The Autonomy of Theory

Following the exhibition Tendenzen—Neuere Architektur im Tessin in Zurich in 1975, contemporaneous architecture in Ticino became the subject of fervent coverage in Swiss and international publications. This extended essay argues that the critical attention emancipated the narratives of Ticino architecture from the actual conditions of production, leading to the paradoxical divergence of its historiography from its history. Placing well-known external constructs, such as the notion of the School of the Ticino, against the robust skepticism of local architects and historians, the essay chronicles the long-term consequences of the misalignment between autonomous theory and situated knowledge.