The recurring question of whether architecture is an art does not allow for a simple answer. The question itself, however, exposes the ways in which the concept of architecture has changed and is changing. The status of architecture has shifted alongside the concepts of art, culture and the creative economy.
Trading between Architecture and Art
does not attempt to answer the question of whether architecture is an art, but considers the question itself: how it affects architecture, and art, as a practice and a discipline. This volume aims to identify the overlaps and misalignments between concepts and categories implied in the question, and to trace the impact of these on the ways that art and architecture are valued. By unpacking the historical and current interests at stake in defining architecture as art,
reconsiders the place of architecture in contemporary culture.