v yday n

as t th "im r r r titi n o m abymr uir s du at rs and d sign s t m bii th " ur a s ris and th v nt. n t nd, this all r a w dis i l -

a y m d r m t s ar hit tur as th raming and sing bl ms ath r than as th d n t n s ut ns h argu

m nt r a diagrammati r j t s it as axi mat thatv ry d sign r j t n ds t ta u an w th ssu what

nstitut s a h t tur b th as a d s i inary and a s ialu sti n, t sus nd and r a rang ruling siti ns and

h a hi s u r nt y in at n, t m t d s gn r j sand r ss s that ann t sim ly b in rr d r m nt xt r as ing but that r tr s tiv ly trans rm t r v ry n-t xts, s ial a d int al . T ward this nd, n mig t b gint und rstand th nn ti n a ad mia and th ssi n( riti sm and d sign a s a nd atastr h v , whi h

is t sam diagram that m r has b rr w d t x lain thv nt laught r. Thus, rath r than trying t s r bridgth r sum d hasm b tw n su h a t r ativ r aliti s, wid ning th ga may b th way t instigat th m st r d tivm m nts lla s .

As n ntrib ti n t this ssibl array w instit t n-a rms, vari s g rati ns a ng th n avan gard hav

nd av r d v r th last ur d ad s t dismantl and r n-gur n th m st intra tabl m d nist siti ns,

\\pure c cs

nam ly that b tw n d sign and riti ism, r and m rg n th hyb id "ar hi t riti a r ss na l , d v s d t inv v th b rd

and th arti abl has b n a m an d by a d d agrams, m ving m th "v rti al diag ams

s uar and th an ti n i , "a hit tur m r r t h r z ta r su a d agrams A

ra ti s, h w v , th r hav main d a s ri s s wh , n t sur sing y, hav b n m s

avant gard 's v rsi n r titi n and r l i stan , in th al ag s s v ral w r s writtlast35 y ars, th t r m st im rtant riti s th

d th ib al rmalist lin R w , th agist R yn anham, and th rit al a x st

Ta uri al l sugg st th n ar un v rsal dismis sa avant ga d wi h r s t t th hist r al avant g

h ir d i r s r ativ t th u sti n "Ant r st ng t ata gu R w d s rat t sav

stati t aband n it, and a uri anxi us t ul g ithr xhibit a u usly simi ar a biguity r hr gard t th n avant gard r j t R gardl ssth ir all g an s ar t t hn l gy ( anham), th

a ( a i r hys al m ( R w , a h agard r d ti n, ultimat ly, a a lur t ngaand a t intimat nn t n t d s urs , timag s It may b m r mi al, w v , tth nt m a y r d haswitn ss d n t th isis a hit tur but, at ast in

ar , th r sis r ti ism nth w ds, th avant-

gard has r du d a mat ri-al r s ns t th s riti sthat r sid s xa tly in th ir

lu ida i n diagrammatir dur a t w ds m s

n t a mit d nst ti n

th r al but th diagram hdiagram animat s n t nlyth un s i us R w 'smath mati s but als tht hn gi al and l ti al-s ial un ns i us Whilt aditi na m d s r t -

sm, in th r d st n tly analyti al ri ntat ns, r y n" h s, "dia t s, and" sit ns, t diagrams

th n avant gard r-at t l la s th s dual i-t s h y sitiv y xha stth triad rma , t hn -

al, and liti al iti u sthr ug th mat rial s i-tati n and r j ti n thi f rm by m ans th

ws and nstabiiti s thma h n , and v a h lastir la i ns th virtua thmul i l d vi s and ts,that is, th diag ammati


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parti

DIAGRAM: AN ORIG AL SCE E OF WR NG

Peter ise

As in al periods o supposed ch ge, new icons are t ust for-

wa d as beacons of m ation o it is with the idea of theagram W ile it c be g ed that the agram is as old as rch -tec ure itself m ny see its i ti emergence RudolfWittkowe 's

se of the e sq are g id in he late 1 940s to describe P a nv as s pe gree con uedthe e squ re p oblem as prac-

iced the Americ c tec u academy of the late 1 9 5Os de ly 60s a prac ce seen ha idote to he b bble d agr m g o Bauha s c on sm r p t at H v d the

ate1 0s d thep of he French academy that was s ivog e at severa East Coast schools well to the late 1 60s As aclassica rc tect diagr thep was embod ed w th a setof preexis ent values s ch as s etry, t eche, ndp c w chconstit ted e bases of ts organiz g strategy The bubble agramattempted to e ase vestiges of an embo ied academic sm hep so do g, t lso erased the abstract geome ic con ent ofthe e square

