The New Spirit: Modern Architecture in Vancouver, 1938-1963 (Centre Canadien d'Architecture/Canadian Centre for Architecture)

Liscombe, Rhodri Winson

ISBN 10: 0262621150 / ISBN 13: 9780262621151

Published by The MIT Press, 1997

About this Item

Seller Inventory # Abebooks4280

Bibliographic Details

• Title: The New Spirit: Modern Architecture in Vancouver, 1938-1963 (Centre Canadien d'Architecture/Canadian Centre for Architecture)
• Publisher: The MIT Press
• Publication Date: 1997
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0262621150
• ISBN 13: 9780262621151
• Binding: Paperback
• Condition: New

About this title

Synopsis

The first comprehensive study of the acclaimed Modernist architecture of Vancouver.

The Modernist architecture of the two post-war decades established Vancouver's reputation as a center for progressive design and culture, a city where architects pursued their desire "to make of architecture a great humanistic experience." With an introduction by Adele Freedman discussing Modernism in Canadian architecture as a whole, Rhodri Windsor Liscombe's The New Spirit is the first comprehensive study of the acclaimed Modernist architecture of Vancouver. Modernism in Vancouver had many facets: it was a synthesis of expressions driven by a sense of social responsibility; it emphasized concerns such as economy of form, human uses, relation to site, affordability, and the effective employment of new technology. The author explores 25 years of sophisticated and distinctive architectureal innovation, examining both the conditions that brought this movement about and the forces that led to its decline. Given the eventual debasement of Modernism and the demolition of many of these Vancouver buildings, this account of the ambition of Modernist Canadian architects "to enhance the physical environment for human well-being" -- in homes, community centers, libraries and universities, churches, office towers, and apartment buildings -- serves as a reminder of how high ideals and a lively architectural culture can shape a better city.

About the Author

Rhodri Windsor Liscombe teaches at the University of British Columbia, where he is Professor in the Fine Arts Department and Chairman of the Individual Interdisciplinary Studies Graduate Program.