Architect Mark Wigley Declares Landscape as the Most Politically Charged Site
Mark Wigley, an architect, historian, theorist, and Professor and Dean Emeritus at Columbia University, asserts that landscape has become the most politically charged site. In an interview, Wigley discusses how the concept of landscape, traditionally viewed as a defense against nature through domestication, has expanded to encompass the entire planet in the age of the Anthropocene. He argues that architecture, from its Vitruvian origins, has always been about separating humans from nature and the soil, leading to a loss of microbial diversity in humans and the soil itself. Wigley highlights that modern architecture, with its emphasis on hygiene and control, further exacerbated this separation. He suggests that the current understanding of landscape extends beyond physical spaces to include vast interconnected systems like motorways, plumbing, electrical grids, and even the internet, making it a highly technological and political domain. Wigley also notes a shift where many architects are now acting as land...