Generic lly, a agr m is a grap c shorth d Though it s anideogram, it is not necess y abst action t is a representationof somethi g i that it s not he g itselis sense, it c othelp b t be embo ed It c eve be v e or me i g eeeve whe t atte pts to express rela o s ps o formatio dthei processes At the same me a agr m s ei her a s c urenor abs act o of str ct e. Whi e it pla s re at o sh ps

architectu al object it is not isomorp c with itchitec re e d agr s storically derstood t o

ways: as expl atory or n lyt c l device d as a generativedev ce. Al ough it s often gued at he agr m is a pos epresenta on form sta ces of exp a on d nalys s the a-gram s a form of representa onI n ly cal role the agr mrepresen s in a erent way tha a s etch or a plan of a b g

or ex mple a d agr m attempts to uncover ate t s uc es oforg za on ke the i e squ re even though it s not a conven-

on s uct e itsel As a genera ve dev ce a process of desigthe agr m is lso a fo m of representation But e a ona

ormsof repres ta on as a generator a iagr m s a med a onbetwee a p lpable object a re bu g, d what c be c ed

chitecture s teriorit C e y s g a ve role is ere tom the d agr m n o e d sco ses, such as the p rsi g of a

s t nce or a ma ema c l o sc en c e at on, where e d a-gram may reveal latent s uctures but does not expl how hoses uc ures ge erate other sente ces or e ua ons quall a c tect context we must as what t e d erence is between a

agram d a geome ic scheme n o he wo ds, whe do ines a es become a agram nd th s more han mere geometry?

W tt ower's e sq are rawi gs ofPa adio s projects e dia-g ams in that they help to expl P adi s work, but t ey do not

show how Palla o worked. P la o d Ser o had geome icschema n mi d, some es xp c t d sometimes impl c twh ch they drew e r pro ects. The ota ons of d e s o s onthe P lla pl s do ot correspond to the actu l pro ect b t tothe iagr m hat s ver a . A diag m p c t the wor iso ten never made explicit. For example, as Kurt Forster has noted,

the earliest p r hment aw gs i arc itecture a diagram aticschema is ofte d aw or etched into he s rface with a s yluswithout bei g i ked The ater i g of the act al project over t s

interiority

then becomes a superposi on of a diagram a c ace m y oft ese d aw ngs om late oth c rchitec e to the Ren ss ce

the ove lay does not act lly t ke ll o the d agr a cpr t o y p ti l aces of it The qu lity of theon the page

ch ges when it r s over the diagram from wh it is ac u llyp rtof e pl n o the bu g hus, there is a story of c

tec e of aces of sible l nes and d agr s hat o y becomesible o gh various means. These ines are e ace of n intermed ycond on that is the agr be een what c n bec ed he teriorit nd he i teriority of arc itecture, t e summat on of its story as we as the projects t at co d e st asi de ed the aces d the actu bu l g

eac g ag st derst g o the agr m as what washo ght to be appare y esse a st too a ew ge era o

e ed by new comp ter tec q es d a des to escape theperceived oedipal x et es the genera on of he mentors istoday propos g a new theory of he diagr m based p tly onG es Dele e s interpretation of Fo ca t s recasting of the dia-gra as "a series of mac c forces nd par ly on their owncyberne c h ll c a ons.their polem c t e d agr m hasbecome a key word e t preta on of the new They chal engeboth he a tion geome ic bases of the d agram and the sedi-mented story of c tectu e, d in so doing question ny rela-

on of the diagr m to architec ure teriority or interioritE Somol follows eleuze in situat g t ese deas of he a-

gr m rc itectu e For Somol d agrams re a y ki d of expl a

- T

23.27

tory abstrac on c toons form las diagrams machi es bothDiagrams for the S ten Isl nd In t tut f n Sc e c tt SL G r. F r yT nal, N Yo kabs ract a d co crete Some mes they are simply fo d d

