Histories of the Immediate Present: Inventing Architectural Modernism

Writing Architecture #11

by Anthony Vidler

How the different narratives of four historians of architectural modernism—Emil Kaufmann, Colin Rowe, Reyner Banham, and Manfredo Tafuri—advanced specific versions of modernism. Architecture, at least since the beginning of the twentieth century, has suspended historical references in favor of universalized abstraction. In the decades after the Second World War, when architectural historians began to assess the legacy of the avant-gardes in order to construct a coherent narrative of modernism's development, they were inevitably influenced by contemporary concerns. In Histories of the Immediate Present , Anthony Vidler examines the work of four historians of architectural modernism and the ways in which their histories were constructed as more or less overt programs for the theory and practice of design in a contemporary context. Vidler looks at the historical approaches of Emil Kaufmann, Colin Rowe, Reyner Banham, and Manfredo Tafuri, and the specific versions of modernism advanced by their historical narratives. Vidler shows that the modernism conceived by Kaufmann was, like the late Enlightenment projects he revered, one of pure, geometrical forms and elemental composition; that of Rowe saw mannerist ambiguity and complexity in contemporary design; Banham's modernism took its cue from the aspirations of the futurists; and the “Renaissance modernism” of Tafuri found its source in the division between the technical experimentation of Brunelleschi and the cultural nostalgia of Alberti. Vidler's investigation demonstrates the inevitable collusion between history and design that pervades all modern architectural discourse—and has given rise to some of the most interesting architectual experiments of the postwar period.

Genres: Architecture, History

261 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 18, 2008

About the author

Anthony Vidler (4 July 1941 – 19 October 2023) was an English architectural historian and critic. He was Professor at the Irwin S. Chanin School of Architecture at The Cooper Union.

Reviews

[Ganimarepublic · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hala güncel önemini koruduğunu düşündüğüm bu kitap; mimarlık tarihinin sadece geçmişi anlatmakla kalmayıp, güncel pratikleri de yönlendirdiğini gösteriyor. Tarih yazımının mimarlığı nasıl etkilediği, şekillendirdiği, dönüştürdüğü...
Bariz diktatör, katil, benmerkezci erkek kanun koyucular kadar, insanlık bu tarih yazıcılarından da çok çekti :))

Teknoloji ve popüler kültürün modern mimarlık üzerindeki etkilerini gösteren Reyner Banham çok ingiliz ingiliz olmakla birlikte elinden geleni yapıyor.

Vidler'e gelince, o da bir Cambridge İngilizi :)) Ama Freud'dan aldığı "tekinsizlik" terimini "uncanny" mimarlığa sokması devrim niteliğinde sayılıyor. Efendim neden? Mimarların kendilerini tanrı gibi görmelerine katkısı olsun diye değil tabi...
Bu yaklaşım mimari mekanların sadece fiziki bir deneyim olmadığı, insanı kötü, aşağılık, huzursuz hatta dehşet verici hissettirebileceği meselesi. Bir binanın insanı nasıl boğabildiğini modern insan olarak hepimiz iyi kötü biliyoruz. Hah işte bunun adını koyan zat Vidler
Türkçeye çevrilmedi diye biliyorum, bizim camianın ne kadarı okumuştur, muamma

[Elliott]

Worth rereading the conclusion on "posthistoire" and post/modernism.

[mahatmanto · Rating 4 out of 5]

ini adalah kumpulan esai tentang para sejarawan arsitektur yang menulis mengenai produksi arsitektur pada tahap-tahap awal, pada tahap-tahap yang dekat dengan penulisnya sendiri.
vidler di sini bertindak sebagai `tuan rumah` yang kedatangan `tamu` yakni para sejarawan itu: emil kaufmann, colin rowe, rayner banham dan manfredo tafuri. keempat tamu itu membicarakan arsitektur modern yang sedang dalam proses penyelesaian pembentukannya.
karena itu, benarlah judul yang dipakai vidler di sini: `sejarah-sejarah dari peristiwa yang barusan terjadi` [histories of the immediate present:].

sebagai tuan rumah, dengan ramah ia mengenalkan masing-masing tulisan para sejarawan itu pada kita, pembacanya. mendudukkan masing-masing pada konteks lahirnya tulisan mereka dan menarik signifikansinya atau kontribusi tulisan sejarah itu bagi sejarah dari sejarah arsitektur.

namun, para sejarawan itu tidak dibiarkan bicara sendiri pada kita. mereka dihadirkan bagi kita oleh vidler.

terakhir, dia merumuskan tindakannya mengundang para tamu itu dan apa pentingnya mereka bagi kita, di bab terakhir [`postmodern or posthistoire?`:]

itu dulu...lebih lanjut nyusul deh...
---
membicarakan arsitektur modern itu membicarakan ide dan bagaimana ide itu ditangkap oleh sistem kategori bikinan kita. karena membicarakan ide, bukan style/langgam visual yang dilahirkan oleh ide tadi, maka KAPAN awal babak arsitektur modern itu harus dicari di luar arsitektur: ialah di diskursus semasa.
ia megnelola diskursus di antara keempat sejarawan untuk memberi gambaran bahwa membicarakan arsitektur modern adalah membicarakan ide yang batas-batas awal dan akhirnya itu samar-sama. tidak setegas bila arsitektur modern dipandang sebagai fenomen visual.

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

Boring in places, but it is Vidler and thus worth reading for architects and students of architecture. Modernism has probably gained more theoretical basis in writing by architectural critics and theorists than any other period of architectural development, yet Vidler is able to add some new concepts in this volume. For students new to architectural theory of the twentieth century, an anthology such as The Oppositions Reader might be better, but this is certainly worthwhile.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not Vidler's most groundbreaking work, but this series of essays starts an essential meta-historical conversation about modernism and postmodernism's conceits. These essays (on the historical projects of Emil Kauffman, Colin Rowe, Reyner Banham and Manfredo Tafuri) build to a crescendo that Vidler hopes will provide momentum for future architectures and histories.

[Annick · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must-read in particular for students in architecture, urbanism and history of architecture. A book well-documented, with a very rich bibliography, not a surprise as the author is known to be one of the most impressive historians of his generation.