Yale University, School of Architecture

Architectural Representation beyond Perspectivism

Author(s): Alberto Pérez-Gómez and Louise Pelletier
Source: Perspecta, Vol. 27 (1992), pp. 20-39
Published by: MIT Press on behalf of Perspecta.
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/1567174
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Architectural BeyondPerspectivism
Representation
Alberto Pe'rez-Gdmez and Louise Pelletier

I We use"meaning" in a sensederived Computer-aided designandtechnical drawing havebecomepartoftheeveryday life 21

fromthephenomenology ofEdmund ofthearchitect.Whiletheirundisputed hasmadethearchitect's
precision taskinto
HusserlandMauriceMerleau-Ponty. akin to and their is now deemed to be a proof
something appliedscience, efficiency
In thissense,meaning is a givenin the
ofquality,theproblem ofarchitectural stillbegsdiscussion.
representation Toolsof
prereflective engagement ofman(with
hisbody)in theworld.Thereis no underlie
representation theconceptual ofa projectandthewholeprocess
elaboration
questionhereofmeaning as theeffect ofthegeneration ofform.Eventhoughmostenlightened architects
wouldrecognize
ofassociation. Humanmeaning thelimitationsoftoolsofprojection suchas plans,sections, andelevationsand
remains, primordially, a mystery where- planning
predictive in to
relation theactualmeaning of their built
work,'no alterna-
bywe recognize an orderin thespeci- tivesareseriously
considered outsidethedomainofmodernperspectivism, which
oftheperception.
ficity It is theobject-
hasdeeplyconditioned ourknowledge andperception.
ified,enftamed perception ofobjects
thatmakesitso difficult forus to
The functional motivations ofa technological worldhavehelpedto transform per-
understand thatthisperception with
toolsintopragmatic
spectival projections thatareunableto translateintotherealm
meaning is indeedtheverygroundof
ourthoughts andactions. ofrepresentationthesymbolic orderoftheworld.2Today,theprocessofcreation in
architectureoftenconsists
ofa formalistic approachthatassumesthatthedesignor
2 Froma phenomenological perspec- ofa
representation building demands a setofprojections.Theseprojections are
tivea "symbol" is nota contrivance or meantto actas therepository ofa complete ideaofa building,a city,ora technolog-
invention. Symbols areof course histori- icalobject.Forpurposes ofdescriptive or
documentation, construction,
depiction,
callydetermined butpossessa transhis-
anyimparting ofobjectiveinformation, thearchitectural hasgenerally
profession
toricaldimension, as we todayhave
accessto themeanings ofthepast.The identified
architectural as
drawings projections. These reductive
representations rely
symbolis alsonotnecessarily a repre- on syntacticconnectionsbetween images,witheachpieceonlya partofa dissected
sentation ofabsolutetruths ortranscen- whole.Representations inprofessional then,areeasilyreducedto thestatus
practice,
dentaltheological values.It affordsus ofefficient
neutral instruments devoidofinherent value.Devicessuchas drawings,
a glimpse ofourtranshistorical embod- models,photographs, andcomputer areperceivedas a necessary
sur-
prints, graphics
iedreality (neverfixedorreducible to a
rogateofthe work.
built It is thereforecrucialto seethe implicationsof sucha
formulation suchas thetransparent
andthus reductiveattitudeon thecreative processin architecture.
BeingofWestern metaphysics)
makesitpossibleforus toendurein
Thisdescriptivesetofprojections
thatwe todaytakeforgranted is in factourinheri-
theworlddespiteourpersonal mortali-
tancefromthegeometrized, homogeneous spaceofthenineteenth century. Our
ty.It is ourpositionthatsuchunder-
standing ofsymbolization as a reality implicit in
trust the of
application a scientific
methodology to architecture derives
immanent in theworldofmansurvives directlyfromthetechniquesprescribedbyJacquesNicolasLouisDurandinhis
boththecritique ofphilosophical PricisdesLefonsd'Architecture
(I802 and Durand's
I813).3 legacyis theobjectification
nihilism andrelativism, andas a goalof ofstyleandtechnique, andtheestablishmentofapparentlyirreconcilable alterna-
architectural designovercomes the
construction
tives:technological versusartistic
(functional) architecture (formal),the
esthetic formalism thatis usuallythe
result ofthisviewin theself-referential falsedichotomyofnecessary
structure ornament.
and contingent
products ofpostmodern architecture.

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cJ

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L( 3 J.N. L. Durandgaveus thefirst Though theformalization of descriptive geometrypromoteda particularly simplistic

Q)
architectural whosevalueswere
theory theprojectivetool is a productof our technologicalworldgroundedin a
objectification,
Pc
directly from
extrapolated theaimsof modernworld-viewthatwe cannotsimplyreject.But a different use of abstraction,
science
applied andtechnology.
Never
relatedto modernart,has been generatedfromthesame historicalsituation.Its inten-
before
Durand hadtheconcernfor
beensubordinated
tothepur- tion,themodel of which,as we will show,is closerto a filmmontage,is to transcend
meaning
suitofefficiency in the
andeconomy to transcenddehumanizingtechnologicalvalues (oftenconcealedin a
perspective,
ofdesign.
production Forthepurpose
of worldthatwe thinkwe control)throughtheincorporationof a criticalpositionabout
thisarticle
itis particularly
crucialto thecontemporary
situationthatmightallow a new creativeprocessto emerge.
keepinmindtheconnectionbetween
thissystem
ofvalues
anditstools,
i.e., The objectifying
visionof technologydeniesthepossibilityof realizingin one drawing
Durand'sMdcanismedela Composition, or artifacta symbolicintentionthatmighteventuallybe presentin thebuiltwork.The
thefirst
designmethodologythoroughly factis thattheprocessof makingthebuildingendowsit witha dimensionthatcan-
dependenton thepredictive
qualityof
not be reproducedthroughthepictureor imageof thebuiltwork.Reciprocally,
archi-
theprojections
ofdescriptive
geometry.
tecturalrepresentations
mustbe regardedas havingthepotentialto embodyfullyan
4 Thisstatement recognizesthepoliti- intendedorder,likeanyotherworkof art.4
calandpublicaspectofarchitectural
meaning. The technological vision,the Today we recognizeseriousproblemswithour postindustrial
citiesand our scientistic
enframed vision,is ourvision.The first wayof conceivingand planningbuildings.Many philosophersand culturalhistorians
stepforthearchitect in
interested have describedthecrisisof modernscienceand emphasizedthenecessityof transcend-
an
retrieving ethical is
praxis toaccept ing reductionist
thinkingin all disciplinesof human endeavor.They have accepted
thenecessityofself-transformation,ofa theultimateneed fora mythopoeticdimensionof discourse,a narrativethatinvolvesan
recollection
ofbeingthrough our
22 embodiment. The termsembodiment accountingof theexistentialanxietythatis the transhistorical
natureof our mortal

and embodied areusedin their human life.'A similarintentionmustbe incorporatedinto architecture. It is imperative
reality
phenomenological sense.Embodiment thatwe not takeforgrantedcertainassumptionsabout architectural
ideation,and that
refers toa nondualistic,
specifically post- we redefineour toolsin orderto generatemeaningfulform.Our professionalres-
Cartesianunderstanding ofconscious- ponsibilitydemandsour concernforthemakingof a worldthatis not merelya com-
nesswheremindandbodyarenotina fortableor pragmaticshelter,but thatofferstheinhabitanta physical,formalorder
mechanistic
functional, andthe
relation,
thatreflectsthedepthof our humancondition.In thisessaywe will explorethe
boundariesbetween theexternaland
internal
worldsofexperience vanish. conceptionof buildingas a poetictranslationratherthanas a prosaictranscription
of
itsrepresentation.6
5 A shortlistofphilosophers following
thispathcouldstartwithFriedrich
Nietzsche andincludeE. Husserl,
MartinHeidegger, JoseOrtegay Gasset, Am. Ai
"j-R-m-
and,morerecently, GeorgeGusdorf, dim. . J
. :
,.. -....
...,. ... . . .. ...
DavidM. Levin,andHansBlumenberg. Fr ?
The implications ofmythareobviously ..

complexandoftencontradictory in the ~ ' ~ ~ ~ ~ *

workofthesewriters. We don'tusemyth , 21.... "-,'
as a falsestoryaimedatperpetuating
theabhorrent exploitative
politicalstruc-
q%
turesof our history.Mythcannotsimply
be added to formto make some kind . . .s" " -
,,!*?
of meaningfularchitecture.
Our conten-
tionwithBlumenbergis thatmythis
ultimatelyunavoidablein human
p0-4-. ~IFT
Pr lL I11
FRA
ldI
""'?L Aw-
-16P-AM1- 40ANO:: i
t
r:"""

17, .1
V;:::
7I! 7,n.""
cultureand thatit is our only meansof
I a ci
articulatinga truthgroundedin our ,s
",",,,":':
.......~~_.
.... .:'..
mortality and rationality.Even contem- -----------
I;----
poraryscientistsnow realizethatnarra-
I A-A.~
,, ..,,d ? L':
.. ...................
tivesare crucialto thesubstantiationof
specifictheories;thatthegreatestprecision
leads to uncertainty.This mythopoetic 2 PortD'Ostie,JN.L. Durand
Izoo.
articulationmustbe thepoint of departure
of our fictiveand historicalnarratives
as
we tryto developan ethicalpraxis.This is
indeed the basis of a theoryof architecture
thatis not a methodology.

