Contemporary Architectural Thoughts Under Deleuze’s Fold Theory

The notion of the “Fold”,which could be interpreted as the most common morphological phenomenon in both nature and human society,is Gilles Deleuze’s abstract yet sensuous characterization of the inherent property and intrinsic existence through the history of architecture,art,science,mathematics,music,poetry and philosophy.This dissertation focuses on the philosophical explication as well as the architectural interpretation of Deleuzian concept of the “Fold”,and the contemporary architectural practice influenced by Gilles Deleuze’s philosophy,unfolding the correlation between the philosopher’s writing and architects’ thinking.By elucidating the concept of Gilles Deleuze Fold,this paper analyzes the implications and aesthetic values of the Baroque,which Deleuze referred to as an operative function,rather than an essence or a trait.With different angles of interpretations made by avant-garde architects and theorists including Bernard Cache,Peter Eisenman and Greg Lynn,the Deleuze Fold is now one thinking tool and operating method available for architects to form or generate an architecture.Once translated into architectural practice,the very one philosophical theory brought out the emergence of multiple design techniques,prompting architects to focus on the controlling during the generating of an architecture rather than the pursuing of the morphological ending.Based on the post-structuralist theory,this thesis pays attention to the folding operative functions in the generative process of an architecture,therefore,explains the evolutional transmutation from deconstructivism to folding architecture under the influence of Deleuze’s Fold theory.