Architecture and construction: topical themes in the teaching of Auguste Choisy

Abstract

The relationship between theory and practice, ideas and realisation, has always been a key feature in the evolution of classical architecture. Histoire de l’Architecture by Auguste Choisy, a French engineer working in the second half of the 19th century, is built precisely on a desire to illustrate this specific project feature. The purpose of this article is to throw light on the topical nature of this current of thought in reference to the work of one modern (Auguste Perret) and one contemporary (Pritzker Prize winner Paulo Mendes da Rocha) architect who have interpreted design as the outcome of thought (theory) and practice (construction).