Architectural
Reoresentation
BeyondPersoectivism

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 6 Addressing theproblem oflanguage, There is an intimaterelationshipbetweenarchitectural
meaningand themodus
Heidegger recognizedthatthe representa- operandiof thearchitect,the natureof his techne.7We mustlearnto recognizethedif-
tivefunctionof(scientific)
prosehas ferencesamong therepresentational artifactsin our architectural
history.Since
beenexhausted.To transcend theresulting theRenaissance,therelationshipbetweentheintentionsof architectural
drawingsand
silencewe mustrecognizetheprimacy
thebuiltobjectsthattheydescribeor depicthas changed.Though subtle,these
ofpoeticspeech,a sayingthatreveals
whileconcealing; a differentsay-
aletheia, differences
are nonethelesscrucial.They can onlybe perceivediftheobjectsare under-
ingofthetruth. in the "worldof theworks,"i.e., in thecontextof their
stood hermeneutically,
respectiveculturalworldsand particularly
theconceptionsof space and timeon which
7 SeeAlbertoPerez-Gomez, Architecture theyare grounded.8
andtheCrisisofModern Science
(Cambridge:MT Press,1983),introduction On examiningthemostimportantarchitectural treatisesin theirrespectivecontexts,we
andch.9, and"AbstractioninModern have concludedthatthesystematization
thatwe takeforgrantedin architectural draw-
Architecture"
in vIA9 (Philadelphia,
1988).
ingwas once lessdominantin theprocessof maturationfromthearchitectural
idea to
theactual builtwork.Priorto theRenaissance,architectural
drawingswererare.In the
8 PaulRicoeurthoroughly developsthe
complexnotionofthe"worldofthework" Middle Ages architects
did not conceiveof a whole buildingidea, and theverynotion
inseveral
works,particularlyHistoryand of a scale was unknown.9Filarete,discussingin his treatisethefourstepsto be followed
Truth
(Evanston,Illinois:Northwestern in architectural
creation,was carefulto emphasizethatin each translationfrompropor-
Press,1965)and TheConflict
University tionsto lines,to models,and to buildings,theproblemis autonomous,and thatthe
(Evanston,
oflnterpretations Illinois:
connectionbetweenthedifferent stepsis analogousto an alchemicaltransmutation,
not
Northwestern
University Press,1974).
to a mathematicaltransformation.10 Architecturaldrawingscould not therefore
be con-
ceivedas instrumental
artifacts
thatmightbe unambiguouslytranslatedinto buildings.
9 Gothicarchitecture inparticular wasa
questionofconstruction, operating 23
During theRenaissance,architecture
came to be understoodas a liberalart,and archi-
throughwell-establishedtraditionsand
rulesthatwouldbe directly tecturalideasweretherebyincreasingly
conceivedas geometricallineamenti, as
geometrical
appliedon thesite.Theirexpression was bidimensional,orthogonalprojections.A gradualand complextransitionfromtheclas-
theresultofchanging laboranddiverse sical theoryof visionto a new mathematicaland geometricalrationalization
of the
methods suppliedbyitinerant bandsof imagewas takingplace." But thenew understanding of a perspectival
imageremained
stonemasons whomigrated withweather
directlyrelatedto thenotionof classicalopticsas a scienceof thetransmissionof light
patternstoworkon variousbuilding
rays.The pyramidofvision,thenotionon whichtheRenaissanceidea of theimageas a
projectsaroundEurope.The multiplicity
windowon theworldwas based,was inheritedfromtheeuclideannotionof thevisual
ofstyles,suchas in thecathedral of
Chartres,wasnotperceived as an inconsis-
tencybutas a layeringofvariedsolutions
bydifferent handsfora number ofspecific
structuralproblems overthecourseof
time.The famousdiscussion aroundthe
ideasandbuilding oftheMilancathedral
constitutesan excellent
exampleofthe
complexprocessofbuilding ideationin
theMiddleAges.

Io See Filarete'sTrattato
(reprint,Milano:
Il Polifilo,I972), in whichhe discussesin
the formof a symposiumthe construction
of the cityof Sforzinda.

u1 The medievaltreatiseson perspective,

fromIbn Alhazenand Alkindito Bacon,
and Peckhamto Vitelloand Grossatesta,
examine,principally,the physical
and physiologicalphenomenonof vision.
In the culturalcontextof the Middle
Ages itsapplicationwas specifically
related 3 Detailofftontispiece
tothe1572latin
to mathematics.
edition
of OpticaeThesaurusby
Ibn-al-Haitham
Alhazen(p65-ro39).

Alberto andLouisePelletier
Plrez-G6mez

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1\

ed
u
U " . ... .. ..
. :'":7.:: :4
o 12 Alberti'scentral point(puntocentrico) r - ...-
- :. ??.-i
?":
':?i;i-r:
Pc
vl oftheperspective construction is often
L(
o
wronglyassociated withthe"vanishing" "! g\ '
Pc
pointprojected In factthe
at infinity. l

pointofconvergence in theconstruzione /.

is determined
legittima andfixedbythe
pointofsightas a "counter-eye" on the ...
.........
.....
.... . ......
.............. ...".. ' .... .' ..
.....[.: ...;/:I-
ofthe"window."
surface .........-

13 is obviously a complexissue.The rOr

"This
interest
painter's in mathematical depth,
ina measurable orderofexperience ................. .
through layers ofevents, hadas a corollary
theuseofarchitectural backdrops as the W... . '-'x
. .

idealmeansto express thisconcern. It

Loor
wouldbe naivetodenytheoften-stated ...............
connection between Renaissance paintings "~~~~~.
..........
:.
....... t
andtheworkofarchitects. However, as we ;D

Rnm
lr??;.*
willcontendhere,theuseofperspectivus j ~??.:;:c:~~~ii
'
is particularly
artificialis theprovince of ..:..::::jiiii;
:.r..?..-. :.. :, "..4A?
Thesecomplexities
painters. arethesource >:""
... ....,iii::!.
ofmanysimplistic misinterpretations of .. . ........
K;?-
linearperspective as theoriginofarchitec-
turalideationin thefifteenth-century. G-'- -.:air-wrPlC..t~
24 The construzione legittima as developed by
Brunelleschi andAlberti fortheartof
paintingwasassociated witharchitectural
construction becausethesubjectofrepre-
sentationhadto be architectural forthe
perspectivedepthtoappear.

14 Albertihadalsoemphasized thediffer-
encebetween drawingsofthepainter and
thoseofthearchitect.In De ReAedificato- machine
4 Perspective withan illustration
or TenBooks,Book2,ch.I, Alberti ofbinocular
visionreduced
toa single
point,
ria
pointedout,in thecontext of theuseful- da 1743.
Vignola,
J.B.
nessofrough,undecorated modelsin
design,thatthearchitectandthepainter
cone. The eyewas believedto projectitsvisualraysonto theobject,withperception
bothrevealed depth(prominentias/rilievr)
inverydifferentways.Whilethepainter occurringas a dynamicactionof thebeholderupon theworld.Renaissanceperception
"takespainstoemphasize therelief
of remainedprimarilytactile.The hypothesisof a vanishingpointwas both unnecessary
in with
objects paintings shading and fortheconstructionof perspective,
and ultimately inconceivableas therealityof percep-
diminishinglinesandangles"(indeed, tion in everydaylife.12
through themethods oflinearperspective
thathe discussedin Della Pictura),the withmethodsof linearper-
painterswereexperimenting
Even thoughfifteenth-century
architectrecognizesdepth (raffigurai of pictorialdepthwas not yetsystematized
spective,thegeometrization and did not
rilievr)by means of drawingthe plan
immediatelyinfluencetheexperienceof theworldor theprocessof architecturalcre-
(medianteil disegnodellapainta/exfunda-
ation.'13 It was impossiblefortheRenaissancearchitectto conceivethatthetruthof the
mentidescriptioni)and representsin other
drawingsthe shape and dimensionsof a two-dimensional
worldcould be reducedto itsvisualrepresentation, diaphanous
each elevation"withoutalteringthe lines sectionof thepyramidof vision.Brunelleschi,to whom we attributetheearliestexam-
and maintainingthe trueangles." The workedmostlyfrommodelsin his architectural
ple of linearperspective, practice."
architectdrawsas one who desireshis
naturalisand perspectivus
This transitionbetweenperspectivus constituteda
artificialis
workto be judged "not by theapparent
of thevisualimageand thedetachmentfrom
firststeptowarda greaterrationalization
perspective"(JamesLeoni's translation,
medievaltradition."Natural"perspectivehad firstbeen introducedinto thequadrivium
London: Alec Tiranti,I965), or "deceptive
appearances"(JosephRykwert, London: to theartof drawing.Saint
of sciencestogetherwithmusicwithouteven referring
MIT Press,1988), but "valuedexactlyon withmusic,consideringit as a visualharmony,
Thomas Aquinas associatedperspective
the basis of controllablemeasures" (our not a graphicmethod.i
translation).In attemptingto graspthe
involvedin the argument,
difficulties
it is interesting
to comparethe two
Englishtranslations of the textwiththe
Italiantranslationby Giovanni Orlandi
(Milan: Il Polifilo,1966) and the Latin

