Tradition in the service of modernity : architecture and urbanism in French colonial policy, 1900-1930

Object Details

Author

Wright, Gwendolyn

Smithsonian Libraries African Art Index Project DSI

Extracted from: Journal of modern history (Chicago) 59 (2) 1987, pages 291-316.

The urban modernist vision of French architects during the colonial period could not be implemented in metropolitan France, but it could be in the cities in the colonies. The creation of new urban conglomerates -- administrative and commercial buildings, boulevards, housing, all in the service of modernizing societies -- was a kind of grand experiment in urban design. All of this was carried out on the architectural fabric of great cultural diversity, and indeed, preserving parts of that historically interesting, indigenous landscape became central to the plans. It was part of the design experiment to keep these old parts of the cities (the medinas etc.), but as distinct entities or sectors within the overall scheme.

Wright examines how this urban planning played out in three colonial settings: Morocco, the classic example, Madagascar, and Indochina. One of the hallmarks of this architectural modernizing approach was its sensitivity to and incorporation of indigenous architectural forms and aesthetic sensibilities. But its overarching goal was political, one of asserting control and minimizing resistance to the essentially disruptive forces of modernization: "tradition in the service of modernity.

1987

20th century

Call number

VF-- Architecture

Type

Books

Physical description

p. 291-316 : ill

Place

Africa

Morocco

Madagascar

Smithsonian Libraries

Topic

Architecture, French colonial

Architecture, Colonial

Architecture, French--History

Architecture--History

City planning

Record ID

siris_sil_757482

Metadata Usage (text)

CC0