People we meet_Spaces we meetThe Technology of ThinkingBerlin_Wismar_Melbourne

Exploration of space for one’s self begins with an un-derstanding of one’s self. The collective and the indi-vidual all have different ways of reacting to space and each one also reacts differently when together.

Contents_

mechanized body of space: The Mutant Body of Architecture_ George Teyssot, In Flesh, Elizabeth Diller and Richard Scofidio

my place_your place_it can be our place: Embodying Space: An Interview, In Architecture from the Outside: Essays on Virtual and Real Space, Elizabeth Grosz

our relation to you: Prologue: Pre-Postion, In Site-Writing: The Architecture of Art Criticism, Jane Rendell

drawing from the start_line_dot_moving: Without end, no, State of drawingness, no, rather: The Executioner’s taking off, In Stigmata, Hélène Cixous

together our inner body = interaction in SPACE: Space_Knowledge_and Power, In Power, Michel Foucault

Design your own body of space with this machanized body of space. You can add your own ad-ditions to the structure, colour in, the choice is yours.

The Mutant Body of Architecture_ George Tey-ssot

In Flesh, Elizabeth Diller and Richard Scofidio

George Teyssot’s essay investigates the prac-tice of architects Elizabeth Diller and Ricardo Scofidio (D + S), which helps us gain an insight into their workings with the body in society and the complex sensations that occur within it. They explore exteroception[1], propriocep-tion[2] and interoception[3] to help support their concept of “cutting and carving into the very flesh of architecture”[4] where the sensations are brought to the outer human body.

Following the reading of the essay one of the key issues which I found important to the project of embodiment we have been working on, was addressing the idea of the “mecha-nized”[5] body and what that means within society. Both have an idea of the interior and exterior body.

The concept of the “mechanized” body is the sense of controlling or recreating a beautiful appearance which Teyssot highlights as the means of using tools to engage in this recrea-

tion. They use the tool for extracting, which is an activity that refers to the code and conforms to the recreating of a beautiful appearance. Similarly, clothes are used as a tool where we are covering and sheltering the naked body. Covering up our skin with the new skin of the clothes, which can be manipulated to fit in social orders such as fashion, send a message then to the exterior bodies. This new layer of clothes acts as a means of armor and protects us from some of the other exterior bodies and the dangers they cause.

Following the line of an exterior body and the “mechanized” body Teyssot creates a way of thinking of it in terms not only of the physical but also the virtual. For a long time society has created science fiction films and gadgets that give us these bodies of spaces within technol-ogy to imagine. This is where our body and thoughts can flee to this temporal place of matrix. “Where subjectivity dis-connects and re-connects through various networks. While dissolving, the body’s limits literally delaminate into...multiple surfaces and interfaces.” The ‘exterior body’ here is also extended through the receiving/ touching of the technology and then forms part of the whole body.

mechanized body of space

[1] Exteroception_ is associated with our five senses that are situated on the surface of the body and give a proper positioning in space.[2] Proprioception_ is our sense of balance and proper positioning in space and the muscular ten-sion.[3] Interoception_ is referring to all the sensations of the visceral organs situated in the body’s interior.

[4] Teyssot, G. Flesh: The Mutant Body of Architecture. (1994) p.8

[5] mech-a-nize |ˈmekəˈnˈz|verb [ trans. ] (often be mechanized)introduce machines or automatic devices into (a process, activity, or place) : the farm was mecha-nized in the 1950s.• equip (a military force) with modern weapons and vehicles : [as adj. ] ( mechanized) the units comprised tanks and mechanized infantry.• give a mechanical character to : public virtue cannot be mechanized or formulated.

my place_your place_it can be our place

Embodying Space: An Interview

In Architecture from the Outside: Essays on Virtual and Real Space, Elizabeth Grosz

In an interview conducted by Kim Armitage and Paul Dash the concepts of the body’s re-lationship with architecture and the inhabita-tion of the body has within space are explored through the ideas of philosopher Elizabeth Grosz. Although not an architect, Grosz still

brings an interesting point of view to these ideas of embodying space. Through the interview there is a key recognition about the body’s changing state to the spaces where “space is open to how people live in it. Space is the ongoing possibility of a different inhabi-tation.”[1] Whether the space is this physical space or a cyberspace, our identity is always changing.

