Revisecr Eamon ~ DESIGN | OF CITIES Asuoertly urban form Veloo 1 from ancient Athens fo modern Brasilia ae ess p EDMUNDN. BACON > ee ee[Any copy ofthis book issued by the publisher as a paperback is sold subject to the condition tha it shall not by way of trae or otherwise be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise circulated, without the publisher's pprior consent in any form of binding or cover other than that in which itis published, and without a sinilar ‘condition including these words being imposed on a ‘subsequent purchaser. First published in Great Britain in 1967 by Thames and Hudson Lid, London Revised Edition 1975 This revised edition published in paperback 1978 Reprinted 1992 Copyright © 1967 and 1974 by Edmund N. Bacon Mluserations on pages 94, 114 and 119 Copyright © Joseph Aronson, 1974 AIL Rights Reserved. No part of this publication ‘may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic or mechanical, including ‘photocopy. recording or any other information storage ‘and retrieval system, without prior permission in writing from the publisher. Printed and bound in Mexico ACKNOWLEDGEMENT MLT. Press: From Two Chicago Architects and Their Clients by Leonard K. Eaton. © 1969 by M.LT. entnes am 1A ISAS 4Se9CONTENTS Acknowledgments Foreword — Revised Edition Foreword THE CITY AS AN ACT OF WILL AWARENESS OF SPACE AS EXPERIENCE, THE NATURE OF DESIGN WAYS OF PERCEIVING ONE'S SELF THE GROWTH OF GREEK CITIES DESIGN ORDER OF ANCIENT ROME MEDIEVAL DESIGN UPSURGE OF THE RENAISSANCE DESIGN STRUCTURE OF BAROQUE ROME DUTCH INTERLUDE 18TH AND 19TH CENTURY EUROPEAN DESIGN DEVELOPMENT OF PARIS EVOLUTION OF SAINT PETERSBURG JOHN NASH AND LONDON VITRUVIUS COMES TO THE NEW WORLD LE CORBUSIER AND THE NEW VISION THE GREAT EFFORT-BRASILIA PEKING SIMULTANEOUS MOVEMENT SYSTEMS DECISION MAKING PUTTING THE IDEAS TO WORK— PHILADELPHIA GRIFFIN AND CANBERRA CITY FOR HUMANITY-STOCKHOLM LOOKING INTO THE FUTURE Appendix, Notes on Illustrations Bibliography IndexATHENS ‘As we have just seen, the Panathenaie Way yas far more than a city street; it was part of a system of regional movement which linked some ‘of the most sacred places in Greece. From earliest times it joined the route which led from the mystic grottoes of Eleusis across the Greck countryside, through the Daphnae pass to the Dipylon Gate of Athens. As it continued diagonally across the or nally amorphous space of the agora or market- place, and on up the slopes of the Acropol through the Propylaea to the statue of Athena, Served both as the sacred way and also as the main street of Athens, It was the central spine along ‘which occurred the principal mercantile, indu: Arial, and political activities which made up the life of the city. Indeed the position and size of the Parthenon are comprehensible only when it is viewed in relation to the entire Panathenaic se- quence. ‘The, drawings opposite demonstrate the evolu- tion of the form of Athens. The route of the Pan- athenaic Way is indicated in blue, the thrust of shaft of space from the Temple of Hephaestos (the Hephaisteion) is shown in yellow, and the principal buildings as they developed are indicated in black, Here we see the evolution of the form of the agora integrated with the design and develop- ‘ment of Athens as a whole. ‘The superb placing of the Hephaisteion, the product of a deliberate act of will, part of the way up, but not at the highest point of, the long ridge adjacent to the Panathenaic Way, set into motion a shaft of space which, by its intersection of the ‘movement along the Panathenaic Way, establishes 4 point in space. This became a significant design element in the subsequent development of the agora. The design of the Hephaisteion itself is per- fectly conceived to generate force of sufficient in- tensity to animate all the events that happened around it. The patch of sky between the columns ‘on the left emphasizes the interlock between the structure of the temple and the shaft of space per- pendicular to the ridge. orTn approaching the first elements of design, Paul Klee says, “T begin where all pictorial form begins: with the point that sets itself into motion. “The point (as agent) moves off and the line comes into being — the first dimension (1). If the line shifts to form a plane, we obtain a two-dimen- sional element (2). “In the movement from plane to spaces, the lash of planes gives rise to a body (three dimen- sional) (3). “Summary of the kinetic energies which move the point into a Line, the line into a plane, and the plane into a spatial dimension.” The essence of architectural design, when re~ viewed on the scale of a city, consists in large mea sure of a skillful interplay of dynamic forces that are as simple as those portrayed by Klee’s drawing. 