The End of Architecture

Abstract

Architecture, as an autonomous, theory-led discipline, has ceased to exist. This paper posits the “end of architecture” not as rhetorical hyperbole but as a historically grounded assertion. The discipline has self-dissolved, eroding its intellectual and professional autonomy under the pressures of anti-capitalist politicisation and woke virtue signalling. Once defined by rigorous critical discourse, architectural innovation, and theoretical grounding, architecture has devolved into a fragmented practice now operating on the level of a mere craft rather than a science-based, academic discipline and profession. Academic institutions, biennals, and professional critiques have abandoned their roles as incubators of architectural thought, instead engaging with tangential sociopolitical issues that stray from architecture’s core competency. 
Although more pessimistic than optimistic for the immediate future, this paper posits the necessity of reasserting architecture’s specific social function, of reclaiming agency, and re-establishing its critical discourse to foster innovation aligned with societal progress. It challenges architects, theorists, and educators to reject pluralistic complacency, reinvigorate constructive critique, and refocus the discipline on its core societal responsibility. Only through such recalibration can architecture emerge from its current dissolution and reclaim its role as a distinct and essential function system in the development process of contemporary society.