Michael Webb: Two Journeys

Amazing architectural reveries from the Archigram pioneer

Two Journeys is the first comprehensive monograph on the work of the English architect, artist and founding member of Archigram, Michael Webb. He is widely known for creatively exploring the boundaries of drawing techniques, specifically perspectival projection, in beautiful drawings and paintings of extraordinary structures. Webb’s reconceptions of the built and natural environments are revealed in his 20-year study on perspective projection that utilizes as its subjects the Regatta Course at Henley-on-Thames, in England, and early work, some of which was done in conjunction with Archigram, the legendary avant-garde architecture group that formed in London in the 1960s.

The publication connects nearly 60 years of the artist’s work into a narrative on the relationship between architecture, the automobile and landscape. Webb’s work investigates these relationships using notions of time, space and speed, as well as analogue drawing tools such as pencil and collage, for pieces that are often rendered later in oil paint. The book features a foreword by Kenneth Frampton, critical essays by Michael Sorkin and Mark Wigley, commentaries by Webb and over 100 drawings—artistic works rooted in analytical thinking and structured around architectural elements and notational systems.

Michael Webb (born 1937) is an artist and a professor of architecture. Born in England, he immigrated to the US in 1965 and is now based in Wakefield, RI. His work has been exhibited at institutions such as The Museum of Modern Art, Cooper Union, Storefront for Art and Architecture, and the Architectural League of New York. His work has been published extensively in books and journals including the Journal of Architectural Education and Architectural Design. Webb has been honored with a fellowship by the Canadian Center for Architecture (2010–11), and he is a recipient of a grant from the Graham Foundation for the Fine Arts (2014). He has taught architecture and drawing for over 50 years at such institutions as the Architectural Association, Barnard College, Columbia University, Cooper Union, New Jersey Institute of Technology, Pratt Institute, Rhode Island School of Design and Virginia Tech.