The Loneliness of a Long Distant Future: Dilemmas of Contemporary Architecture

The Loneliness of a Long Distant Future is about the passing of global events and conflicts in some geographical spaces seen through the window of contemporary architecture. It is about the obliteration of existing contexts (in Kosovo, Jerusalem, Samarkand, Tibet) and the formation of new architectural identities in the twenty-first century. Romi Khosla takes the reader into regions that have witnessed catastrophic changes. He recalls the initial concerns of modern architecture, of bringing about social transformation through design. He has witnessed the growing disorder in these regions and argues for the need to engage architecture as a solution. In the essays that compose this book, Romi Khosla re-defines the broader social concerns of architecture. He argues for a reconsideration of architectural ideals, even while accepting the need for ethic-free haute couture designer buildings. This is required because of the newly-emergent polarities that are becoming apparent: issues such as order and disorder, state and non-state government, globalization and regional resistances to it. He concludes with two ambitious solutions, conceived as metaphors of architecture in regions where dirty military solutions have been imposed on communities.