Architectural Beyond
Representation Perspectivism

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All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
 The translation
original. ofprominentia as In treatiseson perspective
as theartof drawing,startingwithAlberti'sDella Pictura,
fromthegroundplan"by
"projection binocularvisionwas reducedto a fixedpoint thatwas theapex of thecone of vision.
Rykwert/Leach/Tavernoris particularly
The necessityof stereoscopicvisionto perceivedepth,however,requiredtheintroduc-
problematic.
tionof a second elementthatwould determinetheforeshortening. In Alberti'smethod
of perspective,thisnew elementbecamean abstractscreen(knowntodayas the
15 RobertKleinelaborates uponthe
problem oftransition
between perspectivus pictureplane) intersectingthevisualraysat a givendistance.Foreshortening,
however,
naturalisandperspettivus in his
artificialis remainedtheresultof intuition.There was no systematization
in fifteenth-century
article"PomponiusGauricuson perspectivetreatises.
Perspective,"ArtBulletin,43,1961,211-13.
Kleindrawsoppositeconclusions with During thesixteenthcentury,treatiseson perspectivetriedto translatetheprimarily
regardtotheconstructive qualityof empiricalunderstandingof thisphenomenonintoa system,and became increasingly
Renaissanceperspective,
emphasizing the distancedfromtreatiseson optics.These, however,remainedtheoretical or mathemati-
commonreading ofperspective as theori-
cal elucidationsand had almostno practicaluse in perspectival In
representation."'
ginofarchitectural
ideationtowhichwe
havereferred. Vignola'sDue RegoledellaProspettiva
Prattica,a second observerwas introducedand
became thedistancepoint." To createa perspective, theartistsof theRenaissance
16 The bestexamples ofthismathemati- abstractedthemselvesfromtheexperiencedworld;thegeometrization of depthin paint-
cal treatment
ofperspectiveareto be ing was a signof an increasingrationalization
of perceptionin general.AlbrechtDiirer's
foundinEgnazioDanti'scommentary on
perspectival apparatus,composed of an eyepieceand a glasspanel,establisheda rigid
JacopoBarozzida Vignola'sDue Regole
methodbywhichto copy nature.The imageas a bidimensionalsectionof thecone of
dellaProspettiva
Prattica(Rome,1583),
andGuidobaldodelMonte'sMontis visionwas thusmade literal.'"
librisex(Pesaro,16oo00).
Perspectivae
25
17 The distancepoint thatdetermined
the foreshortening
was projectedon the
same pictureplane on the horizonline at
a distancefromthecentralpoint equal to
the distancebetweentheeye of the
observerand theplane of the image.In
otherwords,Vignola'smethodintroduced
a second observerat the same distance
fromthe centralpointwho looked per-
pendicularlyat the beholder,thereby
adding an elementessentialforthe repre-
sentationof stereoscopicvision.Priorto
this,withtheapexoftheconeofvisionas
a simplified hadbeen
eye,perspective
monocular.

18 Diirer'smachineis a wonderful
metaphor fortheobjectification
ofreality
thatis brought
aboutbyscientific
mental-
ity.Philosophically,
thiscoincideswith
the inceptionof what Heideggercalls "the
age of theworldpicture,"thesubstitution
of presence(or opennessto a transcenden-
tal Being) witha represented realitythat
necessarilyconceals itsgroundof truth,
i.e., thehorizonof the object,excludedby
the frame.

5 Perspective Albrecht
machine, Darer,j5I4.

6 Sketch
oftheheadinperspective,
Albrecht
Darer,154.

Alberto
Pirez-Gdmez
andLouisePelletier

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t\

ed
u
u
a,
Pc
Even thoughthedrawingsby Diirerand Philibertde l'Orme maybe seen as theorigin
cn
of computergraphics,just as theseartists'interestin projections
of the reductionism
a)
Pc markstheoriginof our own beliefthatrealitycan be represented via geometricalper-
spective(and, later,throughjournalisticphotography),it would be wrongto imagine
or as theassumed
thatperspectivealwaysexisted,eitheras a pictorialrepresentation
truthof realspace. Renaissancedrawingsare not simplythesame as moderndrawingsin
theirrelationshipto thebuiltplace. Plans and elevationswerenotyetsystematically
coordinatedwithintheframework of descriptive geometry.These drawingswerenot
instrumentaland remainedmuch moreautonomousfromthebuildingthanthosethat
resultfromtypicalcontemporary
practice.

BeforeDiirer,a plan was generallyconceivedas a composite"footprint"of a building,

:" '
and an elevationas a face.Verticalor horizontalsectionswerenot commonlyused

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bymeansofthe
7 Theheadconstructed
"transfer "Albrecht
method, Diarer,r528.

Architectural BeyondPerspectivism
Representation

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All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
 19 Michelangelo'sentireemphasiswas beforethesixteenthcentury,
just as anatomyrarelyinvolvedtheactual dissectionof
upon lifeand movement,qualitiesthat cadaversuntiltheearlymodernera. In thesixteenthcenturyMichelangelounderstood
weremostoftenexcludedfromarchitec-
thelivinghuman bodyas thefoundationof all art,and criticizedDiirer'sattemptto fix
turaltheoryin the Renaissance.Architects
a staticimageof thehuman body."' In contrastto a growingnumberof his contempo-
wereincreasinglyconcernedwiththe clar-
of measureand proportions. raries,Michelangelowas resistantto thepossibilityof makingarchitecture
throughpro-
ityand fixity
This is Michelangelo'scriticismof Ddirer's jections,as he could onlyconceiveof thehuman body in motion.2" He could still,
FourBookson Human Proportions nonetheless,perceivea simplesketchas thesymbolof a whole architectural
intention,
(Nuremberg,1528):"...[he] treatsonlyof theseed of thewhole work.2" Michelangelo'sarchitectural the
work,perhaps mostout-
the measureand kindof bodies, to which
standingof his century,is remarkably
original,foundedon an embodiedapproachto
a certainrulecannot be given,forming
the taskof buildingand rejectingprojectionsand lineamenti.
That we are todaydeeply
the figuresas stiffas stakes;and what mat-
tersmore,he saysnot one word concern- inspiredby Michelangelo'sarchitecturemay be preciselybecause his workis based on
ing human acts and gestures."(From a nonperspectival
approachto designingplaces.
Condivi's LifeofMichelangelo,quoted by
David Summers,Michelangeloand the
LanguageofArt,PrincetonUniversity
Press,1981),308; and Helmut W. Klassen,
Michelangelo:Architectureand the
VisionofAnatomy (Montreal: McGill
University,
199o), 83.

2o Michelangeloachievedthe funda-
mentaldimensionof depthby capturing
the movementof a figurethroughfore- 27
shortening.Foreshortening as understood
in the traditionof Renaissanceperspective
consistsof thevisualconstructof a frontal
geometricalplane withinwhose framethe
depthof a body mightbe articulated.
Things and theirproportionsare flattened
to correspondto the intelligibility
of this
frame,so as not to be distorted.The
extremeunderstanding of thisis Diirer's
coordinatedsystemof projection.Fore-
shorteningas developedby Michelangelo
negatesthe realityof thisframefieldby
includingperipheralvisionas well as what
frontallystandsout. This qualityof vision
is whatalso definestheconceptionand
experienceof Michelangelo'sarchitecture.
One sensesin his workthatour bodily
presencehauntsthe builtplace in thatthe
architecturemoveswithus. Includingthe
peripheralexperience,his architecture
remainsintelligibleevenwhen distorted.
and
Architecture
(Klassen,Michelangelo:
theVisionofAnatomy,85-86.)

2I It is well establishedthatno complete

drawingsof his majorworkswere
producedbeforetheexecutionof the pro-
jects; the Campodoglio in Rome is a
good example.For a veryextendedanal-
ysisof Michelangelo'sworksee JamesS.
Ackerman,TheArchitecture of andvestibule
thestaircase
8 Sketchesfor in the
Michelangelo(London: A. Zweimmer, LaurentianLibrarfMichelangelo,
1525.
197o).

