There are as many definitions of architecture as there are architects. One of them resonates with the trajectory of arc en rêve since its foundation: that which sees architecture first and foremost as a field of knowledge.
This concept goes beyond the simple act of designing and constructing a building, venturing into the field where architecture is constituted as a body of knowledge and methods that enable us to analyze and better understand our environment. Indeed, from the Renaissance onwards, the figure of the architect moved away from that of the builder to that of an intellectual manipulating writing and drawing as tools for both interpreting the world and transforming it. Over the centuries, architecture has thus multiplied into infinite lines of action to communicate and develop a return on itself. It has certainly taken the form of built works - monuments and palaces, housing for all and town and country planning - but it has also expressed itself through essays, books, magazines, billions of drawings and photographs, archives, collections, exhibitions and museums, because of the anchoring of constructions in given places and the need to communicate them. Much more than just a branch of art history, architectural history continues to represent a vast territory that critically engages architecture. It weaves links with other practices, whether in art, engineering or science.
The new version of arc en rêve's website presents itself as a platform where reflections on architecture are linked to specific activities related to our mission: exhibitions, educational actions and public events. The site's interface is twofold. On the right, the center's activities and information, as well as a rich digital archive of content accumulated over time by an institution soon to celebrate its 50th anniversary. On the left, an online magazine, featuring essays and articles designed to explore subjects in greater depth, develop themes and give a voice to authors who reflect on architecture as the ideal prism for understanding our contemporary world. Of course, there are links between these two aspects of the site. However, the goal of nurturing architectural thought implies that the online magazine can sometimes follow autonomous paths, where research and writing are no longer directly associated with our activities.
With the redesign of its website, arc en rêve aims to weave links across different practices, to be a cultural agitator and to become a coveted space for authors to meet a curious and committed readership. In other words, to contribute, in its own way, to this vast field of knowledge called architecture.