Buzzinda: Walking through an Architectural Metaphor of the Jungian Individuation Process

Abstract

The notion of an ideal city is an ancient theme, a container of symbols of perfection and harmony that have considerable analogies with the Jungian archetypes and with the psychical symbolism of the individuation process. This article focuses on Buzzinda, an ideal city built during the 20th century by the Italian architect Tomaso Buzzi, who designed a richly symbolic journey unfolding across the buildings of the city. Following this path, we come across several symbols that have a universal psychological meaning, analogous to those conceptualized by Jung in relation to the process of individuation. Walking through the city becomes a way to physically encounter the archetypes and symbols present in the psyche and also demonstrates that the individuation process can be discerned autonomously by independent thinkers. The journey through Buzzinda becomes a way to meet these symbols and face the contents of the psyche, delving deeper into the unconscious, only to return enriched with a greater knowledge of ourselves.