Narrative shifts in architecture

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dc.contributor.author Raman, Pattabi G.
dc.date.accessioned 2009-06-30T07:23:13Z
dc.date.available 2009-06-30T07:23:13Z
dc.date.issued 2007
dc.description.abstract Attend a guided tour of the new Constitutional Court building in Johannesburg. At some stage or other the well-trained and polite guide will ask you whether you have seen any court building like this. Then, listen to the visitors unanimously respond, "no!" Why? Jean-Francois Lyotard maintained that in a multicultural and multiethnic society grand narratives are out of place and what we need is a proliferation of small narratives. Post-apartheid architecture of South Africa seems to be not only in tune with Lyotard's view but extends it to include inverse narratives as well. The difference between our Constitutional Court and others of its type is due to its implicit small and inverse narratives. Another matter which this paper will take in its stride in a positive way is the notion of African Renaissance. The course of action it will take is to go to the primary source or first principle and set the scene by looking at a quintessential example of Renaissance architecture containing small and inverse narratives. The assumption behind this strategy is that whenever there is a political and cultural change, there is a corresponding narrative shift. Using the principles contained in this example as yard-sticks, this paper will then examine a selected number of works of South African architecture since 1994, delve into their narrative contents and identify their place in the international evolution of contemporary architecture. en_US
dc.format.medium Journal article en_US
dc.identifier.citation Raman, PG 2007, 'Narrative shifts in architecture', South African Journal of Art History, vol. 22, no 2, pp 250-276. [http://www.journals.co.za/ej/ejour_sajah.html] en_US
dc.identifier.issn 0258-3542
dc.identifier.uri http://hdl.handle.net/2263/10551
dc.language.iso en en_US
dc.publisher Art Historical Work Group of South Africa en_US
dc.rights Art Historical Work Group of South Africa en_US
dc.subject Genius-loci en_US
dc.subject Architectural values en_US
dc.subject Narratives en_US
dc.subject Paradigm shift en_US
dc.subject Post-apartheid architecture en_US
dc.subject Inversion en_US
dc.subject Euro-centrism en_US
dc.title Narrative shifts in architecture en_US
dc.type Article en_US


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