Statement 75

Before the 1970s, there was no such thing as “traditional architecture.” The category – and its disciplinary compulsions - developed only when modern architecture began to expand its reach into Asia, Africa and South America. The Traditional Architecture of the Kathmandu Valley (1977); An Analytical Study of Traditional Arab Domestic Architecture (1979); African Traditional Architecture (1978) Arsitektur tradisional daerah Sulawesi Utara(1981); An Introduction to Nigerian Traditional Architecture (1990), The Traditional Architecture of Mexico (1993), The Traditional Architecture of Indonesia (1994),  The Traditional Architecture of Saudi Arabia (1998), Traditional Buildings of India (1998) and so on. Modern Architecture today is thus haunted by its rough encounter with the world,  and yet wants nothing more than to continue to complete its teleological urge - on the back of neo-liberalist economy. In reverse ‘traditional architecture’ has now embraced its position as a post-teleological, metaphysics of the eternal presence. Baked into cultural imaginaries it is simply to be cleaned and dusted. Both are so busy defending their respective turfs that they foreclose possibilities.