Architectural Affects: Rethinking the Built Environment Through the Lens of Deleuze and Guattari

Architecture has long been considered a static and unchanging field, concerned primarily with the physical form and function of buildings. However, recent scholarship has begun to challenge this traditional view, arguing that architecture is also a dynamic and affective force, capable of producing a wide range of emotions and experiences in its users.

This book, Architectural Affects After Deleuze and Guattari, explores this new understanding of architecture through the lens of the work of Gilles Deleuze and Félix Guattari. Deleuze and Guattari were two French philosophers who developed a unique and influential approach to philosophy that emphasized the importance of affect, becoming, and difference.

Architectural Affects after Deleuze and Guattari (Routledge Studies in Affective Societies)

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Their work has been used to challenge traditional understandings of a wide range of disciplines, including architecture.

Deleuze and Guattari's Philosophy of Affect

Deleuze and Guattari's philosophy of affect is based on the idea that affect is not simply an emotional state, but rather a force that produces change. Affect is what drives us to act, to create, and to connect with others. It is also what makes us vulnerable to suffering and pain.

Deleuze and Guattari argue that architecture can be a powerful force for producing affect. Buildings can make us feel happy, sad, angry, or inspired. They can also make us feel connected to others or isolated. The way that a building is designed, its materials, and its surroundings all contribute to its affective atmosphere.

Architectural Affects

The book Architectural Affects After Deleuze and Guattari explores a range of architectural affects, including:

* The affect of enclosure: Buildings can make us feel protected and secure, or they can make us feel trapped and claustrophobic. * The affect of light: Light can create a sense of warmth and well-being, or it can create a sense of coldness and isolation. * The affect of materials: The materials used in a building can create a sense of luxury and comfort, or they can create a sense of poverty and squalor. * The affect of space: The way that space is organized in a building can create a sense of openness and freedom, or it can create a sense of confinement and oppression.

The book Architectural Affects After Deleuze and Guattari offers a new way of thinking about architecture, one that emphasizes the importance of affect and becoming. By understanding the affective power of architecture, we can design buildings that create positive and transformative experiences for their users.

Author Biography

Kevin R. Johnston is an Associate Professor in the School of Architecture at the University of Waterloo. His research focuses on the intersection of architecture and philosophy, with a particular emphasis on the work of Gilles Deleuze and Félix Guattari. He is the author of several books, including Architectural Affects After Deleuze and Guattari (Routledge, 2023).

Architectural Affects after Deleuze and Guattari (Routledge Studies in Affective Societies)

5 out of 5

FREE