Synopses & Reviews
One of the most widely read books on modern design, Nikolaus Pevsnerand#8217;s landmark work today remains as stimulating as it was when first published in 1936. This expanded edition of
Pioneers of Modern Design provides Pevsnerand#8217;s original text along with significant new and updated information, enhancing Pevsnerand#8217;s illuminating account of the roots of Modernism. The book now offers many beautiful color illustrations; biographies and bibliographies of all major figures; illustrated short essays on key themes, movements, and individuals; a critique of Pevsnerand#8217;s analysis from todayand#8217;s perspective; examples of works after 1914 (where the original study ended); a biography detailing Pevsnerand#8217;s life and achievements; and much more.
Pevsner saw Modernism as a synthesis of three main sources: William Morris and his followers, the work of nineteenth-century engineers, and Art Nouveau. The author considers the role of these sources in the work of early Modernists and looks at such masters of the movement as C.F.A. Voysey and Charles Rennie Mackintosh in Britain, Louis Sullivan and Frank Lloyd Wright in America, and Adolf Loos and Otto Wagner in Vienna. The account concludes with a discussion of the radical break with the past represented by the design work of Walter Gropius and his future Bauhaus colleagues.
Review
and#8220;[An] excellent and now classic introduction to modern design and twentieth-century modernism. . . .and#8221;and#8212;Christopher Menz,
Australian Book ReviewSynopsis
An expanded and updated edition of a classic study of the history of modern design.
Synopsis
Nikolaus Pevsnerand#8217;s study of the history of modern design, first published in 1936, is a classic text that offers an unrivalled account of the roots of Modernism. This new edition offers beautiful new illustrations, biographies of all major figures, a critique of Pevsnerand#8217;s analysis from todayand#8217;s perspective, and much more.
About the Author
Nikolaus Pevsner (1902-83), a distinguished scholar of art and architecture, was best known as editor of the 46-volume series
The Buildings of England and as founding editor of
The Pelican History of Art. Both of these prestigious series are currently published by Yale University Press. Richard Weston is professor at the Welsh School of Architecture, Cardiff University. He has published extensively on twentieth-century architecture, including his book
Materials, Form, and Architecture, published by Yale University Press.