Theorist

Robin Evans

1944–1993 Architecture / drawing & geometry

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Fantasy Representation Knowledge Sign

Details

Nationality: British

Classifications

Holder: Individual
Source of authority: ReasonObservation
Subject: Human centred
Mode of transmission: Text drawing
Knowledge type: Propositional
Epistemic cluster: Western philosophical

Notes

Architect and historian; AA-trained; PhD Essex; Visiting Professor at the Harvard GSD 1986–1993. Author of the canonical reframing of architectural drawing as a generative, not transcriptive, act.

Connections

authored The Projective Cast: Architecture and Its Three Geometries
proposed Drawing as translation (the generative gap)
authored Translations from Drawing to Building
influenced Alberto Pérez-Gómez
influenced Stan Allen
influenced Mario Carpo

Sources

Robin Evans. Translations from Drawing to Building and Other Essays. MIT Press / Architectural Association, 1997.
Mohsen Mostafavi. Introduction to Translations from Drawing to Building. MIT Press, 1997.

Cite this entry

First published May 2026Last revised Jul 2026

CLAD. "Robin Evans." Atlas of Architectural Thought. CLAD, 2026. https://www.cl-ad.com.au/research/atlas/theorist/robin-evans/. Accessed July 17, 2026.