other mes they a e m p lated A part a list o what Somolabe s as prev o s d agrams c udes the e sq e, he P op

ticon the Dom o the yscraper the d c d he decoratedshed, he fold, d bachelor mac es. Somo says that he isse c g for a ternat ve way of dealing w th c tect e s

story, one not fo ded on resemblance and ret rn to originsbut on modes of beco g an emergence of fference. heproblem with this idea of the diagram as matter as ows andforces is that t s indifferent to the relatio ship of the diagramto architect re s inter ority nd n pa ticu a to t ree con tionsun que to architecture ( 1 ) architecture's compliance w h themetaphysics of presence;(2 the a ready motivated condition of

the sig in arch tect re and 3 the ecessary relations p ofrchitecture to a desiri g subjectSomo s argume t or a diagrammat c project t es as

xiomatic that every design pro ect, whether i pract ce or the versity, eeds to ta e p a ew the ss e of what co stitutes the discip ine or, other words, that c tecture both as adisc pline nd a soc al pro ect eeds to suspend and rearra geru ing oppositions and h erarch es c rrently in operation Thiswo ld s ggest that design projects and p ocesses ca ot simply

Eisenman


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23 28

ep ession

e derived rom their conte ts, ut rathe must t ns orm theirvery social and intellectu conte ts. In t s sense Som l s diagrammatic p ocess as a machinic en onment, is already gi enas a socia p oject That is, t is not a stract o a tonomous tra he p esumes that architect re a eady cont ns in its e g(i e its inte io ity) the cond tion o the soc al

I n the inte io ity of architect e there is a potentiallya tonomous condition that is ot eady socialized or w ch isnot eady isto ici ed one wh ch e st l ed rom a histo icized and socia ized interiority then all diagrams do nonecessarily take up new discipl nary and socia iss es Rathe ,d agrams ca e used o open p s ch a o omy o desta d its nature I this a tonomy can e de ed as sing la

eca se o the relationship in architecture o sign and signi ed,and i sing larity is a so a epetit on o di erence then therem s e some e isting co dition o chitec re order or itto e epeated di erently. This e isting condition can e ca ledarchitecture s interio i y. When the e is no inte iority that is there s o rela o sh p o ter or ty to he diagr m there s nosingula ty w ch de nes a chitect e

arch tectu e's inte io ity c n e said to ex st as a singu a asopposed to a d alectica man estation o a sign that contai s its

ow s g ed the moti a on o the sig is a ready i ternali edand th s a tonomous. Yet i th e diag am is al eady soci asSomol s ggests, this de n tion i ediately histo icizes a onomy The notion o the diag am eing p oposed he e attempts to

o ercome the historicization o the autonomy o architecturethat is the al eady moti ated nat re o architectu e s s gn

n h s co te t the relat on o the d agram to chitect re sinter ority is crucial. Foucault's understanding o an archi e asthe his or c ecord o a cu t re and o an archaeology as thesc ent c s dy o archiv mater al c e ra s ated as chitectu e s ante io ity d te iorit By their e y na re thesec not e constituted me ely y u o med matter as Somols ggests t in act a eady contain p esence moti ated signs

d a psych cal des re or de inea o y the su ject o othground and gure Adiagram o insta ility, o matter and owsmust nd a way to accommodate these concerns speci c toarc ect re th s co te t ano her dea o he iagram ca eproposed which egins rom Jacques Derrida s idea o w itingas an opening o p re presence

Fo errida iting is i t lly a conditio o repressed memory The repress o o it g s also he epress o o hat whichth eatens presence d since architect e is thes e q o themetaphysics o p esence nyth g that th eatens p esence wo d

e p esumed o e repressed i ch ec ure's ior In t ssense arch tecture s teriority d t iority c e seen as asum o repressions. While iscou ses Der ida wou d a g econtain repressions that in t r co ta a alternat e interior rep-

pe manen aces

resenta o c tecture must e seen as a speci l case eca se oits pr legi g o presence Derrida is co ect the e is lreadygi en in the i te io i y o architect e a fo m o epresentationperhaps as the ecoming o i ated o he ch tect r s gTh s repressed orm o represe ta o is not o ly te ior ctect e ut te ior to i t is t is epresenta on ch tecthat co d lso be ca ed a writ g How his w iting enters to

