Published by Princeton Architectural Press in 1996 (and in a revised edition in 2000), Theorizing a New Agenda for Architecture did not just collect essays; it curated a conversation. It argued that architecture had shifted from a problem-solving discipline (modernism) to a discipline of meaning, language, and culture.
If the first section was about feeling, this section was about meaning. Nesbitt included heavyweights like Peter Eisenman, Rem Koolhaas, and Bernard Tschumi. Drawing from French philosophers (Derrida, Foucault), these essays treat buildings as texts to be read, deconstructed, and subverted. This is often the hardest section for undergraduates to grasp, which is why having a searchable PDF is invaluable. kate nesbitt theorizing a new agenda for architecture pdf