In search of the place of being ready-to-hand. Uncovering reciprocity between architectural design research and philosophy

Meraz, Fidel

Abstract

Based on Graham Harman’s illuminating interpretation of Heidegger’s concepts of ready-to-hand and present-at-hand, the paper elucidates some of the consequences of such an analysis for an architectural design research existentially revealing. Once this is done the argument is reversed by disentangling how acts of design research fine-tune Harman’s philosophical revelations. In this way possibilities for architecture influencing philosophy are outlined and discussed. The paper first describes ready-to-hand and present-at-hand in design research terms and their implications for authorship and agency. Secondly the paper suggests paths for a research that acknowledges the agency of the world in the navigation that humans perform through design processes. In conclusion some findings are shared towards the dissolution of authorship as an issue the designer-researcher-philosopher should not be mislead about. An alternative concern instead might find design emerging as the unending placing of being-nested in the world that unavoidably transforms philosophies in retrospective ways.

• Presentation Conference Type: Conference Paper (published)
• Conference Name: EURAU18 Alicante: Retroactive Research
• Start Date: Sep 19, 2018
• End Date: Sep 22, 2018
• Acceptance Date: May 9, 2018
• Online Publication Date: Sep 3, 2018
• Publication Date: Sep 3, 2018
• Deposit Date: Oct 13, 2020
• Pages: 254-258
• ISBN: 9788413020037
• Public URL: https://uwe-repository.worktribe.com/output/3591809
• Publisher URL: https://doi.org/10.14198/EURAU18alicante