agram ecomes a i c iss e or rch tectureOne way that memo y o e comes orget g is through

nemon c de ices Written sts e a orm o em c de ceu one hat is g aphic and te al; they do not represen or cont

a ace c tec u e ter l nota o s c p oduce a pl tha e not g to do w th the iag am ecause a pl is a itemne o c de ceAplan s a ite con it on o t g t

aces o wri ng suggest m ny di erent p a s. is the idea o race hat is porta t or y concept o the iag m ecaus

e a plan traces e nei he y st c ural p esencemoti ated signs. Rathe aces s ggest potential rela onsh psw ich may o h g nerate d emerge om pre o sly epressedor art c lated g es. But aces in themsel es re not genera

i e r s orma i e, o e en c i calAdiagram atic mecha ism isneeded at ow o o h preser at on d eras e, that

the s me t me c n ope up epression to he possi ility o generating alternati e arch tectu gu es wh ch conta these aces

e rida says "We need a s g e appa a us that cont ns a doe syst m a perpe ua ly a a a le oce ce d te

reser e o traces Ad ag am in a chitect e c lso e seen as adou le system hat operates as a w i i g o h rom he erio i

d he nteriority o rchitec e as we as om the equ emeno a speci c p o ect The iagram acts l e a sur ace that recei sc p ons rom the memory o that wh ch does not yet ex stthat s o he po e i ch ec r o ectp o des races o

ction, enclos e me n ng d site rom the spec c cont ons These traces interact with traces rom the interiority a d the

te iori y to orm a superpositio o aces Th s s perposi opro des a me s or oo g at a spec c project that is neithecondem ed o the itera h story o the anteriori y o architect renor imited y acts the re lity o the p rticu ar site progr mcon or mea i g o he pro ec s l Both the spec c pro

d its interiority c n e writt onto the s ace o a d agram thathas the te possi ility o inscri ing mperm ent mar s a dperma ent traces W tho t these permanent traces here s no possi ity o w i i g n the chitect al o ect itse

I a chitec e s interiority is a possi e condition o a ready writ en then Derrida s se o Fre d s dou e sided My

c Writ g Pad co d e o e mode or descr ng a co cepo a iagram di erent rom oth the traditio a one in c assicarch tecture and he one p oposed y Somol Neithe o theseconsider in any detai architect re s pro lem wi h the meta

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Mystic Writing Pad

physics of p esenc , t e unmo ivat g of h sig or e psycc l p obl m of ep ession bo t e te io ity of a chit cand in th subj ct. The analogy of t Mystic W iti g Pad is useful becaus th speci c co ditio s of sit and t e an e io i y ofa ch t c bo h co stitut a fo m of psych cal ep ession

The Mystic W it ng Pad as p opos d i F ud s alogy cosists of e laye s: the out lay o su fac w t o ig al

iti g takes place a mid e lay on w ch he w iti g is sc ib d and nde n ath a tabl t of imp essio abl mat ialUsing a s yl s on s on t top su face Because of t su facunde n a , h top su fac ev als a se i s of black es When t e

op surface s f d om t ot wo black es sappe rW a r m s s h sc p io o h bo om s rface he t ace of

he nes t a av b n ra e de a ons made by he s yus r m , lways p se t hus h a e possib t es fo

it g on t e op s fac and a m ans of eco d g he t aces oft s iting as a s i s of sup posi ions o h tabl t nde ea hwit out ma tai ng t e spec c i g on t top su fac This

calls t t ac s of the ea l est nc s o s o p chm t that l eadyxis i h ant o it of c t ctu e as desc ibed abov

