Architecture and work: a flusserian analysis, from medieval monasteries to Smart Cities
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.22320/07196466.2025.43.068.04Keywords:
workspaces, offices, factories, monasteries, architectural theoryAbstract
The paper draws from two theoretical references – philosopher Vilém Flusser's reflections on the nature of work and the concepts of space and place developed by geographer Yi-Fu Tuan – to analyse three types of workspaces: medieval monasteries, industrial-age factories, and contemporary offices. According to Flusser, "To be able to work, it is necessary to suppose that the world is not as it should be and that it can be transformed", and architecture – from the process of conception to construction – presupposes a type of work that transforms the world in a very concrete way, articulating the dimensions described by Tuan as a mythical space, pragmatic space, and geometric space. The intersection between the Flusserian approach and Tuan's concepts reveals some structural aspects of the relationships between buildings and the cultures they express and support, indicating possible paths for interpreting the role of architecture in a world dominated by devices.
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