AlbertoPirez-Gdmezand LouisePelletier

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All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
-,
C4

ml

22 In theoriginal Vitruvian context, the In northern ItalyDanieleBarbaro, Palladio'sfriend andpatron, wasalsoverycareful to

Greekwordidearefers to thethreeaspects that
emphasize perspective wasnot an architectural ideain theVitruvian Its
sense.22 use
ofa mentalimage(perhaps akinto the wasmainly recommended forpainters andstage-set Barbarobelieved that
designers.
Aristotelian
phantasm), understood as the
sciographia (the third Vitruvianidea),translated as resulted
"perspective," from a mis-
germ ofa project.These ideas allowed the
to imaginethedisposition ofa reading in theoriginal textofthewordscenographia, whoseapplication wasimportant
architect
TheTenBooks only in the of
building stage-sets.23Indeed, the frontal used
perspective in scenography
parts(Vitruvius,
project's
Book
ofArchitecture, I, ch. 2; Morris wasconcerned withthesurface ofthepicture planeanddidnotinvolve thethree-
28 NewYork: of "lived" topainting
HickyMorgan's translation, dimensionality space,whichexplains itsrestriction andtheater. It
DoverPublications, 13-14).Ichnographia is in suchmediathatperspective fulfilleditssymbolic functionas a meanstodisclosean
and orthographia wouldeventually be
ontological depth."Suchdistinctions, thenormrather thantheexception duringthe
translatedas "plan"and"elevation" butdo
the cor- Renaissance in Europe,revealthedifficulties involved in conceivinga workofarchitec-
notoriginally involve systematic
ofdescriptivegeometry. turein terms ofa two-dimensional setofprojections.25
respondence

orsciography, derives Indeed,itwasonlyin theseventeenth century thatperspective becamea trueVitruvian

23 Sciagraphy, ety-
fromtheGreekskia(shadow) idea.The inception oftheCartesian modern worldandtherevolution ofmodernsci-
mologically
andgraphou (todescribe). It thusbecomes enceintroduced duringthebaroqueperioda conflict between symbolic andmechanis-
related to theprojection ofshadowsin ticviewsoftheworld.26Thisdualistic of
conception reality made itpossiblefor
linearperspective. In thearchitectural tra- to becomea modelofhumanknowledge, a legitimate
andscientific
perspective repre-
dition,however, sciagraphy meanta
sentationoftheinfinite world.Baroqueperspective in artandarchitecture, however,
"draught ofa building, cutin itslength
to displaytheinterior," in wasa symbolic configuration, onethatallowedreality to keepthequalitiesthatithad
andbreadth,
otherwords,theprofile orsection.This alwayspossessed in an Aristotelianworld. During theseventeenth century thespace
useofthetermwasstillpresent in the occupiedbymanwasnothomogenized, andtheprimacy ofperception as thefounda-
nineteenth century (Encyclopedia of tionoftruth washardly affected the
by implications of thisnew science andphilosophy.
Architecture, London:The CaxtonPress, Thusperspective, idea,becamea privileged
as an architectural formofsymbolization.
1852).ModernLatindictionaries translate
The architecture ofVersailles,forexample, is notexpressed merely in theplansandsec-
scaenographia (the actualterm as it
Vitruvian tionsofthepalace;itsmeaning restsprimarily in theimplied(perspectival) orderofthe
appearsin thefirst existing
manuscript) as the drawing ofbuildings garden,thecity, andtheworld,andin theephemeral stagesetsandtheatrical fireworks
in perspective, andgenerally assumethat thatwerea partofpalacelife.Similarly, thearchitecture oftheJesuit churchinVienna
this word is with
synonymous sciagraphia. byAndreaPozzocanhardly be reducedto itssectionandelevation. Pozzo'sfresco is
The factis thatperspective wasunknown tiedto thethree-dimensionality of thearchitectural
inextricably space.Ratherthan
in ancientRome,andevenwhen
remaining in the two-dimensional fieldof the
representation,perspective is projected
Vitruvius speaksaboutthethreetypes
ofstagesetsappropriate to tragedy, froma precise pointsituated inactualspace,andfixedpermanently on thepavement of
comedy, andsatire(Bookv,ch.6), there thenavewitha bronzemarker. The spatialorderofthedomeis revealed only at the pre-
is no mention ofperspective in connec- cisemoment thata humanpresence occupiesthestation pointoftheillusionistic
tionwithclassicaltheater. Vitruvius fresco.
quadrattura
describes thefixedscaenaas a royalpalace
faqade with periaktoi, "triangularpieces Eventhoughthetheory as an offspring
ofperspective, ofthenewscience, allowedman
ofmachinery whichrevolve," placed to control
anddominate thephysical
reality ofhisexistence,thearts,gardening,
beyondthedoors,andwhosethreefaces andarchitectureduringtheseventeenthcentury werestillconcernedwiththereconcili-
weredecorated tocorrespond toeach
ationofsubjectandobjectandwiththerevelation ofan orderedcosmos.Whileman
dramatic genre.
consideredhimselfautonomousfromexternal perspective
reality, allowedhimto dwell

BeyondPerspectivism
Representation
Architectural

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All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
In Book i, ch. 2, Vitruviusdescribesthis controlof costsand thedetermination of (Venice,1569),and an
della Perspettiva
et laterumabsce-
as "frontis the thicknessof walls," etc. Barbaro,in unpublishedmanuscriptof practicallythe
scaenographia
dentiumadumbratioad circiniquecentrum fact,assumesthatin antiquity"perspec- identicaltitle,La Practicadella Prospettiva
omniumlinearumresponsus." Both Frank tive"was applied onlyto the paintedrep- (Venice: BibliotecaMarziana,ms. IT. IV,
resentationson theside of theperiaktoi. 39-5446).In the formerhe teacheshow to
Granger(London: HarvardUniversity
(La Practicadella Perspettiva,
130). renderbuildingsin perspectivein orderto
Press,1931)and MorrisHicky Morgan
constructstagesets,startingfromdetailed
(New York:Dover Publications,I96O) in
of Vitruviusread thisas
theirtranslations 24 A subtle
distinctionwas oftendrawn concerningpolygonsand
instructions
while in thelatterhe deals 29
"perspective."Granger'stranslationreads: betweenprospettiva, generallyunderstood polyhedra,
as the artof drawingcomplexgeometrical mostlywiththestudyof geometricalbod-
"Scenography(perspective)[is] the
volumesconstructedfromtheirplanimet- ies and theirrelationshipto perspective.
shadingof the frontand the retreating
sides,and the correspondenceof all lines ricelaborations(so as to representthem Prospettiva,accordingto Barbaro,ad-
and perspettiva, dressedthe practicalconcernsof artists
to thevanishingpoint (sic!) whichis the three-dimensionally),
centreof the circle." Hicky Morgan's whichdealt mainlywiththesurfaceof the assumingthattheessence
and architects,
was evidentlythe
of builtarchitecture
translationis also problematic:"Pespective pictureplane. Both wordscome originally
fromthe Latin verbspectare, to see. geometrical of theseconstruct-
lineamenti
is the methodof sketchinga frontwith
to see or care- ed bodies.
sideswithdrawinginto the background, meaning
Perspicere, clearly
thelinesall meetingin the centreof a cir- fully,seemsto have morepassiveconnota-
cle." These moderntranslations failto do tionsthanprospicere,meaningto look out 25 These crucialdistinctionsstand
to look or
forward towardan object. despitethewell-documentedinterestof
justiceto the originaltext,in whichthere at,
On theotherhand, the Italianprospettiva architectsin the theaterand theoftenper-
is no allusionto a vanishingpoint or to
wereoftenused inter-
and perspettiva ceivedcontinuitybetweenthe "tragic
linearperspective.Even ifscaenographia
means "to drawbuildingsin perspective," changeablyto name the new linearper- stage"and thecityof classicalarchitecture,
as exemplifiedin Serlio'sfamousengrav-
the Latin originof perspective,
perspicere, spective.Piero della Francescadeclared
is a verbthatmeans simply"to see clearly paintinga mathematicalartin De ingsand Palladio'sTeatroOlimpico. This
ambivalenceis in our opinion not a logical
to see through."
or carefully, ProspectivaPingendi(Parma:Biblioteca
Palatina,Ms. 1576; reprint,Florence,1942). faultbut an asset.It is, in fact,a funda-
Barbaroarguesthatscenographia, whichis
He introducedtheproblemof construct- mentalcharacterof Renaissancearchitec-
is the
crelatedto the use of perspective,"
bodies (the latter turalintentionand mustbe understoodas
of for the threedramatic ing regularand irregular
design stages havingcontributedto the magicaldepth
beingmoreimportantforpainters)as part
genres.Appropriatetypesof buildings of manyarchitecturalworksand represen-
of his treatiseon linearperspective.Luca
mustbe showndiminishingin size and tationsas we know themtoday.
Pacioli in De Divina Proportione(Venice,
recedingto the horizon.He does not
afteremphasizingthe sacred
agreewith"thosethatwish to understand I5o9), 26 The radicalchangesbroughtabout in
(Christian)characterof thegolden section,
perspective(perspettiva)as one of the added fifty-nine the realmof thinkingby thescientificrev-
mostusefulforarchitects,
ideas thatgeneratearchitectural design olutioncannotbe overemphasized.
full-pagewoodcutsof regularand irregular
(dispositione),"ascribingto it the AlexanderKoyrehas shownin his
bodies drawnin perspectiveand based on
definitionVitruviushad givento and Measurement
modelspreparedby Leonardo. Metaphysics (London:
sciographia.In his opinion it is plain that
Chapman Hall, 1968) how a worldof
&
"just as animalsbelongby natureto a cer- Interestingly,Pacioli explainedthatthe
fixedessencesand mathematicallaws
tainspecies,"the idea thatbelongswith two mostimportantsolidsforarchitects
deployedin a homogeneous,geometrized
plan (ichnographia) and elevation werethe 26-facedsolid and the 72-faced
space, much like the Platonicmodel of the
(orthographia),is the section(profilo),sim- solid, both capable of approximatingthe heavens,was assumedby Galileo to be the
ilarto the othertwo "ideas" thatconsti- realityof domes and vaults.
constructive truthof our experienceof thephysical
order(dispositione).
tutearchitectural In Barbaromade a distinctionbetweenthe
world.As an example,Galileo believed,
Vitruvius'sconception,the section"allows contentof his publishedbook, La Practica
afterpostulatinghis law of inertia,that
fora greaterknowledgeof the qualityand theessenceof an objectwas not alteredby
measurementof building,helpswiththe

Alberto andLouisePelletier
Prez-Gdmez

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All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
30

, Illustration on
ofa projectedfiesco
a ceilingAndreaPozzo,
i7o7.

io Viewofthequadratturafesco on a shallow
Andrea
domeat theJesuitenkirche,
Pozzo,
Vienna,i7o5.

