Space, Time and Architecture: The Growth of a New Tradition, Fifth Revised and Enlarged Edition (The Charles Eliot Norton Lectures)
This book is an important collection of historical and critical surveys and a brilliant study of the trends and developments of the modern scene with its historical background and true significance. For the general reader interested in the past and its relation to our present, and the specialist in architecture preoccupied with its facets of change, the author has succeeded in presenting a consistently developing process and a clear, concise picture. (Edward Larocque TinkerNew York Times Book Review)[Giedion's] survey of our architectural inheritance, beginning with the "organization of space" in the early Renaissance, is masterly, selective, and instructive. In his treatment of individual architects he calls a famous roll, and leaves us with a clear impression of the significance of each man's work... This is a big book, and one that no reader will exhaust quickly. (Saturday Review)Space, Time and Architecture is a remarkable accomplishment in that it explores and throws new light on buildings and plans that were underestimated or unknown before this book appeared. It has also proved to be one of the most valuable reference books for students and professionals concerned with the reshaping of our environment. It not only reviews the varied fields of architecture and city planning in relation to an emerging industrial technology, but also shows their parallel development in the visual arts. Sigfried Giedion's accomplishment remains unmatched. (Jose Luis Sert)Dr. Sigfried Giedion is today recognized as one of the world's most eminent architectural critics and historians. The unusual success of hisSpace, Time and Architecture, first published in 1941 and now greatly revised and expanded, is due to his deep investigation into the whole philosophical and technical background of our modern civilization. This new edition ensures that the book will continue to be internationally acknowledged as the standard work on the development of modern architecture. (Walter Gropius)