LITTERATURE ET ARCHITECTURE: LEUR INFLUENCE SUR D’AUTRES TYPES D’ART
LITERATURE AND ARCHITECTURE: THEIR INFLUENCE ON OTHER TYPES OF ART

Summary/Abstract: Great architects build structures that make us travel through space, compel us to slow down, speed up, or stop to contemplate. How many times have we paused while reading a book and felt as if we were inside a structure the writer had consciously or unconsciously built? Don’t simply imagine the places and architectural settings described in the text—feel immersed in the space, the literary space. “The process of adding word by word is in many ways similar to adding brick by brick… I can’t think of a better course that so subtly combines the goals of both arts,” said writer Colum McCann. Writing has long been an integral part of architectural practice, from Vitruvius’s Ten Books on Architecture to Peter Eisenman’s theoretical essays. Writing helps architects articulate ideas that can’t be captured in drawings alone. Victor Hugo, in the chapter titled “This Will Kill That” from The Hunchback of Notre-Dame, wrote that the book in the modern world would take on the cultural functions of architecture. Indeed, one can conclude that in the history of literature, many pages are devoted to architecture; the heroes of one of the world’s most popular literary bestsellers live on—well into the third century—through cinema, opera, and ballet. It is well known that literary works often form the basis of scenarios that convey the dramaturgy of dance. From countless books, plays, and musical compositions, choreographers select what resonates most with their personal vision—hence, the connection between literature and choreography is also clear. There’s an opinion that “the silence of architecture and design must give way to the word, for when we speak of architecture in literature, we’re ultimately talking about our lives and our culture as a whole.” In this article, we invite you on an exclusive journey in the footsteps of writers and artists, architects and designers—a unique experience revealing the hidden marvels of this literary enclave through architecture, theater and ballet, music, literature, and museum heritage.

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