Description
Fleeing Europe in 1939 for the Australian state of Queensland, the architect Karl Langer (1903-1969) found himself positioned at the very edge of both European and Australian modernism. Confronted by tropical heat and glare, the economics of affordable housing, fiercely proud regional architectural practices, and a suspicion of the foreign, Langer moulded the European language of international modernism to the unique climatic and social conditions of tropical Australia. Published as part of the Bloomsbury Studies in Modern Architecture series, which brings to light the work of significant yet overlooked modernist architects, this book is both an examination of Langer's work and international legacy, and also a case study in tropical modernism and the trans-global dissemination of design ideas - revealing how Langer sought to reconcile his training in international modernism with a fascination for the formal and visual languages of a regional culture, context, and climate.
A new title in the Bloomsbury Studies in Modern Architecture series, examining the work of Karl Langer, European-born innovator of tropical modernism.
About the Author
Deborah van der Plaat is Honorary Senior Research Fellow in the School of Architecture, the University of Queensland, Australia. John Macarthur is Professor of Architecture and Director of Research in the School of Architecture, the University of Queensland, Australia.
Reviews
This lavishly-illustrated volume is a fine piece of transnational architectural history writing, documenting the fascinating trajectory of a migrant architect who imported innovative ideas from cosmopolitan Vienna to the provincial Australian tropics and produced work of remarkable local sensitivity. * Johan Lagae, Ghent University, Belgium *
A compelling, innovative and timely story of migration, politics and creative collaboration from occupied Vienna to the tropics of Australia. This impressive constellation of authors each bring a fascinating, and carefully researched dimension to the Karl Langer story, not forgetting the crucial contribution made by Gertrude Langer. * Iain Jackson, University of Liverpool, UK *
Book Information
ISBN 9781350280366
Author Dr Deborah van der Plaat
Format Paperback
Page Count 328
Imprint Bloomsbury Visual Arts
Publisher Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
A new title in the Bloomsbury Studies in Modern Architecture series, examining the work of Karl Langer, European-born innovator of tropical modernism.
About the Author
Deborah van der Plaat is Honorary Senior Research Fellow in the School of Architecture, the University of Queensland, Australia. John Macarthur is Professor of Architecture and Director of Research in the School of Architecture, the University of Queensland, Australia.
Reviews
This lavishly-illustrated volume is a fine piece of transnational architectural history writing, documenting the fascinating trajectory of a migrant architect who imported innovative ideas from cosmopolitan Vienna to the provincial Australian tropics and produced work of remarkable local sensitivity. * Johan Lagae, Ghent University, Belgium *
A compelling, innovative and timely story of migration, politics and creative collaboration from occupied Vienna to the tropics of Australia. This impressive constellation of authors each bring a fascinating, and carefully researched dimension to the Karl Langer story, not forgetting the crucial contribution made by Gertrude Langer. * Iain Jackson, University of Liverpool, UK *
Book Information
ISBN 9781350280366
Author Dr Deborah van der Plaat
Format Paperback
Page Count 328
Imprint Bloomsbury Visual Arts
Publisher Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
