Architecture, University of Architecture and Urbanism Ion Mincu, Bucharest, Roumania
- University of Nantes Chair
octobre 2011 à juin 2012
Research project : "Tribute to Vitruvius: Inquiry on the Aesthetic Heritage in the Theory of Architecture"
"The project has taken shape from two directions. On the one hand, it is related to a larger research on the beautiful ("the aesthetic layer") in the theory of architecture, for which De Architectura Libri Decem represents an unavoidable reference point. On the other hand, this later study acquired a relative autonomy of its own. The more I studied the treatises of architecture, the more consuming became the idea that Vitruvius’ books were misread or misinterpreted to a large extent. Vitruvius ideas concerning the architectural beauty seem to be richer and more flexible than it is usually thought. After many re-readings of the text, the "tribute" I would pay to Vitruvius is an attempt to "see through his eyes" and provide a new interpretation of his books. My approach is particularly focused on the ambiguities of the text and on the many aspects that the succeeding treatises eluded (for reasons to be analyzed from various points of view). Thus, the two researches would permeate each other fruitfully."