Architectural Perspectivism
Beyond
Representation

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All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
 motion.This notion,now an obvious meaningfully in thephysicalworldby changingitsgeometricdimension.In the
truth,was at odds withthe traditional extreme,anamorphosis,anothertypeof perspectiveprojection,involvedthedistortion
Aristotelianexperienceof theworld,in Here a geometricaltheory,now clearlydominant,subject-
of therealityit represented.
whichperceptionwas our primaryaccess
ed normalperceptionto itsown structure by placingthepointof view in unexpected
to reality.This new conceptioneventually
the
places,oftenon thesurfaceof thedrawingor paintingitself.27By geometrizing
led to a skepticismregardingthe physical
worldin such a confoundingway,man gainedaccess to a new transcendental truth.28
presenceof theexternalworld. In the
termsof Descartes,man became a subject The dual natureof baroque perspectiveis evidentin anamorphicworks,whose per-
confronting theworldas resextensa,as an spectiveboth revealedthetruthof realityand reflectedman'spowerto modifyit; thatis,
extensionof his thinkingego. it was a kindof magic.29

27 Anamorphosisas a projectionof Even thoughperspectivebecame increasingly integrated witharchitecture, perspectival

formsbeyondthe limitsof the imagewas remained to
restricted the creationof an illusion, distinct
systematization qualitatively
alreadyknownby thepaintersof the markedthemomentof an
fromtheconstructedrealityof theworld.Perspective
Renaissance.In fact,one of the earliest
references to theartof anamorphosiscan epiphany,therevelationof meaningand theGod-givengeometricorderof theworld.
be foundin Vignola'sDue Regoledella For a brieftime,illusionwas thelocus of ritual.The revelationof orderoccurredat the
Perspettiva Practica,wherehe describeda precariousmomentwhen thevanishingpointand thepositionof theobservermet.
basic methodthatfollowsthe same laws of

......-
_
_.
_
visualraysthathe applied to develophis
theoryof linearperspective.But the . _._ .. ?L
?- . . . .. . % . . . . :, . . ..%.
-:: --
manipulationof imageswas stillperceived
as an act of magic,and the techniqueof
- .
LL-.;? .. : - ---,..-..:..
. .
.
. . . . ... .
.. .
. .
. .. . .. :
anamorphosisremainedsecret.It is only
duringtheseventeenthcenturythatJean-
..;..%.:.-::..
I- - --,:,.,',,
,,'?.
., . .. .. .. .. .. . . ..... :-... 31
FranqoisNiceronsystematized the tech-
..": " . .:.- ,??--
-,,
r . --0...-..;...
... - .....,..:.:.
..
nique as a construction
geometric and
made it into a method.For a detailedhis- ..,: '
."" ''
""'.":.."? ...~~~:~ .. ? .. ,,
..
W.,
, ,
..
.-
.-'...-O-,,. .
.. . . :. .:.
.-.:.?.., -.?.".. I 1? ,. :.,f?. ,.: .._.....
toryof anamorphicart,see Jurgis
..%:.%..?:.-,
:.. ..,
..."" "7
..-
..---'?.
:7"..
..... ...-, i a i .?.4'
.....
-.
--.?7..--...
...
.... -I-,.

..
-.: .1.....:_11.
Baltrusaitis, Art(New York:
Anamorphic --?.,-.... . .... ..
... ..

?.-.?.-.'....,........,??
.:?-.--'..:??
;
: , . ?----:,.. ... . . d.,

!...::.,:g.;,:,,..................-
...'
...
'.-.. :
.:
.?.-....... ,,,..,,.,
N.
Harry Abrams,Inc., 1976).
...........
---??-".. -,?? ..":".."? '...",.,.:..".,..,.",
'...:.. ........ '''... ... . .... ..:.... !-
:::.
.:. .:,:,;~:?.-
,,' ,....'A
: %.'. .. . ?,V -,
:,. .,
."..;?
....
---?.
,. ,
..?..
-''-'J..''
..,:.".....
.::. :
...:.
. .
":.
.
I:.
1
. ;. ...
.
..::
...
." :.. '?..::.
.-':.!?:
...
:!'- .:! . ... ...
---:'.-,:?:
..
.,.. . . . ..t. ..
.
3
?;q;.
1. .
.:?..-.
.-.
--:;.::...
.: . .. F'::.,..':....?
28 This is also revealedin the aims of A?'....
....'...
.::
7?
... ;
.. ..
:"--'.-:
.......:.
. .
......?.
...
.... .. ...-.
-
. . . ...
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.
.. .
..
-
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1
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.
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..,"
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4 .
. :
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..
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.
:.
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. !
...
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--:
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- .
:.-7::?
,--?
-
...".
-
: , .:.
..
: ?
?:-;.-
., .?'-,..-
: ,,
.".
philosophicalsystemsthroughoutthe sev-
enteenthcentury.For example,in
-'--.
..
:,.-.-.
.:
..'?
... : -i
-----,
..
::,-,
- .....
: ..?:.. %.
..
!!
"
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r,
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.,
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:-'i-?-'-.'- ..,
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. V
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,
v" '
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.
::.:???,
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-

.m.l':?.. . : .:...:.. .. . ... ;......, '.:.:

!.....:;
his Studiesin Geometry ofSituation(1679), ...: .". ". .. "".;.
,.1:"........... ...
;..... ..". .:. . ..:,-?
.: .. - --
,?.%'- -.'.
----.ii'Y...."
.c.. :T1"
-!.??;?....... ..- W..:.-:.: ' -:.:.:.
.:.. . ,. . .1?'-. ..I....
G. W. Leibniz proposeda scienceof . . : ?.,."
11,:?: .
:.: .?i-'..-'.-,...?.-.-"..?'.-'..'....,..,.......-.....'.,.......;
...
??
:.... ...
. :?""
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.:,?;!:? - . ..
P.??. . .. .m
..... ..:..I.
?_?'?
:-.- . .:: .
.... ,. . ... . .:.:..11
..
extensionthat,unlikeCartesiananalytic %:...
:?': . ..-..'
.:. :. ...
...:.%... .".m-
:- :..;:.!!.
.r:.
.. . l .1"
. ..
...:?
~ .. :.'%.";Y~L
.O' . 0.6.N ..~.. .-A ...-.. '
: .- :
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.:,-..:. :?..i'. ?-. ::..
.-...! _ ."I
. .. _ 7.' .- . ", ,
geometry, would be integraland not -j- ::. .%
:..... -..:..,
reducibleto algebraicequations. But this .. :-:,. . ,?.'.-'..-.
. .-- :-: ,.
.:,?.
"-..i,: ? ?Z?
:.-....-1..:...?.?......-
":," .F : ;o
,.-?-.-.?: ....- lw-,F " -.:I .::.:
.0:?. 'di
. ... ..., . . ....: a . ..:P:'.
. ..
projectof a descriptivegeometrymore -, ' ... 1%. .. . .. :.....
:
universalthanalgebracould stillmagically
describethe infinitequalitativevarietyof
naturalthings.This transcendental geom-
etrywas partof Leibniz'slifelongdreamto
postulatea universalscience,called by
him at varioustimeslinguauniversalis, sci-
entiauniversalis,
calculusphilosophicus,and
calculusuniversalis.
Fromall the disci-
plinesof human knowledge,he triedto
extrapolatethe simplestconstitutive
ele-
mentsthatwould allow him to establish
rulesof relationbywhichto organizethe
whole epistemologicalfieldintoa "calcu-
lus of concepts."

