Urbanity and Density: In 20th-Century Urban Design

by Wolfgang Sonne

In the writing of urban design history of the twentieth century, functionalist and avant-garde models of the dissolution of the city are dominating. In contrast this book presents projects whose goal is the ideal of a dense and urbane city. Drawing on plans, built examples and theories of dense and urban cities and city districts in the twentieth century, modern examplesof urban design are analyzed and highlighted, which until now have been evaluated more as fringe phenomena. These include examples characterized by functional mixture, social openness, spatially defined pub­lic spaces, urbanarchitecture, historical reference and a cultural understanding of the city. The book’s new evaluation of modern urbandesign history creates opportunities for current planning by offering models which better reflect the striving for urbanity and density.

360 pages, Hardcover

Published August 1, 2017

Reviews

[Payton · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's well-illustrated, as you might imagine for something so hefty, and it did answer my lingering questions about the subtly different ways German cities chose to rebuild after WW2. The focus was more on large-scale "civic art" projects than I was expecting, and European lessons are always difficult to admire from an American regulatory context.