A building can make the surrounding air itself become visible

Evidence

Standing there, the building rests on the rocky ground. This resting of the work draws up out of the rock the mystery of that rock’s clumsy yet spontaneous support. Standing there, the building holds its ground against the storm raging above it and so first makes the storm itself manifest in its violence. The luster and gleam of the stone, though itself apparently glowing only by the grace of the sun, yet first brings to light the light of the day, the breadth of the sky, the darkness of the night. The temple’s firm towering makes visible the invisible space of air. — Sarah Bakewell, At the Existentialist Café, 598

Categorization

• DEFINE: A vivid working example of Heidegger’s poiēsis / ‘bringing forth’ — the artwork as what makes its context manifest.
• APHORISMS: Real advice on perception: a human construction can re-frame how the whole environment shows itself — stay receptive to this shift.