A Life in Urban Design
Lloyd Rodwin Reviews Gordon Stephenson's On A Human Scale
"No one can be really knowledgeable about the strengths and weaknesses
of twentieth century regional planning and urban design without taking account
of the ideas and work of Gordon Stephenson. One of the great pioneers and
professional practitioners, his background, education, and career tell us
a lot about post-World War II planning and practice. What is a pity, however,
is that Stephenson -- now 86 years old -- is more a man of action than a
historian. The complexity and range of the problems he faced and the detail
of his achievements -- and failings -- still remain to be disclosed by some
future biographer or historian. But at least in this brief memoir a start
has been made..."
So begins the review in the Autumn 1995 issue of the APA Journal.
Written by Lloyd Rodwin, Senior Lecturer and Ford International Professor,
Emeritus, in the Department of Urban Studies and Planning, the review of
Stephenson's memoir serves as a quick review of the life and times of the
great urban designer.
A one-time student at MIT who was later chosen to head the Department of
City and Regional Planning, only to be denied a visa -- it was the McCarthy
era -- Stepehenson was, according to Rodwin, "an ardent humanist...sensitive
to the problems of cities...allergic to verbosity and pomposity..."
His memoir, says Rodwin, "illustrates the probity, determination, and
admirable professional skills that underlie some of the most memorable accomplishments
of British planning over the past half century."
For the full text of the review,
click here. The book itself is available from the Liverpool
University Press.
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