Approximate Formality: Morphology Of Irish Towns

The subject and object of this book is towns and town plans in Ireland-from earliest of times to the Famine- exploring their origin, originality and potential-making an analysis of their rigorous and axial layouts so they can be understood as part of world, not just local culture.

Since work on the book started, Ireland has also changed. With lockdown, there has been a movement of people out of cities to new lives in the countryside - and particularly in small Irish towns. This is a natural process, but it brings huge opportunities to those towns at a key moment in their lives - the book is timely in showing how an understanding of their architecture and urban design serves to support ways in which they might be carefully conserved and developed to provide homes for thousands of additional people. This is one of the key questions for Ireland now. If it is answered originally, it will be Ireland’s significant contribution to world culture for the next number of years.