The Language of Cities

The latest addition to the Design series, from the Director of the Design MuseumWe live in a world that is now predominantly urban. So how do we define the city as it evolves in the twenty-first century? Drawing examples from across the globe, Deyan Sudjic decodes the underlying forces that shape our cities, such as resources and land, to the ideas that shape conscious elements of design, whether of buildings or of space. Erudite and entertaining, he considers the differences between capital cities and the rest to understand why it is that we often feel more comfortable in our identities as Londoners, Muscovites, or Mumbaikars than in our national identities.

“"Witty commentary on rampant consumerism enabled by design innovation. . . . Especially appealing to marketers and design connoisseurs, this is easily digestible for the average consumers interested in knowingly purchasing quality design for the senses--if they can still afford it in today's economy." -- Publishers Weekly on The Language of Things”

A deeply original and necessary book—Alain de Botton

An indispensable guide to what makes a city a city—Robert Bevan, Evening Standard

Deyan Sudjic remains one of our most insightful commentators—Royal Academy magazine

A small, readable guide to what cities are and how they work—Edwin Heathcote, Financial Times

A memoir and a master class in musing on modern design . . . It's a collection of thoughtful, absorbing essays about many aspects of modern design, a subject nobody writes better about than Sudjic—Evening Standard on B Is for Bauhaus

Deyan Sudjic is Director of the Design Museum. He was born in London, and studied architecture in Edinburgh. He has worked as a critic for the Observer and The Sunday Times, as the editor of Domus in Milan, as the director of the Venice Architecture Biennale, and as a curator in Glasgow, Istanbul and Copenhagen. He is the author of B is for Bauhaus, The Language of Things and The Edifice Complex.

Most of us now live in cities. But what makes a city? Is it a place - or an idea? How should we define the city as it evolves today? Deyan Sudjic, Director of the Design Museum, decodes the underlying forces that shape the urban spaces around us, from their buildings to their names, from the power of crowds to why being a Londoner, New Yorker or Muscovite can offer a sense of identity greater than any other. 'A deeply original and necessary book' Alain de Botton 'An indispensable guide to what makes a city a city' Evening Standard 'A small, readable guide to what cities are and how they work' Financial Times

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