Remembering Paul Virilio

Paul Virilio, who passed away in 2018, was a significant figure in the study of cultural politics, as both pioneer and guide. This article prepares first-time readers for an encounter with Virilio’s critical thinking and essential writings and offers a personal remembrance by John Armitage of some of his principal theoretical and everyday convergences with and divergences from Virilio’s work from 1997 to the present day, including his three interviews with Virilio, the exchange of letters, a visit to the church of Saint Bernadette du Banlay, and Armitage’s own and others’ contributions to Virilio studies. In exploring Virilio’s influential ideas and their impact, the article maps out Virilio’s engagement with other important thinkers, such as Maurice Merleau-Ponty, and concludes with a discussion of recent translations of key texts by Virilio.