Architecture Reviewing Theory: Sir Henry Wotton's Dialectical Articulation of Vitruvian Theory
- Publisher:
- University of Sydney
- Publication Type:
- Journal Article
- Citation:
- Stewart Susan 2003, 'Architecture Reviewing Theory: Sir Henry Wotton's Dialectical Articulation of Vitruvian Theory', University of Sydney, vol. 8, no. 2, pp. 186-200.
- Issue Date:
- 2003
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In the introduction to his text of 1624, The Elements of Architecture, Sir Henry
Wotton briefly, and critically, reviews the texts of the Vitruvian theoretical
tradition to date. He concludes that none of hispredecessors have adequately
articulated theprecepts of ancient architecture. Their texts, he variously suggests,
are muddled, overly concerned with rhetorical style, or limited by their
attention to purely local (non-English) conditions. He proposes his Elements
of Architecture as a remedy for this lamentable state of affairs.
It would be an error to dismiss this introduction as mere rhetorical flourish,
for its critical focus upon the style of Wotton's predecessors draws attention
to the deliberate construction of his own text. It reveals the parallel between
the architecture of Wotton 'sprose and that of an exemplary Vitruvian edifice;
both building and text are ruled by order, clarity, symmetry, economy and
decorum.
Wotton's text might be read as an eloquent argument for the proximity of
theory to architecture. The analogous relation of these two realms ofpractice
is a familiar theme within classical discourse. However, this paper argues
that Wotton, for all his apparent simplicity, is making a sophisticated claim.
He emphasises not only the intelligibility of theoretical discourse, but also its
resistance to closure. TheAristotelian dialectic of his 'method' acknowledges
the limits of authorship.
In Wotton's text the proximity of theory and architecture allows a reversal of
the usual relationship; architecture reviews theory as much as theory reviews
architecture. Thispaper reflects on Wotton's dialectical method, and observes
the potential for architecture to review theory.
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