Non-projects for the Uninhabitable: Lyotard’s Architecture Philosophy

This paper presents an introductory survey of French philosopher Jean-François Lyotard’s reflections on architecture. Lyotard is widely known for his thesis on the postmodern, and his ideas have circulated in the architectural world. However his own explicit reflections on architecture have been scattered and fragmentary, and little discussed. This paper presents a synoptic summary, in four parts. Part one considers general reflections on space in the built environment and urban planning, while part two outlines parallels between the changing approaches of philosophers and architects. Part three covers Lyotard’s writings on the architects Le Corbusier and Arakawa and Gins, and finally his views are situated by providing critical comparisons with Jencks and Heidegger.