Designing Utopia: John Ruskin's Urban Vision for Britain and AmericaAlthough his name is not one that springs to mind when the public thinks of influential urban planners and designers, John ruskin was undoubtedly a most important influence. Art critic, social reformer, giant of English literature, his prodigious output of books, pamphlets and lectures, as well as his efforts at practical reform, established his tremendous reputation in Britain and America. More than providing a vision statement, he challenged artists, architects and town planners to collaborate on developing prototypes of his vision. To a remarkable extent they succeeded in doing so and thereby created a legacy of good community design that this book highlights. Designing Utopia presents a broad overview of John Ruskin's life: the development of his views on architecture and urban design, as well as his views on social justice; how his vision was developed in his writings; his efforts at practical application of that vision, in particular his efforts to build a guild based society. Finally the book analyses how Ruskin's urban vision influenced the work of a long line of progressive architects and planners and the buildings and communities they designed modern urban designers such as Lewis Mumford, Patrick Geddes, Ebenezer Howard. The work of these figures are then related to current practitioners of the New Urbanism such as Duaney and Plater-Zyberk. |
From inside the book
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Page vii
... interest in Ruskin and his work . My eventual direct engagement with Ruskin's ideas came quite circuitously via my undergraduate work in comparative urban government and public administration under the watchful eye of Professor Robert G ...
... interest in Ruskin and his work . My eventual direct engagement with Ruskin's ideas came quite circuitously via my undergraduate work in comparative urban government and public administration under the watchful eye of Professor Robert G ...
Page viii
... interest in town planning . But my interests would again turn to the broader question of town planning stimulated by my proximity to the small garden village of Fairview , ( Yorkship Village ) in Camden N.J. which was planned in 1917 ...
... interest in town planning . But my interests would again turn to the broader question of town planning stimulated by my proximity to the small garden village of Fairview , ( Yorkship Village ) in Camden N.J. which was planned in 1917 ...
Page 53
... interest in education was not limited to that of working men , indeed he was personally involved with the education of all younger children , writing copiously on the subject as well as lecturing frequently at a school for young girls ...
... interest in education was not limited to that of working men , indeed he was personally involved with the education of all younger children , writing copiously on the subject as well as lecturing frequently at a school for young girls ...
Contents
The Development Of A Visionary | 19 |
Ruskins Efforts At Practical Town Planning | 48 |
William Morris And The Town Planning Implications Of | 73 |
Copyright | |
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Designing Utopia: John Ruskin's Urban Vision for Britain and America Michael H. Lang No preview available - 1999 |
Common terms and phrases
achieved Ackerman aesthetic American architects architecture artistic Arts and Crafts Ashbee associated beautiful British building built called Camden central Chipping Campden Clavigera co-housing cottages Crafts communities Crafts Movement craftsmen described design approach efforts England English environment established felt Garden City garden villages Gothic green Guild Socialism Hampstead Garden Suburb Hill human ideal industrial influence inspired John Ruskin Kelmscott Kentlands land trust lecture Lethaby live London major medieval Modern Painters Mumford nature neighbourhood neo-traditional Octavia Hill open space organic Oxford Philadelphia Philip Webb planning system Press Price principles produced projects Radburn Raymond Unwin Red House regional planning result romantic Rose Valley Roycroft Ruskin and Morris Ruskin's urban vision Ruskinian socialist society sprawl stone street style suburban Swenarton town planners town planning traditional urban design utopian vernacular vernacular architecture Webb's William Morris workers wrote York Yorkship Village