Book Launch: The Open-Ended City

Join AD EX and UTA CAPPA in the launch of a book important to all who are interested in North Texas architecture. Join us for a booksigning and evening honoring the publication of The Open-Ended City, a collection of articles written by the late architecture critic David Dillon and edited by UTA architecture historian Kathryn E. Holliday. The event will occur from 6:00-8:00 p.m. at the AD EX with brief remarks at 7:00 p.m. The event is open to the public, but registration is requested. Books will be available for purchase.  Light refreshments will be provided; a donation of $10 is requested at the door. For more information, e-mail us at info@DallasADEX.org.

To register, CLICK HERE.

About The Open-Ended City:

In 1980, David Dillon launched his career as an architectural critic with a provocative article that asked “Why Is Dallas Architecture So Bad?” Over the next quarter century, he offered readers of The Dallas Morning News a vision of how good architecture and planning could improve quality of life, combatting the negative effects of urban sprawl, civic fragmentation, and rapacious real estate development typical in Texas cities. The Open-Ended City gathers more than sixty key articles that helped establish Dillon’s national reputation as a witty and acerbic critic, showing readers why architecture matters and how it can enrich their lives.

Kathryn E. Holliday discusses how Dillon connected culture, commerce, history, and public life in ways that few columnists and reporters ever get the opportunity to do. The articles she includes touch on major themes that animated Dillon’s writing: downtown  redevelopment, suburban sprawl, arts and culture, historic preservation, and the necessity of aesthetic quality in architecture as a baseline for thriving communities. While the specifics of these articles will resonate with those who care about Dallas, Fort Worth, and other Texas cities, they are also deeply relevant to all architects, urbanists, and citizens who engage in the public life and planning of cities. As a collection, The Open-Ended City persuasively demonstrates how a discerning critic helped to shape a landmark city by shaping the conversation about its architecture.

About the Author:

Kathryn E. Holliday is an associate professor of architecture at the University of Texas at Arlington, where she is also the founding director of the David Dillon Center for Texas Architecture. She is the author of Leopold Eidlitz: Architecture and Idealism in the Gilded Age and Ralph Walker: Architect of the Century. This collection gathers key writings by the nationally acclaimed architecture critic of The Dallas Morning News, whose perceptive commentary received awards from the Associated Press, the Dallas Press Club, and the Texas Society of Architects