ABSTRACT
The general tolerance of different kinds of thing, or more particularly of different and perhaps incommensurable descriptions of the world, none of which is deemed to be more fundamental than any of the others. — Oxford Dictionary of Philosophy
Pluralism is perhaps the best way to describe the architectural climate of the twenty-first century. The past fifty years have been a period of shedding the shackles of modernist dogma, followed by the freeing effects of the post-structuralist incursion into architectural thought. There was a further widening of architectural concern due to the influence of critical theory, and more particularly Deleuze’s call for a more grounded and earthy architecture. The final result is an architectural pluralism where blobs and folds take their place next to eco-hyper-megastructures and other manifestations of the green revolution. It is a good time to be an architect. The emerging generation of architects have unprecedented tools at their disposal. One has a choice from a wide range of modes of practice and design ideologies. Architects are increasingly seen as important players in the search for a culturally valid, globally sustainable future. Although it is hard to recognize when one is in the midst of it, this is a revolutionary time in architecture. That revolution involves a greater pluralism in the discipline and practice of the profession of architecture.
