Professor John Gold
Department of Social Sciences - Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences
Research activities
Details of my research
The experiential history of the Modern Movement in British architecture
The first phase of this research, covered in my book The Experience of Modernism (Routledge, 1997), examined the anticipation of future urban forms and patterns of city life by modern architects between 1928-53. The second phase, examined in The Practice of Modernism (Routledge, 2007), investigated the relationship between vision and practice in the years of metropolitan reconstruction (1954-72). The final phase of this research, which will be reported The Legacy of Modernism (c. 2014), considers the continuing experience of architectural modernism after the denouement of the 1970s up to the end of the twentieth century and reflect on modernism’s lasting impact on our towns and cities.
Cities of Culture: urban festivals – past, present and future
My work on the staging of urban cultural festivals has led to a series of internationally regarded books, particularly on cities staging the modern Olympic Games. These include Cities of Culture: Staging International Festivals and the Urban Agenda, 1851-2000, (Ashgate Press, 2005), the edited collection Olympic Cities: City Agendas, Planning, and the World’s Games, 1896-2016, (2007, with a second edition in 2011). He has recently completed a four-volume on The Making of Olympic Cities. (Routledge, 2012). In 2013, he will publish a work on non-ambulatory festivals entitled Festival Cities: Culture, Planning and Urban Life since 1918, with the third edition of Olympic Cities appearing in 2014.
John is also actively working on projects connected with Olympic Cities and World Fairs.
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Recent publications
- Gold, J. and Gold, M., eds, (2012) The Making of Olympic Cities, 4 vols, Major Works series, London: Routledge
- Gold, J. (2012) ‘A SPUR to action: the Society for the Promotion of Urban Renewal, ‘anti-scatter’ and the crisis of reconstruction’, Planning Perspectives, 27(2), 199-223.
- Gold, J . ( 2011 ) 'Carnival redux: hurricane Katrina, Mardi Gras and contemporary US experience of an enduring festival form' In Selling ethniCity: urban cultural politics in the Americas, Ashgate.View more details»
- Gold, J and Gold, M . ( 2011 ) Olympic Cities City Agendas, Planning, and the World's Games, 1896 to 2016. Routledge. View more details»
- Gold, J . ( 2010 ) 'Kevin Lynch'. Sage Publications View more details»
- Gold, J and Gold, M . ( 2008 ) Culture and the City. History In Focus. View more details»
- Gold, J . ( 2008 ) Olympic cities: regeneration, city rebranding and changing urban agendas. Geography Compass. (1) View more details»
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