68. DYNAMICS OF DESIGN EXTENDED INTO THE NEXT DIMENSION above and by the gist of the words just quoted. Design on the scale of a single building, or in- deed of a few related buildings, has been developed to such a high degree that there is a vast, complex, but generally understood vocabulary concerning the interplay of such forces, However, when the field shifts to the relatively uncharted territory be- tween individual building design and city-wide planning abstractions, a review of first principles and a liberal use of simple analogies and elemental concepts are, I think, essential. For a long time we have been blind to the elements of design at this level, and have assumed that large-scale prob- ems can be solved by mechanical repetition of small-scale ideas. If progress is to be made, it must be re-established that design does exist at this level and, indeed, that it is a most important phase in architecture and city-planning,In these words Paul Klee restated the prin- Siples shown and discussed on the opposite page. reader may well ask, “And when the body noves, what then?” ‘The answer, in which lies a very important architectural principle, is achieved by transposing the activity into the next phase: the body reduces to the point, and so starts on its journey afresh, invading the volume of the next dimension, It is a logical extension of this dynamism to compare the movement of the point producing a line with the forward thrust of a building, which Projects a shaft of energy into space. While, of course, it has no actual substance and exists only as a design force, this kind of space animation can become a major influence in architectural com- position, as in the development of Athens. Moreover, in the finest work the shaft of space is procisely defined, thus setting up a demanding discipline for the design and placement of all forms that are to relate to it and at the same time putting into motion powerful forces which impinge on the sensibilities of the people who move about in the areas or the spaces it affects.SHAFT OF SPACE IN ACTION We now observe the effect of the shaft of spac projected by the Hephaisteion on the developmen of the Athens agora. 5003.c. ‘The Panathenaie Way, shown in blue, passes ‘diagonally across the somewhat amorphous market place, and past the government buildings st ‘out along the base of the ridge to the west. To south was the old bouleuterion, or Council Hous ‘a square structure with five interior columns. A to the north were three small temples. ‘The marginal drawings on these pages are based on John Travios’s work on the growth Athens from the earliest times to the present. 420 B.c. The second illustration shows the devel ‘ment of the agora soon after the Hephaisteion had been built. Here, the shaft of space (in yellow) se into motion by the Hephaisteion begins to make its influence felt as an ordering element. The new ouleuterion with its semi-circular stepped seats i built into the hillside behind the old one, and th cylindrical rholos sets into motion a vertical in fluence which counterfoils the horizontal shaft The Stoa of Zeus sets a long horizontal line at base of the hill, and the broad flight of steps fur nishes a fine visual base for the temple. steps served as spectators’ seats for activities in the agora. The circle represents the orchestra fo! the theatrical performances which took place i this area up to the time the theater was built on the slopes of the Acropolis. ; Since the movement of the Panathenaic Way is directional, it seems natural that the first majo architectural work defining the space of the agora the south stoa, should be built where it was, facin, the line of march and powerfully punctuating the experience of movement along it ‘The definition of the edges of the space of the agora remained amorphous, but the influence of the now clearly established design structure con- tinues its work.HELLENISTIC PERIOD Tn this plan the agora is in the full maturity of its development. The old bouleuterion is now replaced by the metroon, which provides a long hhorizontal base line of a colonnade complemen- tary to the earlier Stoa of Zeus to the north. The ‘area before the Hephaisteion is crowded by the new Temple of Apollo Patroos, but the shaft of “space projecting from it is still respected. (See ppage 69.) The south stoa has been rebuilt at a different angle and the new middle stoa has been added, so that the space of the agora is better contained ‘The Stoa of Attalos, built perpendicular to it across the Panathenaic Way, defines the east side ‘of the square, These two buildings provided a ‘powerful architectural enframement for the heart ‘of the civic life of Athens, and together they set the visual interrelationship across the space of the quare shown in the photographs on pages 72 and 7B. Through their design, the shythm of high- is and rectangular shadows, they infuse the ace with spirit and texture. OND CENTURY A. As shown here, the space of the agora was odified as the pressures of the growing civic life pressed in upon it. The new Temple of Ares in- ected itself in the space in front of the Stoa of us, and many fountains and statues were added 9 the plan. The clean open quality of uncluttered pace of the earlier petiods is gone, and in its ce confusion has set in, ‘Symptomatic of the architectural come is the huge, clumsy structure of the Odeion, n indoor meeting hall designed to hold a large ties in tra for A BUMber of people, Tts ungainly mass throws the ace in Smsitive and delicate buildings of the earlier jods out of scale. Affected also is the space elationship of the Odeion with the Hephaisteion, c Way hose dominance as a design force is seen to be ae the wane. Boral From this time on, the agora deteriorated ‘facing it was