T a chit ctu al diag a ik the Mystic W iting Pad canb conc ived of as a s i s of su fac s o lay s which a both

consta tly egene a ed a d at th same tim capable of r taini gmultipl s i s of t ac s us, what would b seen a a c it ctu al object s bot st p c pt al s im lus the object

s along wi i s a sth tic a d icon city and a othe aye ,

th t ace, a i en nd that wo ld supplement s p c p ioSuch a ace wou d be unde stood to exis befo e percept on, ino her words, before a pe c p on appears to s f o is consc ousof s f

rrida says " emo y o r g is e open ng of ap oc ss of app a anc its lf T p ceiv d may only be ad nt past b neat p c ption a d aft it Th d ag am as a s ata of t ac s off s t possib lity of op ning p t visible to tha ticu able to what is wi in t visibl I this co t xt a c i

ctu e becomes mo tha that which is s n o whic is psent it is no lo g enti ly a e s tatio o a llust ation ofp ese c Rat a ch t ct ca b a -p s ntatio of t isint vening appa at s cal d t diag am In t is se se, the diag am co ld be d stood to xist b fo the an e io ity and

t e int io ity of architec It xists as th pot tial space ofw iting a w i g which s ppl m nts t id a of an inte o ityb fo pe cep on his idea of a t rio ity as conta ning anal ady-wri en unde cu s th p mis of ar h tecture s o g n

p s nceSuch a de ni ion of iti g impli s at in an arc tectu al

object, the object s p s nc wo d eady contain a epeti ioIn this s se an a c t ctu obj ct wo ld no longe be m lya conditio of b i g b t a co ditio which has wi in i s lf

already-w itten

bo h a r p t tion of ts being d a epresen ation of that epetitio If the i te io ity of a chit ct is singula as opposed todial ctical a d if t at sing la i y is a epetition of diff ncth a ch t c 's i t io ity may b al eady w itt n

T is a s co d conce tha suc an idea of t diag amm st add ss and that is po e tial fo t b coming unmotivat d of t sig i st the al eady-w itte i t oduc s th id aof t e i d x into th a chi ct al object T is ind x is ad as

st mov m t away f om the motivated sign H a o hlay m st b add d to th s ata one w ic th o gh a p oc ssof bl i g ds w possibiliti s fo g al chit c u e s in io i y that could not hav come from tha t oi y e e n cond tion is requ r d i th proc ss some h g

atwl i t oduce a gene ati e o r sfo ma i age as ala e in e diagramma c s ata T s e e agen is o eexp ession of a d si ing subject, but a m st come f omoutside of a chit c e as some p evio sly un gu d, yet imma

nt agent i ith the speci c sit t p og am o t histo yI cou d tak h fo m of a t anspa ent patt n o sc wh chcaus s t al ady imp inted to app a as othe g atio s bothb u ing a d v a ing w at al ady xists This is simila o taction of a moi pa t o lt which p mits s x n

t ac s o b s f of thei fo m a chi ct al co t xtsTh diag acts as a ag ncy w ic foc s s th atio s ip

b twee a aut o subj c a a c it ctu object d aec v g s bj ct; it is t s a a hat ex s betwe them D

da says that d voking his p es n atio of th psyc calappa a s had t imp ss on of b ing fac d with a machwh ch wo d soo run by tsel u w at was to u by i s fwas not a mecha c e-presen ation or i s im ta on but thepsyc e se T d agramma c process wi n e u ousom psychical put f om a subject e diag am cannot

eprod c f om within s cond tio s The diag am doesot gene at i and of itself It opens p the ep essio that l m

its a gen ativ and ansfo mative capacity, a p ssio t a sco stitut d in bot th ant io ity of a c it ctu a d in ts b c . Th ag am do s not in itself contain a p oc ss of ovcomi g Rat t diag am abl s a a ho to s m ltan o slyov com d acc ss the h sto y of th disco s whi ovcoming is o own psychical esistanc He th iag am

ak s o th dista ci g of th s bj ct a tho It b com s boation l d mys ical, a st ang sup posi on of he two Yaccord g o eud, only e subjec s ab to cons itute thpast t e d ag does no do t s e says, T r must come a

im when t e analogy be ween s app ra us d the p otot pe c as to app y It is tru hat o c w i ng has b

as d h Mys ic Pad can ot p od c ' it om with n tco ld b a Mystic Pad i de d if lik o m mo y i co daccompl s hat

23.29R S S N R

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ANY, 23- Diagram Work- Data Mechanics for a Topological Age (1998)

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Transcript of ANY, 23- Diagram Work- Data Mechanics for a Topological Age (1998)