Freud for Architects

Freud for Architects explains what Freud offers to the understanding of architectural creativity and architectural experience, with case examples from early modern architecture to the present.

Freud’s observations on the human psyche and its influence on culture and social behavior have generated a great deal of discussion since the 19th century. Yet, what Freud’s key ideas offer to the understanding of architectural creativity and experience has received little direct attention. That is partly because Freud opened the door to a place where conventional research in architecture has little traction, the unconscious. Adding to the difficulties, Freud’s collection of work is vast and daunting. Freud for Architects navigates Freud’s key ideas and bridges a chasm between architecture and psychoanalytic theory.

The book highlights Freud’s ideas on the foundational developments of childhood, developments on which the adult psyche is based. It explains why and how the developmental stages could influence adult architectural preferences and preoccupations, spatial intuition, and beliefs about what is proper and right for architectural design. As such, Freud for Architects will be of great interest to students, practitioners, and scholars in a range of disciplines including architecture, psychoanalysis, and philosophy.

John Abell is associate professor of architecture in the School of Design at Washington State University, USA. He specializes in modern architectural design, urban design and critical theory, particularly as these intersect with aesthetic experience, material craft and advanced design technologies. Specific teaching and research topics include architectural design modeling and experimentation methods, design innovation and optimization supporting social practices, design psychology.