The 70s House

Though described in the 90s as the decade that style forgot, the 70s has since gained a renewed kudos and magnetism in the new millennium. For anyone who grew up during the decade, the era has an obvious nostalgic pull. It is, however, its aesthetic diversity that has made it such a rich seam to mine for style and design ideas. In the 1970s, architecture and interior design was at an important turning point: the certainties and rigours of postwar Modernism were giving way to a sense of adventure and pluralism. While excitement and indulgence in new technologies and gadgetry was being pursued, so was a greater awareness of historical style and the ecological. The dynamism and variety of the decade has much in common with the Art Nouveau. Both periods share not only a desire to represent a new age and a preoccupation in local contexts, but also took place at a time that technological possibilities were running ahead of the design aesthetics of the day.

In order to encapsulate the pure range and scope of the age, David Heathcote and Sue Barr have travelled extensively in Europe and America photographing and researching afresh a unique set of houses. These have largely been unphotographed since their debut in architectural journals in the 70s. The book thus brings together for the first time, not only a representative but also atypical selection of domestic architecture. This is lusciously illustrated in a state of lived-in maturity that shows a very current diversity of ageless living spaces.