Cinema Builders (Builders)
by Edwin Heathcote
Category: Architecture

The cinema is a space of transformation, the gatewary to a world of infinite possibilities. Its architecture has had either to suggest the fantasy worlds which lie within or to reflect and magnify the vibrancy, the vision and the aspirations of the metropolis. The newness of the building type, the lack of precedent and the classlessness of the audience made the cinema the perfect vehicle for modern architecture. In this book Edwin Heathcote oulines the development of the cinema as a modern building type and traces the history and fashions which have prevailed in the most populist of architectures, from the fairground booth to the megaplex. The bulk of the book is taken up by a selective international survey of modern cinema design, from the blatantly commercial through the self-consciously kitsch to the avant-garde. It is the first book of recent years to set about defining the state of contemporary cinema, and acts as a guide to one of the fastest changing and most genuinely popular and responsive buiding types.