Interior Urbanism

Architecture, John Portman and Downtown America

Nonfiction, Art & Architecture, Architecture, Individual Architect, Planning
Cover of the book Interior Urbanism by Professor Charles Rice, Bloomsbury Publishing
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Professor Charles Rice ISBN: 9781472581211
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing Publication: February 25, 2016
Imprint: Bloomsbury Academic Language: English
Author: Professor Charles Rice
ISBN: 9781472581211
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Publication: February 25, 2016
Imprint: Bloomsbury Academic
Language: English

Vast interior spaces have become ubiquitous in the contemporary city. The soaring atriums and concourses of mega-hotels, shopping malls and transport interchanges define an increasingly normal experience of being 'inside' in a city. Yet such spaces are also subject to intense criticism and claims that they can destroy the quality of a city's authentic life 'on the outside'.

Interior Urbanism explores the roots of this contemporary tension between inside and outside, identifying and analysing the concept of interior urbanism and tracing its history back to the works of John Portman and Associates in 1960s and 70s America. Portman – increasingly recognised as an influential yet understudied figure – was responsible for projects such as Peachtree Center in Atlanta and the Los Angeles Bonaventure Hotel, developments that employed vast internal atriums to define a world of possibilities not just for hotels and commercial spaces, but for the future of the American downtown amid the upheavals of the 1960s and 70s.

The book analyses Portman's architecture in order to reconsider major contexts of debate in architecture and urbanism in this period, including the massive expansion of a commercial imperative in architecture, shifts in the governance and development of cities amid social and economic instability, the rise of postmodernism and critical urban studies, and the defence of the street and public space amid the continual upheavals of urban development.

In this way the book reconsiders the American city at a crucial time in its development, identifying lessons for how we consider the forces at work, and the spaces produced, in cities in the present.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Vast interior spaces have become ubiquitous in the contemporary city. The soaring atriums and concourses of mega-hotels, shopping malls and transport interchanges define an increasingly normal experience of being 'inside' in a city. Yet such spaces are also subject to intense criticism and claims that they can destroy the quality of a city's authentic life 'on the outside'.

Interior Urbanism explores the roots of this contemporary tension between inside and outside, identifying and analysing the concept of interior urbanism and tracing its history back to the works of John Portman and Associates in 1960s and 70s America. Portman – increasingly recognised as an influential yet understudied figure – was responsible for projects such as Peachtree Center in Atlanta and the Los Angeles Bonaventure Hotel, developments that employed vast internal atriums to define a world of possibilities not just for hotels and commercial spaces, but for the future of the American downtown amid the upheavals of the 1960s and 70s.

The book analyses Portman's architecture in order to reconsider major contexts of debate in architecture and urbanism in this period, including the massive expansion of a commercial imperative in architecture, shifts in the governance and development of cities amid social and economic instability, the rise of postmodernism and critical urban studies, and the defence of the street and public space amid the continual upheavals of urban development.

In this way the book reconsiders the American city at a crucial time in its development, identifying lessons for how we consider the forces at work, and the spaces produced, in cities in the present.

More books from Bloomsbury Publishing

Cover of the book The Religious Life of Dress by Professor Charles Rice
Cover of the book Face by Professor Charles Rice
Cover of the book The Chinese Egg by Professor Charles Rice
Cover of the book Silent Killers by Professor Charles Rice
Cover of the book B-17 Flying Fortress Units of the MTO by Professor Charles Rice
Cover of the book Hope Against Hope by Professor Charles Rice
Cover of the book A Small Furry Prayer by Professor Charles Rice
Cover of the book Exploring Television Acting by Professor Charles Rice
Cover of the book Whose Freedom, Security and Justice? by Professor Charles Rice
Cover of the book Shrewsbury 1403 by Professor Charles Rice
Cover of the book Mastering Primary Physical Education by Professor Charles Rice
Cover of the book Hedgerow by Professor Charles Rice
Cover of the book Communal Violence in the British Empire by Professor Charles Rice
Cover of the book Snow Penguin by Professor Charles Rice
Cover of the book The Adventures of Caveboy by Professor Charles Rice
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy