Interobjectivity in architectural research and theory: towards a meta-theory of materiality and the effects of architecture and everyday life

Summary, in English

The aim of this article is to introduce a meta-theoretical discussion in architectural research about materiality and its effect on everyday life and use. Taking a relational perspective, I distinguish between three different perspectives on materialities as described in theories in recent decades. From these perspectives I develop three possible conceptualisations of interobjectivity. The first perspective sees interobjectivity as collaboratively constructed ‘cross-road effects’. The second perspective sees interobjectivity as the process of stitching together material heterogeneities. The third perspective sees interobjectivity as the radiance of a persistent identity through different contexts. These three perspectives each contribute to the ways architectural objects and spaces interact and produce effects. These effects are often discussed within separate paradigms. Putting them together as different modalisations of interobjectivity enables a much richer empirical analysis, where the notion of ‘material effects’ can be differentiated and compared.

• Author: Mattias Kärrholm
• Department/s: Department of Architecture and Built Environment
• Publishing year: 2014
• Language: English
• Pages: 64-80
• Publication/Series: Journal of Architecture
• Volume: 19
• Issue: 1
• Links: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13602365.2014.884153
• Document type: Journal article
• Publisher: Taylor & Francis
• Topic: Architecture
• Keywords: interobjectivity; architectural theory; materiality; meta-theory; actor-network theory
• Status: Published
• ISBN/ISSN/Other: ISSN: 1360-2365