The massive global economy derives its wealth from generating dead, soulless objects, while at the same time wiping out natural ecosystems. He saw that many of our structures today-from urban complexes, to buildings, to rooms, to windows, to door handles, to furniture-propagate an inhuman aesthetic. He warned of the folly of losing the nourishing sense of beauty. He feared that humanity’s self-inflicted moral and sensory numbness would lead to nihilism. He saw farther than anybody else, and what he saw was terrifying. I sensed a sadness in Christopher toward the end of his productive life. By defending traditional architecture and art, Alexander’s work challenged many contemporary architectural trends. Architecture is profoundly important beautiful architecture is healing, and ugly architecture, even if functional, can be harmful. In his books, including The Nature of Order, he aimed to articulate a method for designing beautiful and health-giving environments. Central to Alexander’s theory of architecture is the belief that the human mind instinctively desires to create structures that are not only utilitarian, but also beautiful. His designs and writings offer an antidote to our civilization’s eager pursuit of self-annihilation. The architect Christopher Alexander (1936–2022), who passed away last month, showed us how to reconnect to the world through architecture.
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