destroyed in 267 a.v. by the Herulians. wever, the form of the agora as an idea was © powerful, so fresh, that today, some two ind. years after its creation, men have been ivated once more to clear its spaces and to ebuild at least one of the defining structures so jat the ancient buildings that remain can reach ut across the historic spaces and find a response.ARCHITECTURE WHICH INTERLOCKS The forces projected by mass into space, which act upon the participators as they move about in that space, cannot achieve full effective- ness unless the architecture is related to the special demands imposed by them. This is demonstrated in these photographs, which were taken within the Hephaisteion. Directly above, the view is across the agora to the Stoa of Attalos. ‘The stoa was built in about 140 ».c., some three hundred years after the Hephaisteion, as a protected meeting place for the citizens of Athens. Some distance to the left of this picture lies the Dipylon Gate. The Pan- athenaic procession moved across the agora be- tween the Hephaisteion and the Stoa of Attalos, winding its way up the slopes of the Acropolis. ‘The Parthenon is seen on the right in the pictureBove. These pictures demonstrate how an archi cture which has a discipline developed over a g period of time can relate to a spec eblem. Here is architecture which interlocks, is located and creating interrelations ms between. Rhythms in the foreground repeated in the background. The temple on the -opolis contains the same kind of rhythmic pat- overed colonnades of the marketplace. This serves to remind us of the contemporary oblem we face of bland buildings that lack the sary elements for interaction. The develop- eat of each building as an entity in itself, often an attempt to establish a new stylistic mode, tends to repel rather than attract interaction with other buildings. Worse still is the development of buildings that are devoid of any character at all, ccurtain-wall buildings which neither reach out into space nor receive space into themselves, buildings whose sterile qualities stimulate no desire and evoke no response. ‘What we need today is a new pol not one that is dependent on stylistic imitation, but one that incorporates the qualities displayed here. If we are to establish tensions across move- ‘ments in our urban spaces, how much more care- ful we must be when we compare the demands of the fast movement on the expressway with that which was needed to create harmony along the Panathenaic Way. for design, B! Foermeewennansnennmnremenenng | fDEVELOPMENT OF MILETUS Miletus, influenced by the great Greek city- planner Hippodamus, is one of the most splendid city plans ever made. It shows how it is possible to develop forms of tremendously dynamic quality as counterpoint to the rigid discipline of the grid- iron plan, The repetitive module of the regular rectangular blocks which constitute the residential part of the city sets up a rhythm which is the basis for the composition of the public parts of the city, the temples, the gymnasia, and the stoas facing inward onto the agoras and out toward the harbors. Furthermore, within this rhythm it was possible to compose in three widely separated pe- ods according to the three very different ap- roaches to design: the Greek work of the end of the fourth century ».c., shown in black on the map on the opposite page; the Hellenistic remodel- ing in the middle of the second centuiy R.c., shown in blue; and the Roman work from the sec- ond century 4.D., shown in yellow (north point down) To the right are three models made by students at the University of Pennsylvania show- ing central Miletus in the Greek period, top; Hel- lenistic, center; Roman, bottom. The difference in philosophy of cach of these periods is strikingly expressed in the different form of the masses and the open space. The Greek work involves the minimum of construction nec- essary to articulate the space for man’s use, to bind the free-flowing space of the agora with the Shore of the harbor, to set up a rhythm of columns and bays, but not to enclose or confine the spaces, The Hellenistic work is more extensive than the Greek; emphasis is placed on symmetrical ar- Tangement of architecture, giving a more formal character to the civie open spaces. Architectural forms project into the spaces, defining but not en- closing them; angular forms in different directions set up dynamic interactions, During the Roman period all the projecting arms were incorporated nto colonnades completely surrounding courts The spaces were divided into separate units, each ‘of a formal rectangular shape, reflective of the Roman philosophy of dividing life into different rituals, each with its own special space and archi- tectural expression, The work of five centuries all Stemmed from the basic design of Hippodamus’s rhythmic square, Sareea se inte a tury B.C | / J |DELOS Delos, the Greek-built city on an island of the same name in the Aegean Sea, consisted of a Jarge number of internally ordered forms which elate to one another and to the natural terrain Bm an extraordinarily free yet orderly way. Much Sof the excitement of the interrelationships cannot Be conveyed on a two-dimensional map, but must be experienced on the ground, The heart of the