We adapt to different situations that suit us. Grosz points out that “if you think you’re changing, the you that does the changing

How would you design your space? (Well, it’s going to be different from mine). Cut out ob-jects, create new one and then design your own space that reflects your identity. Then mix it up and create a new space you think one of your friends would like. Is it much different from yours? Would you change your space for this one?

Need:ScissorsMore paperBlue tack (to stick the objects onto the new piece of paper)Your identityA friend’s identity

hasn’t in fact changed at all: it remains a sov-ereign agent, a reigning consciousness.”[2] and that we will try our best sometimes to join up with others to become a whole iden-tity and common body. This is also explored through spaces such as cyberspace. These virtual worlds have allowed people to create a whole new identity and embody this identity through the extension of their real form. The virtual world can also allow people to change their body’s organs and turn into a body of the opposite sex, where “swapping of iden-tities...while entering cyberspace does not

make the man a woman, it may make him see other possibilities for being a man.”[3]

[1] Grosz, E. Embodying Space: An Interview. (2001) p.9[2] Grosz, E. Embodying Space: An Interview. (2001) p.22[3] Grosz, E. Embodying Space: An Interview. (2001) p.22

Prologue: Pre-Postion

In Site-Writing: The Architecture of Art Criti-cism, Jane Rendell

Jane Rendell explores the ideas of criti-cally analysing art and the art critic’s role as performers themselves. She introduces the relationships of situated criticism, relating to another and art writing compared to site (context) writing. This leads to the constant relationship that Rendell looks at where there is a crossing over of the critic-writing, critic-context, and the writing-context. Rendell takes the concepts further by drawing upon other written theories that help to strengthen

her own exploration. There is a continuum of comparatives between the subject and object, the interpreter and performance in a critical way of space.

This concept which keeps on presenting itself, of the relationship of object and sub-ject, is looked at in Rendell’s explorations. An example of this is the critic as an art viewer who also uses the art. Therefore, they have this moment of contemplation and the act (performance) takes place.

Drawing from Rendell’s writing, relating to an-other, it starts to become relevant to my own personal project. She closely looks at the rela-tionship of “identification [that] is ‘a question of relation, of self to other, subject to object,

our relation to you

inside to outside’ ” [1]. This ties in with my own ideas of the relationship of the individual compared to the collective.

There are also these moments in the reading that encourage us to think of the author/ artist when viewing and analysing their work. The ideas that are put forward here by Randell al-low for different interpretations of work/space and we can begin to imagine ourselves as a part of a performance with the work. When we take this idea into consideration and put it into our everyday lives the idea of critical analysis is played out all the time.

“Identification involves the interrelationship of two processes each working in different directions - introjection, the internalisation of

certain aspects of the other through self-rep-resentation.”[2]

“[The] two-way movements between critic and work suspends what we might call judgement or discrimination in criticism, and instead, though what I call the practice of site-writing, traces and constructs a series of interlocking site, relating, on the one hand, critic, work and artist, and on the other, critic, text and reader.” [3]

[1] Fuss, D. Site Writing: The Architecture of Art Criticism. (2010) p.8[2] Fuss, D. Site Writing: The Architecture of Art Criticism. (2010) p.8[3] Rendell, J. Site Writing: The Architecture of Art Criticism. (2010) p.14

How do we capture movement without film and only a pen and pencil. Draw your own em-bodiment as you move through the space your in.

drawing from the start_line_dot_moving

Without end, no, State of drawingness, no, rather: The Executioner’s taking off

In Stigmata, Hélène Cixous

Through the process of the text Cixous’ talks about the idea of drawing and writing in a po-etic form where there are drawings and feelings that come from within our bodies. There is also the ideas that there is no mistake when writ-ing or drawing, “trial, that is to say, error. Error: progression.”[1]

In the poetry of Cixous’ writing there is imagery which helps the reader to understand the text but also feels included in the writing, “you will recognize the true drawing, the live one: it’s still running.”[2] The style of writing allows for a moment of escape for the reader and the writer. The style of writing also encourages the prac-tice of drawing and that, as we grow up it is lost and that we should start the practice again as an esacpe.

