Linguistics Theories as a Major Influence on Architectural Theory in 1980s-1990s

Linguistics Theories as a Major Influence on Architectural Theory in 1980s-1990s

Introduction

It is believed that the Linguistics theories have a major influence on architectural theory that existed in 1980s-1990s. The man who actually invented literary deconstruction was Jacques Derrida. He was a French man and linguist as well who conveyed the idea that meaning in language is completely unstable. He gave many reasons to supports his idea like he argued that a text cannot be interpreted with a single meaning, certainly not a meaning that the writer invests in it (Edmondson, et.al, 1998).

Discussion

The main idea that leads to the concept was channelized by Peter Eisenman from the deconstructivist philosophy. The architect Peter Eisenman illustrated the idea and philosophical bases from the literary movement Deconstruction, and there was a direct association and alliance with Derrida on many of his architectural projects. The best example that can be quoted as a unified work of Peter Eisenman and Jacques Derrida is an entry submitted by Eisenman for Parc de la Villette. Other architects apart from Eisenman were concerned with "metaphysics of presence," Daniel Libeskind was also one of the architects of the same era. This is regarded as the primary subject of deconstructivist philosophy in architecture theory (Derrida & Caputo,1997).

Some of the examples that support this idea are Zaha Hadid, London, Grand Buildings Competition, 1985, Himmelblau (Wolf Prix), Vienna, Attic Conversion, 1984-88 and Peter Eisenman, Wexner Center, OSU, Columbus, 1983-89.

Since it is believed and accepted internationally that architecture is a language that has an ability to communicate through its meaning. Further it a strong believe that architecture is receiving treatments by methods of linguistic philosophy. The dialectic that is presented by the presence and absence or in the other language solid and void can be interpreted in many projects of the architectural works from 1980s-1990s, like the work of Peter Eisenman. Derrida and Eisenman both were of the view that place of presence, is architecture, and the same dialectic of presence and absence is found in construction and deconstructivism (Frampton, 1992).

Literary criticism cannot be the only element that will be pointed out for an imitative of new architectural thinking in 1980s. Linguistic theory was a major experimental apparatus that rose in 1980s in order to understand architecture. Among the mentioned and verified theories, architects and architectural theorists were convinced of the ...