Customer Reviews

A History of the Future

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This book is a fascinating, well-researched history of the relationship between design, technology, and environmental changes. It is thoughtful, well-presented, and a pleasure to read. It examines the impact on architecture and planning of the industrial revolution, the automobile, space, media and information ages, and other technological eras. The book also explains how World War II transformed product design, impacted filmmaking styles, and led to the invention of new materials. The illustrations are excellent; the writing is scholarly and at the same time thoroughly accessible to the reader. The material provides a modern understanding of design history and brings the reader through to the present with the challenges and possibilities of the environment age. Highly recommended. Inspirational amount of knowledge and information communicated in a stimulating, engaging way.

Comprehensive and entertaining! This book provides an interdisciplinary analysis of major transitions in culture, technology and environment and how they affected architecture and urban planning. It engagingly explains the underlying philosophies and historical events that inspired visionary designers from Leonardo da Vinci to the green movement. The roles of film and product design are also explored.

The author seemed pained to stretch her information to fill a large-format book. Illustrations are nice, but the writing descriptions were shallow, perhaps from a lack of accomplished understanding.