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History and Theory of Architecture IX: Cosmic Anxiety
Last Updated: 2026-06-03 00:07:22
Abstract
The lecture course discusses cosmic perspectives in architecture and its discontents in contemporary architecture and its recent past
Objective
The course provides tools to critically assess the discourse on cosmic perspectives and architectural elements in contemporary Western and non-Western building traditions.
Content
Architecture and Cosmic Anxiety: from Artemis II to Nancy Holt and Beyond—According to Cesare Cesariano, the Renaissance translator of Vitruvius, “the celestial sphere of the cosmos and its parts are set in motion as if by an architect”. This contention appears to be reassuring to Earth's inhabitants in a dual sense. A supreme principle that orders the world could be nothing other than what architects do when designing earthly dwellings—or vice versa. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the imponderabilia implied here resurface in the architecture of the second half of the 20th century, with repercussions that continue to this day. Is the occasional feeling of architectural desolation a kind of diffuse cosmic anxiety?
Resources
Literature
Syllabus and readings will be presented in the first lecture.
General Information
- Language
- English
- Levels
- MSC
- Frequency
- Yearly recurring
Examination
- Type
- session examination
- Mode
- written 45 minutes
- Aids
- None
Course Components
| Type | Title | Time & Place | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| lecture |
History and Theory of Architecture IX: Cosmic Anxiety
No course 23.10.2026 (seminar week) and in the last two semester weeks (final critiques).
|
No time listed | 1 h weekly |