The Architecture of Urbanity makes the case that city design is not merely an aesthetic pursuit but humanity's most consequential tool for addressing climate change, inequality, and the erosion of collective life.
About This Book
Architect and urbanist Vishaan Chakrabarti traces the relationship between built form and civilisation's most pressing crises — from the cities of antiquity through to the exurban sprawl of the postindustrial world. Rather than lamenting what urbanism has become, Chakrabarti orients the argument forward: he presents work by a global cohort of practising architects demonstrating how intelligent urban design can improve life across contexts as varied as refugee camps, university campuses, and mega-cities including São Paulo, Tokyo, Paris, and Los Angeles. For architects, planners, and policymakers, this is a sustained argument that sustainable urbanism and human joy are not competing values but inseparable ones.
Key Features
- 140 pages of original graphics, data visualisations, photographs, and architectural drawings
- Case studies spanning campuses, refugee camps, and mega-cities including São Paulo, Lima, Los Angeles, New York, Paris, and Tokyo
- Published by Princeton University Press
What You'll Discover
- How the design of urban communities can directly counter climate change, population pressures, and political fragmentation
- A historical arc connecting the great cities of antiquity to contemporary exurban sprawl, showing how each era's built environment reflected and shaped its social crises
- Work by a diverse international selection of practising architects demonstrating innovative responses to urban challenges at every scale
- The argument that designers must act alongside political, business, and cultural leaders — not in service of them — to steer the future of the planet
About the Author
Vishaan Chakrabarti is an architect whose work engages directly with questions of urban equity, sustainability, and design at city scale. His practice and writing position him at the intersection of architecture, policy, and the built environment's role in shaping collective life.
Specifications
- Format: Hardcover
- Pages: 140
- Dimensions: 203 x 254 mm
- Language: English
- ISBN: 9780691208435
- Publisher: Princeton University Press
- Publication Date: [Details available upon request]
Perfect For: Architects, urban designers, and planners engaged with sustainable city-making, as well as academics and policy thinkers working at the intersection of design, equity, and the urban environment.