091Niceronconsiderd perpetive ashe

a
thana techniqueof reduction,it was for
him a vehiclebywhichto attaintruth.In
.z Conicalanamorphosis
ofLouis
XIII,
thecontextof the Cartesianrevolution,
J.E Niceron,z638.
Niceron'sThaumaturgus Opticus(Paris,
on appearance
I646) was his reflection
and reality.

and LouisePelletier
AlbertoPdrez-Gdmez

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n

While mostseventeenth-century
philosopherswerestillstrivingto formulatethe
appropriatearticulationof therelationbetweentheworldof appearancesand theabso-
. ........
.-
i:
lute truthof modernscience,theworkof Girard Desarguesappearedas an anomaly.30
Desarguesdisregardedthe.transcendentaldimensionof geometryand thesymbolic
powerof geometricaloperations,and he ignoredthesymbolicimplicationsof infinity.
.........
.. He soughtto establisha generalgeometricscience,one thatmighteffectively
become
.mmnmj thebasis forsuch diversetechnicaloperationsas perspective
drawing,stoneand
. .m
.... m m. woodcuttingforconstruction, and thedesignof solarclocks.Untilthen,theoriesof
...m .
perspectivehad alwaysassociatedthepointof convergenceof parallellineswiththe
m
apex of thecone ofvisionprojectedon thehorizonline.3' Desargueswas apparentlythe
1w1 firstone in thehistoryof perspectiveto postulatea pointat infinity.32He maintained
thatall linesconvergedtowarda pointat an infinitedistance.Thus anysystemof
parallellines,or anyspecificgeometricalfigure,could be conceivedas a variationof a
i
, ..
singleuniversalsystemof concurrentlines.3
1h41k
Desargues'smethodallowedfortherepresentation of complexvolumesbefore construc-
.. . tion,implementingan operationof deductivelogic. Perspective
became a prescriptive
sciencethatcontrolledpractice.The scientific
revolutionhad witnessedin Desargues's
method,
I2 Simplifiedperspective systemthefirstattemptto endow representation
withan objective
GirardDesargue, autonomy.
1648.
theprevailingphilosophicalconnotationsof infinity,
Nevertheless, alwaysassociated
withtheologicalquestions,as well as theresistanceof tradition-minded
painters,crafts-
32
men,and architects,made his systemunacceptableto his contemporaries.
Desargues's
basic aimswould eventuallybe fulfilled geometrynear
by GaspardMonge'sdescriptive
theend of theeighteenthcentury.
For an extendedanalysisof thework
3o Once geometrylostitssymbolicattributes in traditionalphilosophicalspeculation,per-
of G. Desarguesand a completebiogra-
ceased
spective to be a vehicle
preferred fortransforming theworldintoa meaningful
phy,see RendTaton, L' Oeuvre
Mathimatiquede G. Desargues(Paris: humanorder.Instead,it became a simplerepresentationof reality,
a sortof empirical
See also A. Perez-Gomez, verification
of theway in whichtheexternalworldis presentedto humanvision.Pozzo's
RU.E, 1950).
Architectureand theCrisisofModern treatiseRulesand ExamplesofProperPerspective
forPaintersand Architects
occupiesan
Science(Cambridge:
MIr Press,1983). perhapsparadoxical,positionas a workof transition.Froma plan and an
interesting,
elevation,his methodof projectionis a step-by-step
setof instructions
forperspective
31 Parallellinesdid not convergein
euclideanspace,wheretactileconsidera- drawingthatestablishestheabsoluteproportionalrelationship of thoseelementsseen
tions,derivedfrombodilyspatiality, were in perspective.4 The lastpartof thebook developsthemethodof quadrattura, wherein
stillmoreimportantthanpurelyvisual thethree-dimensionality of architectural is
space subjectedto the law of geometry.
information. See Maurice Merleau-Ponty, The consequentialhomologyof "lived"space and thegeometricspace of perspectival
Phenomenology PartI, chap-
ofPerception,
representationled thearchitectto assumethattheprojectionwas capable of trulyde-
ters1-3.
pictingan architectural
space, and therefore supportedthepossibilityof actuallydesign-
ing in perspective.
The qualitativespatialityof our existencewas now identicalto the
32 Keplerhad alreadyintroduceda point
at infinity
in a workon the conic sections, objectifiedspace of perspective.
Ad Vitellionem palalipomenaquibus
In theeighteenthcenturyartists,scientists,
and philosopherslostinterestin perspective.
astronomiae pars opticatraditur(1604). He
was interestedin the laws of opticsand The processof geometrization
thathad startedwiththeinceptionof modernscience
generallyin the natureand propertiesof was arrestedby thefocuson empiricalknowledgespurredbyNewton'sworkand the
light.Desargueswas in factthe firstto identification
of inherentlimitationsin euclideangeometry.5
Architects
seemedready
applythatnotionto different theorieson to acceptthenotionthattherewas no distinctionbetweena stagesetconstructedfol-
perspectiveand stereotomy. Such an
lowingthemethodper angoloof Galli-Bibiena,one wheretherewas no longera privi-
accomplishmentremainsdifficult to ap-
legedpointofview,and thepermanenttectonicrealityof theircraft.Realitywas
preciatefroma contemporary vantage
transformedintoa universeof representation.
The baroque illusionbecame a delusion
point,whichregardsvisualperspectiveas
the onlytruemeansof comprehendingthe in therococo church.Even thevanishingpointof thefrescoesbecame inaccessibleto
externalworld. thespectator,
whilethebuildingappearedas a self-referential
theater,
one in which
traditionalreligiousritualswereno longerunquestionablevehiclesforexistential
orien-
33 Orthogonalprojectionas we under-
standit todaywas forDesarguesa simple tation.6Despite all this,and in additionto theearlyeighteenth-century
academicat-
case of perspectiveprojectionwherethe temptsto ridiculethesecretsof theguildsand theensuingsystematization of construc-
tionafter1750,theprimacyof thebuiltworkoverthe devis,thecomprehensive project
projectivepointwas locatedat an infinite
distancefromthe plane of projection. withspecifications, stillremained.Drawingswerenot yetmerepredictivetools.

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Beyond
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34 Pozzo avoids the geometricaltheoryof
perspective,and his theoreticaldiscourse
Figurm.
amountsto a collectionof extremely sim-
ple rulesand detailedexamples of perspec-
tiveconstructions.His workcan appear
paradoxicalifwe comparehis frescoesin
quadrattura,whichinvolvean epistemo-
of man, to thisverysys-
logicalrecentering
tematicestablishmentof proportionsthat
seemsrelatedto Desargues'sunderstanding
of geometry. iOil
35 Even thoughit is easyto recognizea
relationshipbetweenPozzo's perspective
methodand Durand's use of projections,
descriptivegeometrycould not have been
postulatedas a systematicsciencebefore
I4
N
p
.i
the nineteenthcentury.Euclidean geome-
trywas conceivedas a scienceof immedia-
Hi!
cywhose principleshad theiroriginin
perception.Euclid'stheoremsare verifiable M.MN V

onlyinsofaras the thingsto whichthey

33
make reference are acceptedas variable
and imprecise.The achievementsof seven-
... ......

teenth-century geometricianshad attained

a limitof abstractionand werenever
developedfurther. Throughoutthe eigh-
teenthcenturygeometryas a scientific P.r.-G
.m..n..u.
4lbert
".P.lle
disciplinewas becomingobsolete.Diderot ie.r

writesin his treatiseDe l'Interpretation

de la Naturethat"beforea hundredyears
therewill be scarcelythreegeometricians
leftin Europe." For moredetailsabout
thisaspectof eighteenth-centuryphiloso-
phy,see Yvon Belval,"La Crise de la ........i

Gdometrisation de r'Universdans la ~.".,..

Philosophiedes Lumibres,"RevueInter-
nationalede Philosophie(Brussels,1952).

36 KarstenHarriesexaminesthisprob-
lem in his excellentstudy The Bavarian
.....
........ -Ku
RococoChurch(New Haven: Yale
'A
A.i-
Press,1983).
University
:i~-i;7
!! " i!i-[
i:r..":"M
i i "SIR
i!,.:i-i;

z3andz4 Systematic
coordination
ofplan and elevationwithperspective,
AndreaPozzo,z7o7.

