Architecture Without Architects: An Introduction to Non-Pedigreed Architecture

This book attempts to break down the narrow concept of the art of building by introducing the unfamiliar world of nonpedigreed architecture...for want of a generic label, it could be called vernacular, anonymous, spontaneous, indigenous or rural. This catalogue accompanied the exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art from Nov. 9, 1964 to Feb. 7, 1965. As a rule, the origin of indigenous building forms and construction methods are lost in the distant past. Among the many examples covered are North American tree dwellers, 17th Century Chinese floating villages, cave dwellers, Mediterranian hill towns, architectural mimicry, grass structures, and moveable housing. The beauty of such primitive architecture has often been dismissed as accidental, but today is recognized as an art form that has resulted from human intelligence applied to uniquely human modes of life.