Designing Londons Public Spaces [Hardcover]

Explore the evolution of London's public spaces from post-war reconstruction to contemporary designs.

Designing London's Public Spacesexamines the intricate relationships between planners, developers, and designers in shaping the city's public realm. It delves into the design intentions, the role of the designer, and the protection of 'publicness' in these spaces.

Discover the historical context, from state-financed projects to privately funded initiatives, and the shift in commissioning architects versus landscape architects. Uncover the value of emptiness and the impact of commercialization on public access. This is for architects, urban planners, and anyone passionate about London's urban landscape.

Eight illustrated case studies, four post-war and four contemporary, show how these public spaces came about, why they succeeded or failed, and why their success matters.Susannah Hagan is the Founding Director of Research into Environment and Design (R_E_D), a design consultancy that promotes the role of design in making cities more environmentally resilient.Part 1: The 'Public' of Public Space; Chapter 1: The partiality of participation; Chapter 2: Public space is always conditional; Part 2: The 'Space' of Public Space; Chapter 3: British architects and their ideas of the urban; Part 3: Public Spaces; Chapter 4: Four Modernist public spaces; Chapter 5: Four Contemporary public spaces; ConclusionThe first book to look at London’s public spaces from the point of view of the designers who created them rather than the people who use them'Circumspect in its observations and objective in its criticism, it makes an invaluable contribution to our understanding of why, how, and by whom public space is created.'  Bob Allies, Allies and Morrison architects'Circumspect in its observations and objective in its criticism, it makes an invaluable contribution to our understanding of why, how, and by whom lb