Céline Pisseloup

Presentation

I started my PhD on October 2019 under the guidance of Professor Nicolas Fiévé at the EPHE University, Paris, France. I began this research project after long preparatory studies, first in architecture at the National School of Architecture of Paris la Villette, then in Japanese civilization and language, both modern and classical, at INALCO University (National Institute of Oriental Languages and Civilisations). After those, I completed a Masters’ course in Japanese studies at EPHE University, also under the supervision of Professor Nicolas Fiévé.

In my thesis, I explore the question of the theorisation of architectural knowledge through the development of writing and drawing methods for the conception of the elite’s buildings in medieval Japan. This work is based on the analysis and translating of the Shōmei,  “Light of the carpenter master”, one of the major carpenter master treaties. Written in the beginning of the 18e century by the Heinouchi family平内, official carpenter masters of the Edo shogunate, the Shōmei comprise five scrolls covering five types of buildings: doors, sanctuary, temples, pagodas and residences. This carpenter’s manual¸ giving guidance and measurement for the wooden buildings, is a unique document that allows to understand architecture in Japan in the 16th and 17th centuries.

Research thematics

• Medieval Japanese architecture
• Measurements and dimensions in architecture

CRCAO research programmes

• Forms of text and uses of images in Japanese books
• Essays “Following the Brush” (zuihitsu) : Collections of Thoughts and Observations concerning the Past and Present of Pre-modern Japan
• Glossary of Specialised Terms for the Archaeology, Art History, Visual Culture and Architectural History of China and Japan (Artasia)