city, with agoras and temples, ‘clamps firmly onto the bay, but its spaces are Gaward-looking and self-contained. An angled ‘street leads up to the theater on the side of a hill away from the city center, relating to a different ‘part of the region. The street continues to a higher series of terraces and temples overlooking the ‘Sentral agoras, the formality of their shapes recall- Jag the design of the city’s heart, culminating in a Shrine on the top of the highest bill The frec-positioned but formal geometry of ‘the stadium and athletic area, on a different side of the island, establishes man-made order with a mini- mum of effort and provides a fine vantage point for experiencing the whole of the natural space. The plan of Delos has characteristics in com: mon with the plan of Hadrian's villa (pages 90- 91) and the regional plan of Paris under Louis XV (pages 194-195), but in Delos the connection be- ‘seen the rectangular sections, with linear thrusts in different directions, is made not by curved mass, as in Hadrian’s villa, nor by direct visual connection as in Paris, but in the mind's eye, the various sec- tions being totally disconnected from one another by the stretches of countryside. All the architectural forms are based on simple geometric shapes. There is no attempt to ape na- ture in the man-made forms, nor is there any blurring of the boundaries between what is man- made and what is natural. Yet there is utmost sensitivity in the placing of each element in rela- tion to other elements in their natural setting. It is through such clarity of expression that the Greeks achieved harmony between man and nature, 7 dd edThe heart of Delos, shown in plan opposite and in growth models on this page, demonstrates the evolution of the forms. In black is shown the Greek construction of the sixth century 2 the construction from 417 0 314 2.C., and in yellow ail later work, This plan demonstrates the way in which the city responded to the pressures of popu- lation growth. Here we have a method of design which is capable of expansion by increments, which can grow and extend and, as it does so, re- orient and reintegrate itself on an ever-increasing scale. The L-shaped architectural forms angled in relation to one another to produce dynamic re- sidual spaces have provided a city center of extr ordinary richness. Under this scheme ancient chrines have been preserved and have retained their identity although encompassed by new forms There is no lack of boldness or breadth in plan, yet the intimacy of inherited tra- dition is maintained. Along the quay, the two buildings, subul angled and positioned in relation to each other, provide a powerful statement of man-made order and give impetus to the city forms that progres up the hillsides. The entrance into the central area of the agora is through the series of controlled and architecturally spaces leading off the broad paved the quay. The plan adapts, itself over the years to the expanding scale of the structures and the spaces culminating in the vast scale of the Italian Agora, at the top of the draw- ing, which stil sits comfortably alongside the older workCITY OF ONE DESIGNER — PRIENE When a society decides that it will base its social and political order, not on the despotic con- trol of one individual or small group, but rather on the Greek system of demokratia, the members of that society are forced to consider whether oF not a strong enough leadership can be provided to develop order within the system of individual freedom, Presented on these pages are the two contrast ing towns developed by Greek colonists on the shores of Asia Minor. It was in Greece’s colonial cities that its democratic ideas received their pur- est expression., The city of Priene represents per~ haps as fine an example as can be found of a single design idea dominating an entire city. The cen- tral movement system, the main street, moves up. the slope from the city’s west gate (indicated by. the white arrow) to a sharp change of grade where it meets the agora, a level widening along the route of a disciplined and geometrically defined space. The activities of the marketplace were dom- inated by the Temple of Athena, which stood on a prominence northwest of the agora, The north stoa, adjacent to the marketplace, with its forty-nine uniform columns and immensely long terrace and steps, provided a firm base for the spectacular cliffs which rise above the town, ‘The temple itself was approached by a move- ‘ment system parallel to, but higher than, the main street, passing adjacent to the theater. These two levels of systems were connected by stone stai ways, part of a series of minor ways extending per- pendicularly from the central spine. The most remarkable thing about Priene is the total harmony of architecture and planning, ex- tending from the over-all form of the city down to the last detail. As one sits on the stone seat of the Assembly Hall one senses a strong, direct rela- ship between the shape and placing of each i dividual block of stone and the design of the city as a whole.CITY OF MANY DESIGNERS — CAMIROS Sharply contrasting with Priene, yet architec- ‘rally almost as beautiful, is the city of Camiros ‘en Rhodes. The pure rectangular and lucid geo- ‘meitical order are