Aeroplaning
Aeroplanning will fill a research gap by examining the Aerial Spatial Revolution in terms of the architectural
scale concerned, which has encountered rather fragmentary and disjointed research so far, although the promise of flight
and the fascination for its elevated and expansive view are acknowledged as driving force of modern architects and their
imagination par excellence. By scrutinising this nexus on the basis of the design practice, statements and (built) works of
architects, the research will be able to provide new insights into the impact of aviation and the conquest of the third
dimension in architecture with a coherent study. Axis B will also provide a new foundation in terms of urban design, to
which has been given more consideration regarding the new spatial and perceptual dimensions introduced by aviation.
On the one hand, it will deliver new knowledge on the medial, iconographic and instrumental character of aerial images
by analysing the conditions of their production, dissemination, reception and use in planning practice. Using thereby the
example of the flight and aerial photography pioneer Walter Mittelholzer, it will also offer a new perspective on urban
transformation and industrialisation processes in Switzerland in the first half of the 20th century and their aftermath to
the present day. On the other hand, the research will integrate the discourse on the role of aerial photography in urban
planning in its pioneering phase for the first time in a comprehensive study, based on a broad corpus of source material.
Prof. Katrin Albrecht (OST)
Co-Applicant, Aeroplaning axis coordinator
Katrin Albrecht is an architect
and professor of History and Theory of Architecture and Urban Design at the Eastern Switzerland University of Applied
Sciences (OST, ArchitekturWerkstatt St Gallen). With her expertise in the history of modern architecture and urbanism,
she will focus on architectural and urban design practices and transformations in a historical and theoretical frame,
addressing material as well as social, institutional and political issues related to the Aerial Spatial Revolution