City and the Architecture of Change : The Work and Radical Visions of Cedric Price

British architect Cedric Price (1934–2003) had a lifelong fascination with the mechanization of society and its effect on people’s­ lives. In the 1960s and ’70s, Price began to look for answers to some of the pressing problems he saw in society in the tenets of architecture and design. His intense intellectual curiosity soon led him to other disciplines, including the social and natural sciences, while his sense of humor and self-irony—which also extended to his profession—allowed him to keep his ideas in perspective.

With The City and the Architecture of Change, Tanja Herdt offers the first comprehensive look back at the life and work of Price. Based on extensive research, including previously unpublished materials, Herdt provides a thorough account of Price’s key architectural concepts and visions, and then analyzes his perspectives on the city as a system, the influence of products and contemporary culture on architecture, and the role of science and technology in architecture and design. Apart from providing new insights into Price’s well-known and studied projects, such as Fun Palace and Potteries Thinkbelt, Herdt also brings to light many lesser-known works from the 1970s like McAppy and The Generator. She concludes by refuting the common perception of Cedric Price as an “anti-architect.”

Richly illustrated with plans and photographs, many of which have never been published before, The City and the Architecture of Change affords a glimpse into the mind of this highly creative and forward-thinking architect.

Tanja Herdt is a Swiss architect and consultant and a lecturer at the Technical University of Munich. Helen Ferguson is a translator specializing in art, architecture, and film.