Architecture as an open field of interactions: Climatic singularities in the work of Philippe Rahm

Abstract

This paper proposes viewing scale as a mediating surface that bridges micro-subatomic dimensions and planetary scales, stimulating creative architectural thinking through transitions across these domains. By redefining scale as both an operation of thought and a navigable plane, the research explores its potential to inspire alternative approaches to architectural design. Drawing from thermodynamic principles and viewing the world as an interconnected whole, the study advocates for architectural practices that transcend traditional boundaries, fostering inter-scale jumps and connections. Using the concept of verticality, the paper emphasizes the continuity of design processes to address yet-to-emerge effects, encompassing multiple temporalities and speeds simultaneously. Verticality positions architecture as an interface sensitive to overlapping cycles and dynamics across disciplines and scales, suggesting that the significance of design lies not in its scale but in its capacity to engage with heterogeneous flows and intelligences operating at varying speeds. This perspective reframes spatial construction practices by integrating non-cartographic scales and micro- subatomic configurations, influencing contemporary architectural practices. The works of Philippe Rahm serve as a case study to examine these ideas. Rahm’s architecture, rooted in micro-scale considerations and thermodynamic principles, provides a framework for exploring scalar jumps. By re-reading his projects through defined analytical frames, the study reveals the limitations of theory in bridging discourse and practice while highlighting practice as a mode of research. This theoretical and practical exploration seeks to uncover innovative methods of architectural thinking and making, fostering a transdisciplinary architecture that reconstructs new contiguities and expands boundaries of architecture.