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I\

37 Contraryto the post-Heideggerian Onlyafter thenineteenthcentury ofdrawing

anda systematization methodscouldthe
understandingof mythopoesisto which processoftranslationbetweendrawingandbuildingbecometransparent.
The key
we make referencein note 5 (i.e., the artic-
transformationin thehistory
ofarchitectural
drawingwas the of
inception descriptive
ulationof truthas aletheia),the Beaux-Arts
geometry as the for
discipline
paradigmatic the whether
builder, architect
orengineer.
attemptto retrievethe classicalstyle
amountsto the impositionof a myth,in The Ecole Polytechnique in Paris, founded afterthe French Revolution, trained the
the negativesense,as a fallaciousrepresen- new, professional class of eminent scientistsand engineers of the nineteenth century.
tationof repressive
social hierarchies.The
Descriptive geometry,the fundamental core subject, allowed for the firsttime a system-
renderingof drawingsin the Beaux-Arts atic reduction of three-dimensional objects to two dimensions, making the control
traditiondoes not changetheessence
and precision demanded by the Industrial Revolution possible. Without this conceptual
of the architecture
it represents,
nor does
it succeed in formulating tool our technological world could not have come into existence. With Durand's
an alternative
to the architecture
of the Ecole micanisme de la compositionand its step-by-stepinstructions,the codification of archi-
Polytechnique.The Beaux-Artsdoes not tectural historyinto types and styles,the use of the grids and axes, transparentpaper,
retrievemyththroughdrawings,but and precise decimal measurements allowed for planning and cost estimates. Descriptive
rather,onlyformalizesappearances,indeed
geometry became the "assumption" behind all modern architecturalendeavors, ranging
much theway "post modern"stylesdo. This
from the often superficiallyartisticdrawings of the Ecole des Beaux-Arts to the func-
is at odds withthepossibilityof retrieving
meaningthrougha phenomenological
oftheBauhaus." Todaycomputer
tionalprojects withitsseductive
graphics,
of symbolization.
understanding manipulations of viewpoints and delusions of three-dimensionality,is simply a more
sophisticated The growing obsession with productivityand rational-
mechanism.8
38 The questionconcerningtheapplica- ization has transformedthe process of maturation from the idea to the built work into
tion of computersto architecture
is, of
a systematicrepresentation that leaves no place for the "invisible" to
course,hotlydebatedand as yetunre- emerge from the
process of translation.
34 solved.The instrument is not simplythe
equivalent of a pencil a chiselthatcould
or
While descriptive geometry attempted a precise coincidence between the
allow one to transcendreduction.It representation
easily
and the object, modern art remained fascinated by the enigmatic distance between
is the culminationof the objectifying
men-
of and the realityof the world and its projection. Facing the failureof a modern scientificmen-
tality modernity is, therefore,
inherently in preciselythe
perspectival, talityto acknowledge the unnameable dimension of 39artists have
sensethatwe have describedin thisarticle. representation,
explored that distance, the "delay" or "fourthdimension" in Marcel Duchamp's terms,
Computergraphicstendsto be just a between realityand the appearance of the world. Defying reductionist
assumptions
much quickerand morefaciletool that
without rejecting the modern power of abstraction, certain
nonethelessstillrelieson theprojectionas twentieth-centuryarchitects
have used projections not as technical manipulations, but to discover
itsbase, a radicaltool of industrialproduc- something at once
tion. The tyranny of computergraphicsis andrecognizable.40
original
even moresystematic thanany othertool
of representation in itsrigorousestablish- natureas figurativeor non-objectivemust our collectivedreams,as a place of full
mentof a homogeneousspace and its revealthe presenceof being,thepresenceof inhabitation.This recognitionis inherently
inabilityto combinedifferent structuresof the invisiblein theworldof the everyday. in a postmodernworldwhereman
difficult
reference.It is, of course,conceivablethat This dimensionis perhapsthe onlycon- is generallyobliviousto his mortalityand
the machinewould transcenditsbinary stantof trueartthroughhistory.Partaking has grownaccustomedto exploitation,
logic and become a tool fora poetic disclo- of thiscondition,the architectural
worksof simulations,and technologicalcontrol;but
surein the realmof architecture. The fact the cityallowed forexistentialorientation, it happensto be, whetherintentionallyor
is, however,thatthe resultsof computer culturalbelonging,and theperpetuationof not, the moststrikingfeatureof the most
graphicsapplicationsare alwaysdisap- tradition.They werenevermerely"build- admiredarchitecturalartifactsin our tradi-
pointing.The objectificationof another ings." Understoodprimarilyas an abstract tion,in whichthe manifoldsymbolsreveal
realityappearsmoreintense,and the tool order,architecture could be embodied an orderthatis immediatelyaccessibleto
seemsclumsyat bestto show animated at the scale of the reliquary,thegarden,the us. Thus, creationas representation
must
picturesof a fallaciousbuilding. ephemeralcanvas-woodstructure, or the be the ultimateobjectiveof architectural
machinaformanifoldcelebrationsand workifour professionis to have any social
39 The unnameabledimensionof repre- theatricalevents.This notionis connected meaningat all. In a technologicalworld,
sentationrefersto a wholenessthatcan be to theoriginalGreekunderstanding of thisobjectivecan be attainedonlyafterrec-
recognizedbut not reducedto wordsand symbolas a tokenthatwould allow an old ognizingthe fallaciousneutrality
of our
is, in the contextof Gadamer'shermeneu- friendto be recognizedby membersof the tools forthegenerationof form.
tics,the "signified"of the artisticsymbol. household(or any institution)as a member
An understanding of theautonomyand
See below,note 40. of thesame group,a partof thewhole,
polysemy of the symbolsemployedby the
belongingto a cosmicplace. (We must architectis an importantfirststepin over-
4o Hans-GeorgGadamer has givenus rememberthattheword agorameantboth
one of the clearestelucidationsof the comingour predicament.One object,one
a place, and an assemblyof citizenspar-
model,or one drawingmay indeed
question of representationin artin The ticipatingin the decision-making process
embodythefullintentionality of a build-
RelevanceoftheBeautiful,(Cambridge: concerningthe futureof theirpolis.)A
ing. We can recognize the invisible(the
CambridgeUniversity Press,1986). The symbolicarchitecture is one thatrepre-
workof art,regardlessof itsmediumor its groundof existencein thesenseof
sents,one thatcan be recognizedas partof
Gadamer,a glimpseof our place in a totali-

Architectural
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Beyond
Perspectivism

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 35

andKatherine
15 MarcelDuchamp Dreier
in KatherineDreier'slivingroom,LeslieE.
Bowman,
1936-37.

andLouisePelletier
Pirez-Gdmez
Alberto

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Ir-.
C4

cqd

4-1.

16 Tu M', MarcelDuchamp,
i918.

work,similarto
ty) in the artist-architect's Marcel Duchamp also exploredtheparadigmof projectionand investigated the
our recognitionin the spatialexperienceof ambiguousdimensionbetweenillusion and reality.His lastoil on Tu
canvas, m'(1918),
the building. deceitsallowedby an opaque medium.It is his
of all the perspectivist
is a recapitulation
mostexplicitstudyon anamorphosis,theperspectivaldistortionsthatwritersof the
When seen fromthe front,the shad-
41
ows cast by the "ready-mades" are seen as earlyseventeenthcenturybelieveddangerousin theircapacityto manipulateand
anamorphicprojections stretched out on changethegivenappearanceof theworld.In Tu m' Duchamp questionsthedistinction
the surface;the bottlebrush,whichis the betweenappearanceand apparition.The paintingis constructedas an anamorphosis,
36 only three-dimensional object piercingthe thoughin contrastto all traditionalworksof thiskind,the truthof theimageis no
surfaceof the canvasperpendicularly to its
longerrevealedto thebeholderfroma fixedposition.As one walksaroundit,certain
plane, is reduced to a dot. But seen from
elementsof thecompositionbecomevisible,whileothersvanish.41
the side,shadowsof the "ready-mades"
become "corrected"untiltheydisappear Even (LargeGlass)(1915-23)and the Etant
The BrideStrippedBare byHer Bachelors,
again in the thicknessof the canvas.At this Donnes(1916)embodyDuchamp'slife-longstruggleto revealan invisibledimensionof
point,the brushreleasesitselffromthe
canvasand becomes theonlyvisible projection,one beyondtheconventionalboundariesof Renaissancepainting,sculpture,
realityof the hidden picture.In a seriesof
and architecture.42The projectionon thelowerpartof the LargeGlass(the realmof the
essayson theworkof Marcel Duchamp, deriveddirectly
bachelors)was conceivedaccordingto the rulesof classicalperspective,
Abecedaire(Paris:CentreGeorges thecone ofvision.
fromthe Renaissanceconceptof paintingas a windowintersecting
Pompidou,1977),JeanClair comparesthe The upperdomain,however,addressestheambiguitybetweenillusionand realityin
paintingTu m' to classicaltheorieson
object (thebride)projectedin a three-dimensional
termsof a four-dimensional world.43
anamorphosis.
Duchamp'sbridein the LargeGlassis analogousto a shadow.The shadow,takenas a
42 The GreenBox (a writtenthoughtpro-
cess forthe LargeGlass)revealsDuchamp's projectionor as an entityin itself,is in some way determinedby theobject thatcastsit.
interestin scientificdevelopmentsin the
It revealsthe invisibleside of the thing,outlinesitshiddenfaceas a negativevision.At a
fieldof noneuclideangeometry. distancefromtheprojectinglight,however,theshadowbecomesan autonomousentity
(as in a shadowplay),an abstractionof theobjectprojectingitsabsence.
43 In the WhiteBox Duchamp assertsthat
"all formis the projectionof anotherform The earlytwentiethcenturysaw therecoveryof aspectsof projectionthathad been lost
accordingto a certainvanishingpoint and to the reductionsof nineteenth-century Like Duchamp'sshadows,
industrialization.
a certaindistance." By analogywiththis theshadowsof cinematographicprojectionre-embodiedmotionand retrieved tactile
notionof projectedreality,all solid bodies
space fromtheperspectiveframe.Filmoffereda possibilityto transcendthelimitations
would constitutethe possibleprojectionof
realities.A
of the technological,enframedvisionthroughthejuxtapositionof different
an infinityof four-dimensional entities.
The entirevisibledomain is forDuchamp previouslyinvisible,unchartedaspectof experiencefoundexpression.44
an incessantflowof anamorphosisgenerat-
ed by thoseinvisibleentities. The projectionof thecone of lightthroughthedarknessof thecinemacan be seen as
thereciprocity
an inversionof the Renaissancenotionof thecone ofvision.It illustrates
44 To understandthe fundamentaldis- of lightand shadowas an analogueof thecomplementarity of presenceand absenceand
tinctionbetweenthe two uses of projection visionofWestern
whichis theobjectifying
disruptsthefixedgaze of theperspective,
in artand architecture,it is essentialto
science and philosophy.4' During the cinematographicprojection,we sit immobile
graspthe difference betweentruthas exact-
betweenthelightand theprojectedimages,in theenduringpresentof a space-timeof
ness in the Platonicsense (the absenceof
shadow of Westernscienceand meta- no fixeddimensions.46
physics)and truthas aletheia,the unveiling
of beingnevergivenin itstotality,such as
Heideggerpositsit in his late philosophy.

