Architectural theory – the collection of theoretical approaches by which aesthetic, technological and societal challenges of architecture are defined and challenged – has only recently come to define itself as a field that is to play a major role in the education of future architects. The project aims to study this process of formation as it happened in Flanders and Belgium during the period 1965-1995. The project will thus illuminate the circulation of theoretical knowledge by dissecting texts, buildings and visual images in which concepts were transmitted. Secondly, the project will concentrate on the role of architectural theory within architectural education and architectural practice. This will be done by studying how the work of ‘gatekeepers’ – intellectuals, architects and teachers launching, adapting or contesting new ideas – was received within schools of architecture.
Funded by the FWO
Supervision: Hilde Heynen, Rajesh Heynickx and Yves Schoonjans
Phd-students working on the project: Elke Couchez and Sebastiaan Loosen