James Stirling: Revisionary Modernist

by Amanda Reeser Lawrence

Overview

James Stirling (1926–1992) was one of the most influential architects of the late 20th century. His formally inventive yet historically informed designs inspired a generation of architects in his native England and throughout the world. James Stirling: Revisionary Modernist is the first in-depth, book-length analysis of the architect's work. Amanda Reeser Lawrence focuses on six of Stirling's projects from the early 1950s through the late 1970s, offering detailed formal analysis of the buildings and drawings while also mapping his relationship to a broader architectural and cultural context. Though it is widely held that Stirling took a mid-career turn toward postmodernism, Lawrence shows that he was undeniably modern throughout his career. She clarifies the ways in which Stirling understood modernism as inextricably linked to the past and placed his own work in what he termed a "dialogue with architectural tradition."

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780300170054
Publisher:	Yale University Press
Publication date:	02/12/2013
Pages:	248
Product dimensions:	7.30(w) x 10.30(h) x 1.10(d)

About the Author

Amanda Reeser Lawrence is assistant professor in the School of Architecture at Northeastern University and is founding coeditor of Praxis: A Journal of Writing + Building.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments viii

Introduction x

Chapter 1 Rationalizing Jaoul Ham Common (1958) 22

Chapter 2 Discovering History Churchill College (1959) 52

Chapter 3 An "Expressive" Factionalism Leicester Engineering Building (1963) 82

Chapter 4 One Enormous Gesture Florey Building (1971) 118

Chapter 5 Recollecting Forward Düsseldorf (1975) 154

Chapter 6 The Remains of Modernism Roma Interrotta (1978) 186

Conclusion 206

Notes 212

Illustration Credits 231

Index 232

What People are Saying About This

Daniel Abramson

This is one of the first, serious academic architectural historical and critical treatments of the breadth of James Stirling’s work. Author Amanda Lawrence contributes as well to continued revisions of modernism and postmodernism, positing a theory based not on stylistic affinity but on compositional structures and evolving notions of reference. There is much here to draw upon, as well as new knowledge and understanding of  Stirling himself.—Daniel Abramson, Tufts University

Diane Ghirardo

Strikingly original. Amanda Lawrence's detailed analysis of Stirling's buildings and drawings allows readers to follow the architect's design strategies and understand how he employed diverse means to embody them. I have never read such a compelling and persuasive assessment of a 20th-century architect's work. An exemplary study and a model for future studies.—Diane Ghirardo, University of Southern California

Editorial Reviews

"Strikingly original. Amanda Lawrence's detailed analysis of Stirling's buildings and drawings allows readers to follow the architect's design strategies and understand how he employed diverse means to embody them. I have never read such a compelling and persuasive assessment of a 20th-century architect's work. An exemplary study and a model for future studies."—Diane Ghirardo, University of Southern California

Diane Ghirardo

 “This is one of the first, serious academic architectural historical and critical treatments of the breadth of James Stirling’s work. Author Amanda Lawrence contributes as well to continued revisions of modernism and postmodernism, positing a theory based not on stylistic affinity but on compositional structures and evolving notions of reference. There is much here to draw upon, as well as new knowledge and understanding of  Stirling himself.”—Daniel Abramson, Tufts University

Daniel Abramson

an admirably close analysis of both Stirling’s work and decades of its critical reception."—Metropolis

Metropolis

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