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45 "Westernmetaphysicsemergesfroma
worldlyvisionwhichtakesthe giftof day-
lightforgrantedand assumes,deeply
unconsciousof itselfand itsprojections,
the permanentpresence(parousia)of our
sourceof illumination:conditionsof total
unconcealment,makingpossiblea vision
of totallucidityin perfectpossessionof its
(transparent) object. Westernmetaphysics 37
reflectsa worldlyvisionof truthwhichsees
onlysharpboundariesand division,the
oppositionpermanently fixedin duality....
But thisis a visionof truthwhich occludes
our experiencewithshadowsand shades
(of meaning);theenchantmentof the sun-
set hour,the uncannylightof the twi-
light..." David Michael Levin, The
Openingof Vision(London: Routledge,
1988),350-51.

46 We can onlywitnessthe extremesand

recognizetheircomplementarity, at best
(and herethequalityof the filmis impor-
tant)the reciprocityof action and thinking
(We use thistermin the
in Gelassenheit.
senseof Heidegger'slate writings.)As in
architecture,thespectatoris not passive,
but rather,creativelyparticipatesin the
of tactilespace suggestedby
reconstruction
the montage.

17 The LargeGlass; The Bride

StrippedBare By Her Bachelors,
MarcelDuchamp,
1915-23.

AlbertoPlrez-G6mezand LouisePelletier

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t\

47 SergeiEisensteindescribeshis "Intel- Fromitsinception,perspectivehas had a potentialto unifytherelativetimeof our

lectualCinema" as a structureof composi- worldwiththeabsolutetimeof theimage.The surrealists
and, morespecifically,
surre-
tion thatdefinestheabstractand makesit wereattemptingto redefinethedistancebetweentheworldand its
alistfilmmakers,
appear.His methodis based on analogy,a a distancethatwould allow man to recognizehis place in a new order.
representation,
metaphorbetweenthe figurative imageand
human experience: The cinematographic montageprovokesa disruptionof thespatialand temporalper-
"The powerof montageresidesin thatit spective.Its narrative
confoundsthelinearstructure
of filmictime,deconstructing

includesin the creativeprocessthe emo- homogeneous,geometricspace.47The projectionof cinematographic montageis analo-

tionsand mind of the spectator.The spec- gous to theexperienceof an embodied,subjectivespatiality,
to theexperienceof archi-
tatoris compelledto proceedalong that tectureas it "could be.'"48
same creativeroad thattheauthortraveled
in creatingthe image.The spectatornot of buildinga symbolicorderin a
In thelasttwo hundredyears,giventhedifficulties
38
onlysees the representedelementof the worldpreoccupiedwithproductionand pragmaticshelter,architecturalideas have been
finishedwork,but also experiencesthe embodiedin theoreticalprojectsof manykinds.Architects
such as Giovanni
particularly
dynamicprocessof theemergenceand BattistaPiranesiquestionedthebasisof perspective
and soughtnew modes of meaning-
assemblyof the imagejust as it was experi-
fulrepresentation.
Piranesi'sCarceriembodythefirstuse of montagein architecture to
enced by the author."SergeiEisenstein,
TheFilm Sense(New York:HarcourtBrace deconstructthelinearperspectiveof space and time. In the Carcerimeaningis saved
Jovanovich,
1942). at theexpenseof perspectival
logic.The mystery of his projectivemethoddismembers
spatialcontinuityand involvesthebeholderin a represented space thatinvitesinhabita-
48 In thisconnectionsee M. Merleau- tionbut thatultimately
awaitstherebuildingof itsdislocatedparts.
Ponty,Phenomenology ofPerception
(London: Routledge& Kegan Paul, 1962),
in whichhe establisheswhatembodied per-
ception"could" be by disclosingitsoriginal
reality.Merleau-Ponty'sthesis,together
withthe posthumousnotespublished
underthe title The Visibleand theInvisible
(Evanston,Illinois: Northwestern
University Press,1968), are stillamong the
mostcrucialreadingsforthe professional
architect.

49 SergeiEisenstein'sinterestin Piranesi's
explosionof perspectiveis well known.
Piranesi'setchingson the Carceriare charac-
terizedby the entanglementof beams,stair-
ways,and hung bridgesthatemergefromthe
depthof the imageand are projectedbeyond
the limitof the frame.The contrastof shad-
ows createsan ambiguitybetweeninterior
and exteriorspace. The structure of Piranesi's
etchingsis projectedforward,beyondthe
edge of the drawing,into the space of the 18 Carceri,
no.XI (second
state),
observer.Similarly, Eisenstein'sintellectual G.B. Piranesi,1761.
montageattemptedto include the presence
of the spectatorin the creationof the dynam-
ic image.

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5o
There is, of course,no way to definein Thisarchitecturerepresentsa potentially future
different orderbeyondtheconventional
absolutetermsthe boundariesbetweenpaint- ofthe"finearts,"nowobviously Sucharchitecture
cannot
categorization obsolete.s?
ing,sculpture,and architecture;
thesehave
be seen to a setof
as reduced syntactic projections. Theoreticalprojects beenboth
have
shiftedconstantly-throughtimeand are
experimentalin scientific
pursuit andpoeticin artistic
ofdiscovery ofthe
pursuit
closelyconnectedto theirrespectivecontent.
In the recentVenice Biennale (i99o) a critic world'sgivenorder.Neither intuitive theseworksaresuffused
norirrational, withthe
noted thatpaintersweredoing sculpture, Logos of
myth.5'
while sculptorsweredealingmostlywithflat
surfaces. Continuing recent
in thistradition, theoretical
projectshavesoughtthe"deconstruc-
tion"ofthelogocentric metaphysical of
heritage modernity as itappearsin architecture,
TheoreticalprojectsfromPiranesito whiletrying to avoid,throughtheimplementation a mereacceptance
ofpoeisis, ofthe
51
Duchamp, includingsome worksin film criticism.
statusquo ofpoststructuralist
nihilistic Through their authors'radical
revision
39
montage,establisha space thatresiststhe ofthetaskofmakingas itrelates to architectural theseprojects
ideation, to
attempt
dominationof the rational/perspective
recoveran architecturethatmightrevealthepresence ofbeing.Suchan architecture
vision.Some of the mostoutstandingworks
such as examplesby Gaudif
of architecture, wouldremove instrumentalizing ofindustrial
theobjectifying, screen technology and
and Le Corbusier,subvertedthe reductive wouldspeakto ourprereflective,embodiedawareness.
instrumentality of architectural
representa-
tion and also aimed at transcendingthe The critical
dimension in theseprojects
implicit iswellknown.52 Theyarenotformalis-
enframing vision.These powerfulworks games,noraretheymerely
ticorself-referential unbuilt works.Theoreticalprojects
unveilthe true in a
potentialof architecture ofa
questionthepossibility truly poetic in
architecture a prosaicworld.In thissensethe
world.
postmodern theyarenota surrogate
arethearchitecture;
projects foranything else.

52 Piranesiactuallyrejectedmanycommis-
sions and called himselfan architect,while
Boullie emphasized,in his Essai surl'Art,
In thecontext ofourcitiesofshopping mallsandtrafficnetworks, theimagesoffash-
was of the sortof
thathis architecture
ion,whether ofold Europeormoderntechnology, areempty simulations. Theycarry
Newton'scenotaph,and not his manybuild-
no meaning to
except weakly reaffirm therepressivestructuresof power whichthose
of
ings.An importantchallengethathas been
takenup byJohnHejduk is the implementa- imagesspeak.To assumethatthetoolsofprojection andperspective aresupported by
as partof the
tion of fictionalnarratives some sortof truth
transcendental is A
equallynostalgic. critical
steptoward our retrieval
montage in orderto groundthe theoretical ofan architecturethrough esthetic
wonder is to questionthehegemony ofperspec-
projectin theworldof experience.This is a tivismanditssimulations. When functionas of when
projections surrogates buildings,
complexand importantaspectof the discus-
setsofdrawings attempttoprovideuswitha "picture" ofan architectural placeor
cannot be pursued
sion thatunfortunately
here. object,thebuildings producedbysuchtechniques mustnecessarily reflectthepredictive
qualityoftheir the of a
conception: possibility revelatory dimension is abandoned
andtheactualization ofthearchitect'simagination willinevitablybe lostin thetransla-
tion.Thatthisassumption ofa literalrelationshipbetween the projectandthebuild-
ingis basicto industrial
production in themoderncitymakesa critical of
reassessment
thisissueall themore pressing.

AlbertoPirez-Gdmezand LouisePelletier

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