Understanding Eclecticism

"Eclecticism is an approach, an attitude of mind, an aptitude for discussion, a bias not to submit one's action to any dogma; it is a passionate and patient search for truth, a quest for beauty without any other guide than the arguments of each person about it [...]. Eclecticism is pragmatic, concrete, effective, modern. It characterizes the approach of the architects of the 19th century who, from the July Monarchy until the end of the century and practically until the eve of the war in 1914, pursued a vast debate on technique, history and society." This is how the author introduces this committed essay, where he places the notion of eclecticism, essential in architecture, within the framework of the political debates which spanned the 19th century and continued until the beginning of the 20th. Despite the battles they had to fight and the opposition they encountered, for the author, this desire of architects to distinguish themselves from builders in the construction process represents the most modern way of thinking about architecture.

13 x 21 cm

360 pages

73 black and white illustrations

ISBN: 978-2-9092-8329-6

Text in French only