The Feeling of Space

A richly illustrated exploration of humanity’s drive to shape life as a spatial project, from Plato’s time to the digital era.


Place is something real, but space is generally conceived as abstract and immaterial. In The Feeling of Space, Christopher Bardt explores this damaging modern binary and traces the contradictory impulses that have dematerialized our sense of space through history: fear and wonder; a yearning for the infinite and intimate; and the need for autonomy and belonging. Using rich illustrations and examinations of art, technology, and philosophy, Bardt argues that if we can get back to first feeling space, then we can treat space as the substance that gives agency to our intersubjectivity—the exchange of conscious and unconscious thoughts we have with others.

Expertly connecting ideas with clear examples from lived experiences, Bardt’s revolutionary framework will appeal to a broad readership, particularly those who are interested in the theoretical and philosophical aspects of spaces. In an age where digital media has dissolved, instead of increased, our sense of connection, The Feeling of Space shows that when we learn to experience space as a medium as real as a place, we not only see ourselves as inherently spatialized beings, but we can also rebuild the bonds that tie us together.