“Drawing is being born. Drawing is born.-when do we draw?-when we were little. Before the violent divorce between Good and Evil.”[3]

I found that Cixous has written about this sense of trial. I am analysing it as that, whether the artist sees it as a mistake or not. In my work there has been a process, which has been

taken with many trials and some were more successful than others. The process of go-ing through all the testings was helping de-velop the work. Cixous looks at the workings of drawing and writing where there is no error and we learn from our past works in the proc-ess of development. All kinds of criticism is the good kind, from the point of view Cixous puts forward. This then follows fluently into my work as the idea of creating a collective can be dealt with in so many ways and the fact that some tests don’t work as well as others draws on the learning process and allows for further devel-opment. There is no definitive end to either works (Cixous and mine).

[1] Cixous, H. Without end, no, State of drawingness, no, rather: The Executioner’s taking off (199) p.26[2] Cixous, H. Without end, no, State of drawingness, no, rather: The Executioner’s taking off (199) p.28[3] Cixous, H. Without end, no, State of drawingness, no, rather: The Executioner’s taking off (199) p.26

Complete the dot to dot. For the picture to be completed you will need three different coloured pens/ pencils. All the points begin at the black number one.

together our inner body = interaction in SPACE

Space_Knowledge_and Power

In Power, Michel Foucault

The notion of urbanism and power during the eighteenth century being an influence on archi-tecture is discussed through an interview con-ducted by Paul Rabinow of Michel Foucault. During the course of the interview philosopher Foucault’s social theories of power, knowledge and discourse, influence the reader’s under-standing of process in which architecture was tested during the eighteenth century and on-wards.

There is discussion of power that’s been demonstrated in urban space (the city) in the interview where if there is too much govern-ing power, one had no urban space to govern. Foucault reinforces the idea of power in urban space with the theory that the development of a city is done through the complications that occur within them. “One can understand a city as a metaphor or symbol for the territory and how to govern it.”[1] This quote from Rabinow helps to also inform the reader of the issues of power and urbanism which allows for spatial moments to happen. For anyone these spatial moments begin to happen within some under-standing of the city and with that dangers start to occur within them. Through the eighteenth century and the urbanisation of space there were revolutions or revolts on the governed city and that to “these spatial problems, [in] which

were perhaps not new, [taking] (took) on a new importance.”[2] This allowed for the multiple uses of space.

I found that this interview held some impor-tance on the issue of spaces being used and how people interact within these space. Wheth-er the space is governed or not, it is important to observe the people’s acknowledgment of the spaces. The common human does not feel inclined to enter into a space where no one else seems to have been. Here someone like Le Corbusier (who is mentioned in the interview) demonstrates through his attempts of urbanism that, “it can never be inherent in the structure of things to guarantee the exercise of freedom. The guarantee of freedom is freedom.”[3] In other words something (in this case a living space) cannot be forced, but he passionately argued that his concepts of urbanism were necessary to avoid the specter of revolution in society.

[1] Rabinow, P. Power: Space, Knowledge, and Power. (1994) p.352[2] Foucault, M. Power: Space, Knowledge, and Power. (1994) p.352[3] Foucault, M. Power: Space, Knowledge, and Power. (1994) p.355

Bibliograpgy_

Diller, Elizabeth and Scofidio, Ricardo. Flesh: Architectural Probes. “The Mutant Body of Architecture, Teyssot, George”. New York: Princeton Architectural Press, 1994.

Grosz, Elizabeth. Architecture from the Outside: Essays on Virtual and Real Space. Mas-sachusetts Insititute of Technology, 2001.

Rendell, Jane. Site Writing: The Architecture of Art Criticism. “Prologue: Pre-Positions”. J.B.Tauris & Co. New Yore, 2010.

Cixous, Hélène. Stigmata, Escaping texts. “Without end, no, State of drawingness, no, rather: The Executioner’s taking off”. London: Routledge, 1998.

Foucault, Michel. Power. “Space, Knowledge and Power”. London: Penguin, 2000.

The Technology of Thinking_Embodied Public Space: Berlin_Wismar_MelbourneKatherine Brown S3283669