Revolution? Architecture and the Anthropocene

The urgent need to reduce our impact on the biosphere that supports us has been discussed since the 1960s, but too many readers have remained unpersuaded. This book explores why the majority of the architectural profession and its clients still only pay lip service to the importance of the environmental, and proposes four essays to address this issue.

Format: Hardback
Length: 120 pages
Publication date: 31 January 2022
Publisher: Lund Humphries Publishers Ltd

The pressing need to minimize our detrimental impact on the biosphere that sustains us is a topic that has been extensively discussed. Since the 1960s, architects have been advised that mainstream architecture needs to be more concerned with the environmental implications of its output and production methods. The conventional strategy is to suggest new approaches to designing and constructing to convince the reader of the importance of environmental concerns. However, over the years, many readers have remained steadfastly unconvinced.

This book, composed of four concise and interconnected essays, delves into the reasons why the majority of the architectural profession and its clients continue to offer mere lip service to the significance of the environment. The first essay, titled "Overthrowing," explores the remarkable success of the Modern Movement in establishing itself and its enduring influence on contemporary architectural culture. The second essay, titled "Converting," examines the environmental movement's inability to ignite and transform architecture in the same way. The third essay, titled "Making," discusses the importance of shifting architecture back to a materially-based view of itself to enhance its effectiveness. The fourth essay, titled "Educating," examines the urgent need for architectural education to reconsider how and what it teaches in the dynamic 21st century.

It is important to note that this in no way diminishes the extraordinary contribution made by a minority in architectural practice and education to the development of environmental design and environmental thinking over the past fifty years. Each essay in this book provides examples of innovative and determined individuals pursuing alternative ways of practicing architecture and alternative methods of training architects for this critical century. These individuals are working to bring the model of a nature-centric practice into the mainstream, pushing it away from the margins and into the center.

In conclusion, the urgent need to reduce our impact on the biosphere is a topic that requires our immediate attention. By examining the reasons why the majority of the architectural profession and its clients continue to pay lip service to environmental concerns, we can work towards establishing a more sustainable and environmentally responsible approach to architecture. Through innovative practices and alternative methods of education, we can ensure that the architectural profession plays a vital role in shaping a better future for our planet.

Weight: 268g
Dimension: 140 x 206 x 18 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781848224889