Two major formal approaches have governed architectural discourse overthe last century: formal autonomy and formal engagement. While formalautonomy disengaged architecture from its social, political, cultural, andphysical context, formal engagement of current architectural newpragmatismhardly offered a critical evaluation of these contextualfeatures. Another approach is possible, which we will name here as thirdformalism alluding to Anthony Vidler’s seminal article “The ThirdTypology” (1998). This third formalism discusses the possibility of anarchitecture that realizes both the separation from and engagement withthe external contextual conditions via the form. Without naming it as such,this alternative approach has been articulated by Pier Vittorio Aureli in hisbook The Possibility of an Absolute Architecture (2011). This paper aimsat discussing this third alternative by analyzing the Arter building inİstanbul. Designed by Grimshaw Architects and opened in 2019, Arter’snew building is located in Dolapdere, Beyoğlu, which witnesses a rapidurban transformation. Arter is a good example of the third formalism sinceits finite and definitive form neither directly follows the external forces ofits urban surrounding nor disregards its context by solely focusing on theintrinsic formal elements of architecture
