A Philosopher Looks at Architecture

by Paul Guyer

What should our buildings look like? Or is their usability more important than their appearance? Paul Guyer argues that the fundamental goals of architecture first identified by the Roman architect Marcus Pollio Vitruvius - good construction, functionality, and aesthetic appeal - have remained valid despite constant changes in human activities, building materials and technologies, as well as in artistic styles and cultures. Guyer discusses philosophers and architects throughout history, including Alberti, Kant, Ruskin, Wright, and Loos, and surveys the ways in which their ideas are brought to life in buildings across the world. He also considers the works and words of contemporary architects including Annabelle Selldorf, Herzog and de Meuron, and Steven Holl, and shows that - despite changing times and fashions - good architecture continues to be something worth striving for. This new series offers short and personal perspectives by expert thinkers on topics that we all encounter in our everyday lives.

Genres: Philosophy, Architecture, Nonfiction

208 pages, Paperback

First published May 20, 2021

About the author

Paul Guyer is an American philosopher. He is a leading scholar of Immanuel Kant and of aesthetics and has served as Jonathan Nelson Professor of Philosophy and Humanities at Brown University since 2012.

Guyer has written nine books on Kant and Kantian themes, and has edited and translated a number of Kant's works into English. In addition to his work on Kant, Guyer has published on many other figures in the history of philosophy, including Locke, Hume, Hegel, Schopenhauer, and others. Guyer's Kant and The Claims of Knowledge (Cambridge University Press) is widely considered to be one of the most significant works in Kant scholarship. Recent works by Guyer include Knowledge, Reason, and Taste: Kant's Response to Hume (Princeton University Press), and The Cambridge Companion to Kant's Critique of Pure Reason (Cambridge University Press).

His other areas of specialty include the history of philosophy and aesthetics. His three-volume work A History of Modern Aesthetics was published by Cambridge University Press in February 2014. Guyer was President of the American Society for Aesthetics in 2011–13. Guyer was also President of the Eastern Division of the American Philosophical Association in 2011-12.

Reviews

[Leonel Buelvas Garcia · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Philosopher Looks at Architecture es un interesante libro que reflexiona la arquitectura con la filosofía.

El libro de Paul Guyer elabora como a pesar del tiempo, los cambios socioeconómicos, estéticos, de materiales, de tecnología, la arquitectura, en sus niveles más abstractos, sus objetivos y valores no han cambiado. Dicha idea parte del pensamiento del arquitecto romano Marco Vitruvio Polión, y sus principios básicos en la arquitectura: la belleza (venustas), la firmeza (firmitas) y la utilidad (utilitas).

Guyer desarrolla en el libro que estos principios, de una u otra manera, han permanecido en la arquitectura de hoy, en teoría y en práctica. En esa línea, el autor relaciona los principios de Vitruvio con los razonamientos filosóficos de Kant, Schopenhauer y Ruskin, analizando como se observan en la arquitectura de Semper, Wright, Loos y Mies, algunas veces de manera explícita y otras implícita, pero siempre presente.

El lenguaje no es complicado de entender, sin embargo, si no vienes de la arquitectura -como yo-, es posible que tengas que ir a consultar uno que otro término relacionado.

Tal vez uno de los pocos lunares del libro sea la nula relación entre su argumento con los principios de Vitruvio y la arquitectura por fuera de occidente.

A pesar de ello, creo que es un buen libro para reflexionar la arquitectura, y de los pocos explícitamente enfocados con la filosofía.

En particular, me hizo pensar en la arquitectura del futuro, y el subestimado papel que tiene en la resolución de los problemas que enfrenta la humanidad en un mundo cada vez más acelerado, caótico y llenos de incertidumbres.