INTERNATIONAL INTERPRETATIONS OF THE GARDEN CITY IDEAL

摘要

Ebenezer Howard set out on his peaceful path to real reform (1898) as a direct response to the worst economic and physical excesses of the capitalist free-for-all that had manifested itself in 19th century urban England. The ensuing urban aesthetic might best be described, using the words of DH Lawrence in Ugliness (1919), as 'pseudo-cottagey' but it has left its DNA on almost every suburban housing estate built in England subsequently. It became synonymous with clean and healthy living and, as a social experiment, quickly attracted global attention. An impressive array of international architects, planners and politicians (even Lenin is alleged to have visited Letchworth in 1907) came to see for themselves. What they took away, they adapted to their own cultures and circumstances.