(Un) Building Codes: A Style in Ruins

This essay attempts to articulate fundamental flaws in the materialist conception of nature and the paradigms that underpin current theories in the field of artificial intelligence (Strong AI) and emerging architectural robotics. It also explores the limits of ‘computationalism’ as credible ‘theory of everything’ by proposing a new way of building masonry structures. The paper employs a para-critical approach to design that considers evolving trends and the ‘scientistic’ zeitgeist as targets for deconstruction. Here newness is engaged without privileging any single frame of reference. In essence para-critique allows architecture to hold technology ‘at arms length’ while keeping pace with contemporary developments in engineering at a time of ‘accelerating change’. This strategy accommodates ‘disciplinary specificity’ and ‘trans-disciplinary’ engagement without artificially placing the two terms in opposition. What results is a dynamic fusion that produces meaningful insights while shedding new light on some old philosophical questions.

Volume Editors
David Ruy & Lola Sheppard

ISBN
978-0-935502-95-4