Inhabited Machines: Genealogy of an Architectural Concept (Exploring Architecture)

The origin of the ‘living machine’

Around 1800, one of the most influential architectural concepts of the last 250 years emerged – that of built spaces as technical devices. Climate, morality, and comfort are the three main themes of this study, and each is vividly examined in separate chapters through synchronous comparison and with the help of examples. The emergence of corresponding metaphors, knowledge, and construction forms is traced over a period of about 70 years. The author focuses particularly on the operative dimension of architecture. Thus, the book provides a historical perspective on a key topic for the future of architecture. The book is aimed at readers interested in architecture, technology or the cultural history of building and living.

Moritz Gleich studied communication and media studies at Freie Universitat Berlin, Bauhaus University of Weimar and the University of California Santa Barbara. He then joined the Institute for the History and Theory of Architecture (gta) at ETH Zurich as a scientific assistant. Additionally, he taught at the University of Basel Institute of Media Studies and conducted research at the Bartlett School of Architecture in London. In 2018, he completed his doctoral degree at ETH Zurich with a dissertation on the genealogy of machinic concepts in architecture. Gleich has lectured and published internationally, including in edited volumes and journals such as Grey Room, AA Files, Perspecta and Zeitschrift für Medienwissenschaft. He has been director of the gta Verlag since 2019.