replaced by a complex inter- ction of rectangular forms in angular relation to fene another. Here the development of a single concept is replaced by a gradual accumulation of Buildings over many years — far too long a time span to be under the direct control of any one individual The site of the city is a bowl-shaped form on mountain overlooking the sea, and at the bottom the site a broad space was originally hollowed a for the agora and sacred precincts. Temples id public buildings were built there, based on a tem of orthogonals, with projection, recessions, interlocks, ‘The retaining walls and a great irway led up to the lower part of the main et, whose angular position to the agora created continuously variable series of relationships. The et moved up the hill in changing directions, sh of which established a new view of the agora, In the second century B.c, the citizens of Cami- added a long colonnaded stoa at the top of hill. Built over the cisterns that provided the with water, this new element contributed a atie climax to the movement upward. Besides ing the hill with a disciptined architectural » the stoa provided a place for a promenade looking the city and the sea. At each end the led to a spectacular view of the mountain s of the hinterland, thus visually joining the with the countryside which sustained it When there is one unified design idea to syn- ize the work of many, a city like Priene can It. Where there is no single dominant idea at beginning, the city form being determined by cumulative effect of the work of individual de- 15, as in Camiros, a great work can also be luced if each individual is sensitive to the spe- discipline which this method imposes. ‘Air photopaph ihn ty the Royal Helene Aie Force and supplied by the Geaeal Hellen Air Force Sat 81METHODS OF DESIGN GROW GROWTH BY ACCRETION — SPACE. AS CONNE\ This is a method used by Greek designers wit superlative skill. Each new building, internally of dered around one axis, is so placed in relation ing buildings that an angular volume of spa is created which binds the two together. Coheren is maintained by the tension between building across the angular space. The elegance and beaut of the spaces created, as here in Camiros, and the endless variety of interrelationships between internally disciplined buildings provide a principl for city design applicable to problems today. AXES AS CONNECTORS, ‘When the Greek sensitivity gave way to tl Roman love of order and logic, a new clement introduced in large-scale design, that of interlock ing axes. Thus the five “new” fora of Rom, bu’ one after the other by emperors, lie next to ot another, with little or no space between. central axis of each building was made ex perpendicular to that of the one before, produc a system of cross axes that unified the whole. cause of 1] jerrelationship, designs which themselves are very formal and perhaps rat sterile create a dynamic over-all result. MASS AS CONNECTOR In the later period of the Roman Empire, m tably under Hadrian, a new freedom of desi crept in, a return to large-scale site-planning ba ‘on a variety of angular relationships. The Rom: developed a far greater variety of architectui forms than did the Greeks. Curved structures su as exedras, rotundas, and cylindrical colonnad offered a wide range of angular sub-axes whi could interlock various parts of the compositi ‘Thus, in Roman work, such as Hadrian's vill at left, it was curved building mass which bow together the various parts of a many-angled position.rH BY ACCRETION — INTERLOCKING PACES AS CONNECTORS During the medieval period, up to the fifteenth , cities often grew around rectangular vidual TDuildings were built around their periphery. In Todi, Italy, an extraordinary result came about ough the conception of two interlocking prisms comers overlapped to create a single in- ive volume of space. The latter was strength- Tae ed and emphasized by the construction of two the, ial towers which contributed a vertical force at te point of juncture. This principle is seen in sny forms in medieval cities. OWTH BY TENSION At the beginning of the Baroque period the dering principle in the growth of the city of ‘was the establishment of lines of force ch defined the tension between various Iand- s im the old city. The interrelationship of ) one The these lines and their interaction with the old struc- actly s set into play a series of design forces which ame the dominating clement in the architec~ acin "Be work along them. Here the cohesive clement ch in ) $4 line of force rather than a volumetric form. ROWTH BY EXTENSION Still a different concept is a line of force ex- ding outward from the point of origin in the and establishing an ordering principle that enetrates the adjacent land area. The Champs iysées in Paris dramatically illustrates this. There, the extension of the medievally conceived gar- en of the Tuileries Palace, we can trace the line propulsion which thrusts farther and farther to the surrounding countryside, This first thrust joined by a series of similar ones which set ap a network of design systems that were capable indefinite extension. While there are many other modes of city wth, the six concepts just discussed are basic mes which occur again and again,Whereas the