Architecture and any other form of artistry call for the following of certain processes for an artist to achieve given artistic goals. This theme is clearly seen through Gilles Deleuze’s “The Diagramme” and Michel Foucault’s “Panopticism”. In both cases, the aspect of organization is emphasized on with Foucault suggesting a more structured approach to artistry, while Deleuze calls for the establishment of a more liberal architectural thought.
Panopticism by Foucault is a concept of how power can be centralized and applied in architectural work. Based on the early practices of cities hit by plagues, Foucault explains that people were kept indoors under the supervision of a syndic (Foucault 195). The syndic had the responsibility of locking people’s houses from the outside and conducted daily roll calls to ensure that the authorities were kept informed of the status of the inhabitants of the town (Foucault 196). Foucault explains that the concept of keeping diseased town residents indoors is applied in the planning of prisons. To this end, prisons are characterized by an annular building with an observational tower at the center. The building is divided into cells where each cell is lighted in such a way that prisoners can be observed effortlessly from the tower (Foucault 200).
The fact that inmates are in a constant state of visibility ensures that the prison officials have ultimate control of the inmates. The prisoners due to the lighting of their cells are not sure of whether they are being monitored or not, since the guards at the central tower are not visible (pg. 201). This is Foucault’s representation of how power is applied in that particular setting to control the actions of individuals. The functional need of organization to this end ties an architect in regards to planning. In order for the architect to come up with a building that imposes power over other individuals, it becomes necessary to follow the rules of organization to the latter.
Deleuze also touches on organization, but places less emphasis on following all the rules of organization to the latter. According to him, the diagram has its form of organization identified as optical organization. Unlike in Foucault’s case where organization is taken to have a literal meaning, organization in the diagram is more figurative in the diagram (Deleuze 1). According to Deleuze, the diagram is a composition of both lines and areas. The most important aspect of these lines, however, is the fact that they should only offer a suggestion of how a piece of art such as a painting should ultimately appear (Deleuze 2). The suggestions should not limit or control the final outlook of the architectural work an artist comes up with.
While Foucault calls for the dis-individualization of power in Panopticism, Deleuze argues that all power should be left to the artist. In Panopticism, power is spread out in the system such that operations resemble the actions of a machine (Foucault 202). Machine power is in such a way that a child is capable of effectively operating the machine. Deleuze, on the other hand, highlights that power should remain with an individual. The systemic expectations as a result of organization should not be used to tie down the extent to which an artist shows off creativity. Organization should simply show the way for an artist, while all the power remains with the artist to decide on the final outcomes of their artistry.
The two articles, therefore, show different applications of the power of organization. According to Foucault, architectural work needs to follow laid down plans while Deleuze sees organization as a factor that offers architects options in regards to their architectural work.
Works Cited
Deleuze, Gilles. The Diagram. New York: Columbia UP, 1993. Print.
Foucault, Michel. Discipline and Punish: The Birth of Prison. New York: Pantheon, 1977. Print.
