Born in 1932, in Paris. Lives in La Rochelle.

Emeritus Professor at the École Spéciale d’Architecture in Paris, and chairman and director of the same institution from 1968 to 1998, Paul Virilio became editor of the Espace Critique collection at Editions Galilée in 1973 after the publication of his first philosophical essays.

He was awarded the Grand Prix National de la Critique in 1987. In 1990, he became programme director at the Collège International de Philosophie, headed by Jacques Derrida, and, since 1992, has sat on the French commission concerned with housing for the poor (HCLD), chaired by Louis Besson.

Paul Virilio is an essayist with a special interest in urbanism and the strategic implications of new technologies. In addition to his numerous books, he has published widely in French and international journals. He has worked with the Fondation Cartier pour l’art contemporain on several exhibitions, the first being La Vitesse (1991), at Jouy-en-Josas in 1991.