Greeks developed the highest expression in Western civilization of the flow of fe as total organic unity, and built their ci ‘accordingly, the Romans achieved and sustained 2 rational order which was made possible only by ‘he fragmentation of functions into separate units. ‘The Greek principle, based on the interaction of ‘ension in a delicately balanced equilibrium, was ighly unstable and, indeed, lasted only a few Short years. Just as the vast Roman Empire, Beaded by one of the most stable governments ‘be world has ever known, was based on separate, ‘edividually governed cities and provinces, so lassical Rome itself was based not on an over-all, séesign structure, but on the gradual accumulation, ‘ef self-contained building complexes. Each of these was designed to serve a discrete function, and cach was interrelated to its neighbors. The ‘whole design was held together by the sheer mass, ‘of its individual elements, each bound to another ‘by the friction of compression caused by the ever- ‘zowing city, Perhaps insight into the essential differences ‘can best be obtained by comparing the Pana- Ghenaic Way of Athens with the route of the Triumphal Procession in Rome. Here one might that the movement system, instead of being nided the length of the city, was coiled into a le self-contained, self-completing circuit in a DESIGN ORDER OF ANCIENT ROME space specially set aside for the purpose—the Circus Maximus, at the extreme left of the photo- graph below. True, after many times around the Circus, the procession, according to ancient tradi- tion, proceeded to the Capitoline Hill, where the victor laid down his arms in the Temple of Jupi- ter, This, however, was the secondary rather than the primary expression of the victory parade The method of growth by accumulation of massive, self-contained units of building, each cheek by jowl with ones built before, each held firmly in place by the powerful force of compres- sion, proved to be adaptable to the change in seale of a growing city. The purity of geometry, the use of cylinders, half-cylinders, half-spheres, and elliptical prisms, contrasting with rectangular forms, produced areas of great architectural ex- citement, These were held together by the rhythm of the unifying post-and-lintel colonnades and similarly scaled rows of arches. Even where high vaults were used, entirely different in dimension from the older trabeated temples, the spaces within the vaults were penetrated by screens of a post-and-lintel columnar construction which brought the scale down to one consonant with the rhythm of the rest of Rome’s architecture. With- ‘out the modular unity of this kind of architectural expression, the massive forms of ancient Rome would have canceled one another out and ended“The building of cities is one of man’s greatest achievements. The form of his city always has been and always will be a pitiless indicator of the state of his civilization. This form is determined by the multiplicity of decisions made by the people who live in it, In certain circumstances these decisions have interacted to produce a force of such clarity and form that anoble city has been born” Edmund. Bacon Ina brilliant synthesis of words and pictures, the author relates historical examples to modem principles of urban planning. He vividly demonstrates how the work of great architects and. planners of the past can influence subsequent development and be continued by later ‘generations, By illuminating the historical background of urban design, Bacon also shows us the fundamental forces and considerations that determine the form of a great city. Perhaps the ‘most significant of these are simultaneous movement systems ~ the paths of pedestrian and. vehicular traffic, public and private transportation —that serve as a dominant organizing force, and the author looks at movement systems in cities such as London, Rome and New York. He * also stresses the importance of designing open space, as well as architectural mass, and discusses the impact of space, colour and perspective on the city-dweller. That the centres of cities should and can be pleasant places in which to live, work and relax is illustrated by such examples as Rotterdam and Stockholm, “The most profound and most cofivincing prospectus for success which any city planner has yet put on the bookstalls...the illustrations are’a joy” IBA Journal *A fascinating volume for both professional and lay believers in city design’ Architects’ Journal “The best guide book to appear in years, Patiently and with barely suppressed enthusiasm, Edmund N. Bacon takes the reader through the great cities and buildings of the world...in a beautifully organised sequence of succinct chapters and exactly appropriate pictures. It is a , quite exceptional tour” , The Daily Telegraph “A splendid work... Never before have I understood either Peking or Brasilia: now Ido’ | * R, Fumeaux Jondan, The Observer “A joy to read for the architect and urban designer alike. A series of studies, beautifully presented, show the total urban design structure of various cities’ Architectural Design With 225 illustrations, 49 in colour ‘Thames and Hudson . | ISBN O-500-27133-x 30 Bloomsbury Street, London WC1B 3QP | | MN ll g"sosoole ‘Cone dexgn by Fran MilichEfenbein a)