Coventry Cathedral
Subtitle: art and architecture in post-war Britain
By: Louise Campbell.
Series: Clarendon studies in the history of art
Publisher: Clarendon Press; Oxford University Press
Published: 1996
Place of publication: Oxford; New York
Language: eng
Number of pages: 287
Subjects: Coventry Cathedral; Architecture -- England -- Coventry -- 20th century; Christian art and symbolism -- England -- Coventry -- Modern period, 1500-; Coventry (England) -- Buildings, structures, etc
Description: The book examines the genesis of one of the most important works of post-war British architecture. Using original documents and drawings, it provides a case-study of a building in which a significant role was allocated to works of art, and in doing so illuminates the creative process of both artist and architect.

The design of the cathedral - a building which symbolised both past traditions and future aspirations - is discussed in the context of the wider debates of the day on architecture and reconstruction. The project to build a new cathedral at Coventry is related to those at Guildford and Liverpool and also to the great church-building schemes of post-war Europe.

. Louise Campbell discusses Basil Spence's developing design - and its transformation into a cathedral building - in relation to the fast pace of artistic developments in the 1950s and 60s. She analyses the different priorities of the architectural profession, the clergy, and the city; her book provides a study in the history of patronage as well as of architecture.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (p. [278]-282) and index.