'The Judgement of Paris': lecture by Mark Cousins, 13th November, 1998

Extent: 1 audio cassette, 4 digital files (659.3 MB )

Comprises audio recording of a lecture entitled 'The Judgement of Paris', given by Mark Cousins on the 13th November, 1998. The recordings consist of a Maxwell 90 audio cassette tape, 2 digital preservation files (538 MB, .wav format) and 2 digital access files (121.3 MB, .mp3 format). Duration of access version: 49min 26sec.

Copyright: Architectural Association

Creator: Mark Cousins

Admin History: The recording is of the 2nd lecture in the series entitled 'The Name of the Object', given by Mark Cousins as part of the AA General Studies programme, 1998-99. In this lecture, Mark Cousins brings together two stories on judgement of beauty: the competition between the artists, Parrhasius and Zeuxis and that of the Judgement of Paris. Through these two stories, he analyses the uncanniness of how the definition of a name becomes the representation of the ontological reality. Cousins points out the obscure issue of speaking or acting in the name of something, where a herald of the object also becomes a memorial of the object. He links the discourse of beauty to questions regarding the relation between the judgement and the name, and the coming apart of object and drive.

Custodial History: Audio cassette recording was made by the AA Audio Visual Department and retained by the AA Photo Library until 2019, when it was transferred to the AA Archives.

Aquisition: Audio cassette was transferred from the AA Photo Library to the AA Archives in 2019. Digital preservation and access copies were created by the AA Archives in 2021.

Archive Note: Catalogue description by Ke Bo Tsai

Publication Note: AA Events List, Week 6, Autumn Term, 9th - 13th November, 1998