Books › Histories of the immediate present
Histories of the immediate present
First published 2008 · 280 pages
A deeply cerebral exploration of how the historical narratives we construct actively shape the physical structures of the modern world.
What it feels like
Reading this book feels like sitting in a rigorous, high-level university seminar on architectural theory. The pace is steady and deliberate, demanding a contemplative engagement with dense intellectual history. Its mood is distinctly cerebral, immersing the reader in the minds of major architectural historians to parse the tension between historical nostalgia, pure geometry, and technical experimentation. The prose is precise and analytical, carefully untangling the specific versions of modernism advanced by figures like Kaufmann, Rowe, Banham, and Tafuri. It is a deeply satisfying text for scholars and architecture enthusiasts who crave a rigorous examination of the inevitable collision between history and design that defines the postwar built environment.
- Mood
- cerebral
- contemplative
- academic
- Tone
- scholarly
- analytical
- intellectual
- critical
- Pace
- steady
- Themes
- architectural theory · intellectual history · the collision of history and design · modernist narratives
- The writing
- Precise, academic, and deeply analytical, carefully dissecting complex theoretical frameworks and historical narratives.
- The arc
- A cerebral journey that moves from the isolation of individual historical theories to a synthesized understanding of modern architecture's complex foundations.
- Who it's for
- Scholars, architects, and theorists fascinated by how historical narratives actively shape modern design.
About the book
"Anthony Vidler looks at the historical approaches of Emil Kaufmann, Colin Rowe, Reyner Banham, and Manfredo Tafuri, and the specific versions of modernism advanced by their historical narratives. Vidler shows that the modernism conceived by Kaufmann was like the late Enlightenment projects he revered, one of pure geometrical forms and elemental composition; that of Rowe saw manifest ambiguity and complexity in contemporary design; Banham's modernism took its cue from the aspirations of the futurists; and the "Renaissance modernism" of Tafuri found its source in the division between the technical experimentation of Brunelleschi and the cultural nostalgia of Alberti. Vidler's investigation demonstrates the inevitable collision between history and design that pervades all modern architectural discourse - and has given rise to some of the most interesting architectural experiments of the postwar period."--Jacket.
Description from Open Library.
Books like Histories of the immediate present
See why they match
Architettura contemporaneaManfredo Tafuri and Francesco Dal CoAn expansive, deeply analytical journey through the societal forces and visionary minds that built the modern world.
Modern architecture since 1900William J. R. CurtisA sweeping, authoritative journey through the utopian dreams and concrete realities that shaped the twentieth-century built environment.
From Bauhaus to our houseTom WolfeA blistering, highly entertaining takedown of the architectural elites who boxed the modern world into glass and steel.
Architectural principles in the age of humanismRudolf WittkowerA cerebral and illuminating exploration of the hidden mathematical and philosophical harmonies that shape physical space.
How Buildings LearnStewart BrandA paradigm-shifting lens that transforms the everyday built environment from a collection of static objects into a slow-motion documentary of human life.
History of architectureFletcher, Banister SirA monumental, encyclopedic journey through the built environment that captures the scale of human ambition across millennia.