That's Brutal, What's Modern?

304 pages

In six chapters and some forty arrays of images, the book progresses from historical research to theoretical speculations on the historical legacy and contemporary potential of the Smithsons’ pursuit of the “Mies-Image.” The chapters situate New Brutalism in the context of emerging theories, practices, and cultures of imaging in postwar Britain, trace the Smithsons’ imaging practices and the appearances of the Mies-Image as it evolves in their projects and publications over five decades, reconsider Reyner Banham's evaluations of Mies and his role in New Brutalism, and explore imaging theory and its potential to re-evaluate the significance of New Brutalism.