Alison & Peter Smithson: A Critical Anthology

Alison Smithson

ISBN 10: 8434312549 / ISBN 13: 9788434312548

Published by Ediciones Poligrafa, 2011

About this Item

Vergilbt / ausgeblichen. Adapting modernist ideals to postwar reconstruction in Britain, Alison and Peter Smithson emerged as influential and controversial architects in the latter half of the twentieth century. As younger members of CIAM and founding members of Team 10, they were central to the debate on modern architecture's future. Their Hunstanton Secondary Modern School (1949-1954) exemplified their approach, stripping down Mies van der Rohe's language to a rough simplicity and marking their emergence as leading figures of New Brutalism, a term they coined. Involved with the Independent Group alongside notable artists, they participated in the landmark 1956 exhibition This Is Tomorrow, connecting with the Pop art movement in Britain. This beautifully produced volume compiles significant essays on their work, featuring contributions from Reyner Banham, Peter Cook, Kenneth Frampton, Philip Johnson, and more recent texts by Peter Eisenmann, Christine Boyer, Beatriz Colomina, and Louisa Hutton. As the first publication in Poligrafa's Critical Anthology series, it offers essential critical context for understanding New Brutalism's reception in England. The Smithsons, who met at Durham University and married in 1949, introduced a new construction style emphasizing concrete and angular geometries, with later works reflecting a socialist dimension through the exposure of interior functions.

Seller Inventory # 707860da-4ee4-4cb1-99f3-127f8a8fed21

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Alison & Peter Smithson: A Critical Anthology
• Publisher: Ediciones Poligrafa
• Publication Date: 2011
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 8434312549
• ISBN 13: 9788434312548
• Binding: Hardcover
• Condition: Fine

About this title

Synopsis

Adapting the modernist ideals of prewar architecture to the needs of postwar reconstruction in Britain, Alison and Peter Smithson were among the most influential and controversial architects of the latter half of the twentieth century. As younger members of CIAM (Congrès Internationaux d'Architecture Moderne) and as founding members of Team 10, they were at the heart of the debate on the future course of modern architecture; the uncompromising clarity of their Hunstanton Secondary Modern School (1949-1954), which stripped down the language of Mies van der Rohe to a rough simplicity, heralded the Smithsons' role as the leading exponents of the New Brutalism (a term they coined). As members of the Independent Group alongside Richard Hamilton, Eduardo Paolozzi, Reyner Banham and others, they participated in the 1956 landmark show This Is Tomorrow, affiliating themselves with the burgeoning Pop art movement in Britain.
This beautifully produced and fully illustrated volume collects the most important essays published on the couple's work, from older texts by Reyner Banham, Peter Cook, Kenneth Frampton and Philip Johnson to the most recent texts by Peter Eisenmann, Christine Boyer, Beatriz Colomina and Louisa Hutton. The first publication in Poligrafa's new Critical Anthology series, it provides an essential critical context for the reception of New Brutalism in England.
Alison (1928-1993) and Peter (1923-2003) Smithson met at Durham University in England and were married in 1949. Their Hunstanton School, now a Grade II listed building, announced a new style of construction that foregrounded concrete and repetitive, angular geometries; later works declared a socialist dimension to their philosophy, particularly in the exposure of interior functions.