After fifteen years of the absence of philosophy in architectural discourse,[1] the symposium Proto/e/co/logics, held in Rovinj on 6 and 7 August, has brought philosophical issues back into play. A very ambitious and quite courageous idea of an encounter of the most recent, hot philosophical thought – Speculative Materialism – with the most prominent names of architectural theory and production opened a number of extremely interesting themes which we will probably hear more about in the future.
[1] A series of conferences held in the mid-1990s as part of ANY Magazine’s activities led to discussions between the so-called Critical Theory faction, which was represented primarily by Peter Eisenman, and new actors on the scene, who advocated a pragmatic approach to architecture. These discussions could be considered as the beginning of the ‘end’ of philosophical aspirations in architecture.