New Building in Old Cities: Design and Historic Preservation Advice from a Modern Master of Urban Conservation

Drawing on his new book, Steven Semes will discuss Gustavo Giovannoni (1873-1947), a central figure in the fields of architecture, urbanism, and historic preservation in the first half of the 20th century in his native Italy and throughout Europe. Giovannoni's theory and practice have had a profound, if often unacknowledged, influence in these fields up to the present day. Central to his thinking was a sense of continuity between historic architecture and contemporary design, the mission of restoration to render our historic monuments as whole as possible, and a deep sense of respect for the character and meaning of historic buildings, cities, and landscapes. His focus on the urban scale led him to view the whole city as the monument, including both important public buildings and the ordinary urban fabric that forms their setting. Proponents of new traditional design, New Urbanism, historic preservation, sustainability, and environmentalism will find in Giovannoni an invaluable precursor and resource. Semes's book offers a comprehensive portrait of the architect for the first time in English.