'Since the beginning of history, human beings have been fascinated with endings - the end of their lives, the end of seasons and the end of the world . . .', so says Nezar AlSayyad in his preface to The End of Tradition? But, he and his contributors argue, endings are also coupled with beginnings, and destruction is sometimes a precondition for construction or reconstruction, particularly where the built environment is concerned. Indeed, the end of tradition does not entail the death of tradition itself, only our conception of it - and the emergence of a need to re-evaluate its utility as a repository of authentic (and hence valuable) ideas to be handed down or preserved.

Following an introductory chapter in which Nezar AlSayyad presents the current debates about 'endings', about 'tradition', and about the relationship between tradition and modernity, the book is divided into three parts.

Part I, 'Traditions of the Modern', explores the ways in which the terms 'tradition' and 'modern' have become inextricably linked, while Part II, 'Invented Landscapes', chronicles how traditions are identified, manufactured, and deployed. The final Part, 'Programmes of Tradition', reveals how tradition is deployed, resisted and reworked through hegemonic struggles that seek to create both built environments and citizen subjects.

Drawing on case studies from round the world, Nezar AlSayyad and his contributors provide a unique window on how globalization has unsettled the conventional connection between place and culture and so given rise to the question 'The End of Tradition?'.



'Touch' by Renato Casaro, reproduced here by kind permission of the artist.