Abstract

This position paper addresses the ways that we historicise architectural modernism, especially within the context of the unprecedented global movements of people, ideas, materials and labour that characterised the post-war period. It suggests an alternative theoretical framing and corresponding historiography of global modernism, based on the concept of cross-cultural “contact zones.” A notion first coined by literature scholar Mary Louise Pratt in the context of colonial studies, architectural contact zones—competitions, exhibitions, congresses, biennales, summer schools—offer the possibility to rethink what innovation in architecture culture entails. Rather than underscoring the originality of the single genius-architect, contact zones offer a conception of architectural development that is based on a more global and multidirectional exchange of knowledge. Scrutinising the mechanisms behind architectural contact zones can result in a reframing of the history of architectural modernism as a cross-cultural, multi-authored and poly-conceptual matter.

摘要

这份立场文件阐述了我们将建筑现代主义历史化的方式，特别是在战后时期前所未有的全球人口、思想、材料和劳动力流动的背景下。它提出了一种基于跨文化“接触区”概念的替代性理论框架和相应的全球现代主义史学。文学学者玛丽·路易斯·普拉特（Mary Louise Pratt）首先在殖民研究的背景下提出了一个概念，建筑接触区——竞赛、展览、大会、双年展、暑期学校——提供了重新思考建筑文化创新所需要的可能性。与其强调这位天才建筑师的独创性，接触区提供了一种基于更加全球化和多方向的知识交流的建筑发展概念。仔细审视建筑接触区背后的机制，可以将建筑现代主义的历史重新定义为一个跨文化、多作者和多概念的问题。