1950s – Urban Utopias

Posted on January 15, 2020January 8, 2020 by Tommy O'Donnell

Crystal City and The Plan for Greater Baghdad: Frank Lloyd Wright’s Urban Planning

Frank Lloyd Wright's design for the Crescent Opera House, the central feature of the Plan for Greater Baghdad. Credit: James Vaughan on Flickr

In the years after creating Broadacre City, Frank Lloyd Wright had a handful of chances to plan real urban environments. Few of these projects were ever built. Two of the biggest, though, provide a window into the changing urban ideas of one of the most influential modern architects. Read more

Posted on June 15, 2019June 22, 2019 by Tommy O'Donnell · 1 Comment

Le Corbusier’s Ideas on Display

Ministerial Buildings under construction in Brasilia, Brazil. Credit: By Unknown - Arquivo Público do Distrito Federal, CC BY 3.0,

While most of Le Corbusier’s realized work during his life was on private villas such as Villa Savoye, he – along with the planners who followed him – had a few opportunities to test out his radical ideas in planning, to varying success. Here’s a handful of those creations.