Drawing Out the Imaginal Periphery: Towards a Theory

This article develops an outline toward an architectural theory of the imaginal periphery. We transpose philosopher Chiara Bottici’s idea of the imaginal into architectural theory. We argue that this concept’s mediating quality resonates in architectural discourse, particularly where drawing mediates thought and production, and images mediate individual imagination and collective imaginaries. We explore this idea through a close reading of Bottici’s Imaginal Politics coupled with texts by Aldo Rossi, accompanied by reflections on two of our teaching and design research projects, the Infra-Ordinary in Graz and Peripherocene in Newcastle-upon-Tyne. Our methodology combines close reading, close writing, close drawing, and collaborative critical reflections. We conclude by arguing for the pressing need to more carefully address the forms of development of public life in urban peripheries, proposing new interpretive frameworks for architectural thought and practice toward a more dignified architecture of the periphery.