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The Form of the Discourse: A Contextual Hermeneutic of Vittorio Gregotti's "Territory"by Maura Lucking

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TheFormoftheDiscourse:AContextualHermeneuticofVittorioGregottisTerritory

Inthecontextofcontemporaryarchitecturaldiscourse,carefulhermeneutical

attentiontothesignificanceandsignificationofthevariousapparatusofthebuilt

environmentarethestatusquo.Rarelyisaplacejustaplace,ratheritisaHeideggerian

place-form,oraspaceindicativeofHenriLefebvressocialmethodologyofproduction.

Cumbersomeandminuteasthesedistinctionsmayseem,theyformthenecessaryframeof

referenceformeaningfulcriticalanalysis.Andyet,amongstthemanyover-loadedphrases

ofarchitecturalhistoriography,thenotionofterritoryremainstobefullyintellectually

unpacked.Sooften,thetermissimplytakenforgrantedasaplaceholderforthepolitical

andbellicoseconnotationsoflandorganization,awordtobefilledandthenemptiedagain

attheauthorsdiscretion.Butisitpossiblethatthisnebulousconceptcarrieswithit

implicationsnolongerfullyunderstoodorevenapparenttothecasualuser?

ItalianarchitectandtheoristVittorioGregottitookupthetermwithcalculated

purposeinthemidnineteen-sixtiesinordertopositanexpanded,networkedrelationship

betweenescalatinghumansettlementandthemultifacetedlandscapeinpostwarItaly.

Whilethehistoricalimplicationsofhiswordchoiceandmanyofitsdevelopmentalfactors

areuniquelysituatedinanItalianspatiotemporalcontext,Gregottisaffinityforcritical

theory(particularlyphenomenological,structuralistandanthropologicalmodels)isevident

inthemannerinwhichhedevelopshisargumentforadeeperengagementwithwhathe

referstoastheanthropogeographicalenvironmentthrougharchitecturalintervention.

Yetdespitethisapparentengagementwithinternationalintellectualdiscourses,muchof

thisprevalentItalianneo-rationalistphilosophywascategorizedasinsularandofmarginal

influenceabroad,theresultofwhichbeingthatGregottisseminal1966bookonthetopic, Il

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err or o e arc e ura, rema nsun- rans a e n sen re y. ueper aps, npar , o

theItalianturnawayfromtheInternationalStyleaestheticofglassandsteelsignificantly

earlierthanlatemoderncriticalevaluationabroad,theItaliansreintegrationofhistorical

typesandbuildingtechniqueswasseenabroadatthetimeassomewhatprovincial.

Gregottihimselfprescientlysurmisedthatthereevaluationofhistorysetsusoppositea

dilemma:eitherweshallreapthecivicpromiseitofferstous,celebratingitforourfellows

andaffectingthemorweshallbecondemnedtotheterriblesilenceofaprivate

perfection.2

Despitethisrelativeinaccessibility,Gregottisargumentisembodiedasasynoptic

andintelligibleargumentspanningasignificantperiodofhiseditorialcareerthrough

excerptedtranslationsfromIlterritoriodellarchitettura andvariousperiodicals,including

Casabella,Rassegna,EdiliziaModernaandtheBritishArchitecturalDesign.Theissueof

territorymorebroadlyhastakenonnewintellectualandpragmatictopicalityinrecent

yearsinbothpoliticalandenvironmentalcontexts,asspecialissuesofarchitecturaljournals

anduniversityresearchclusterstakeonthesignificanceofterritoryinthetwenty-first

century.ThispaperassemblesGregottisnotionofterritorythroughitsvariedintellectual

incarnationsandattemptstosituateitinthenationalandglobalcontextsoflatemodern

architectural,environmentalandsociopoliticaldiscoursesinthehopesofproviding

contemporaryscholarshipwitharicherlineageofterritoryanditsimplicationsthrough

other,typicallyunassociatedintellectualmovements.Beyondtheworksglobalscope,

Gregottiswritingscomeintoclearerfocusasaradicallydifferentunderstandingoftheterm

1Note,forexample,JorgeOtero-PailosintroductionofGregottismentorErnestoRogers

contributionstoearlyEuropeanphenomenologicalwritingsonthebuiltenvironmentinthe

introductiontoArchitecturesHistoricalTurn,thendecisiontoomitRogersfromtheprimarybody of

thetextbecauseofthelimitedinfluenceofthesewritingsabroad.JorgeOtero-Pailos,Architectures

HistoricalTurn:PhenomenologyandtheRiseofthePost-Modern(Minneapolis,MN:UniversityofMinnesotaPress,2010),xxiv-xxv.2VittorioGregotti,quotedinJosephRykwert,ArchitecturalNarratives,VittorioGregottiand

Associates(NewYork:Rizzoli,1995),13.

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thanthoseemergentincontemporarypoliticaltheory.3Ratherthananagentofaggression

fromanoppressivepower,Gregottisterritoryaddressesthemodernparadigmof

homelessnessbyadvocatingthatarchitectsreclaimandbearwitnesstothehistoryof

landscapeinatrans-temporalattempttobindadisplacedpeopletoaterritory,independent

ofnationorhomeland.

TherecenthistoryofItalianpoliticsandculturebore,ofcourse,asignificantbearing

onthecountrysarchitecturalattitudesinthepostwaryears.Gregottisown1968book,

NewDirectionsinItalianArchitecture ,situatesthecountrysartisticfactionswithintheir

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politicalaffiliationsandmusesintheintroductionontheusefulnessofahistoryofItalian

architecturalcrisisonaninternationallevel.4HeisanevidentfollowerofHegelian

dialecticalhistory,ashenotestheconstantstruggletosynthesizemodernityinItalywithits

fluctuatinghistoricaltraditionsandthestateofbasicambiguityofmuchofcontemporary

Italianarchitecture,boththroughcomplexityofmeaningasmuchasthroughthe

unsuccessfulsolutionofproblems,resultantfromafaileddialecticbetweenutopiaand

reality.Politically,thismanifestsintheFascistgovernmentstangledconnectionswiththe

Rationalistmovement.GregottiidentifiesthedeathofarchitectEdoardoPeriscoin1936as

aturningpointinthedivorcebetweentheideologyofthemodernmovementinItalyand

thepurelyaestheticsymbolismofRationalistcollectiveGrupo7thatwouldbeusedto

supporttheFascistpopulistagendaathomeandabroad.5

Thisculturalassociationofmodernismwithpoliticalauthoritarianismlingeredlong

afterthewarthroughanaversiontotheInternationalStyleaestheticand,morerelevantly

3OfwhichMichelFoucaultsSecurity,Territory,Population(NewYork:PallgraveMacmillan,1988)is

perhapsthemostubiquitous.Foucaultdraws,however,onHannahArendtsnotionsofoccupiedand

diasporicterritoriesinWeRefugeesandotherscollectedin TheJewishWritings(Berlin:Shocken,

2007)andtheconceptpersistsinGiorgioAgambenswork,includinghisrecentcollectionofessays

onpoliticaltheory,SovereigntyandLife(SanFrancisco,StanfordUniversityPress,2007).4VittorioGregotti,NewDirectionsinItalianArchitecture,trans.GiusseppinaSalvadori(London/New

York:StudioVista/GeorgeBraziller,1968).5Ibid,24-26.

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