Nationalizing the International Style

Abstract

In Nationalizing the International Style: The Formation of British Identity in the Architectural Criticism of P. Morton Shand, Alborz Dianat considers the critical role played by architectural journalist P. Morton Shand (1888–1960) in the debate that took place in the interwar period as British architecture grappled with the seemingly irreconcilable ideas of nationality and modernity. Drawing on an archive of correspondence only recently made public, Dianat shows how Shand assumed a position of leadership in efforts to nationalize architectural modernism in Britain. Shand’s journalistic output contributed to a broader movement calling for a return to Georgian precedents alongside international models, and British architects heeded that call. Shand promoted a new identity for British architecture internationally through his formal and informal networks, and Britain’s leading role in architectural discourse into and beyond World War II was bolstered by his work.