| Summary: | The highly anticipated 21st edition of 'Sir Banister Fletcher’s Global History of Architecture' was published in January 2020 by Bloomsbury in collaboration with the Banister Fletcher Trust, the Royal Institute of British Architects, and the University of London. Among many new features is an emphasis on the book’s ‘global’ reach, which reshapes its scope and structure. With all chapters written anew and encompassing architectural histories and sites across the globe over the past 5,500 years, the 21st edition of 'Banister Fletcher' emerges at the forefront of the march towards global architectural history. This is a radical transformation of a classic book previously viewed as the Eurocentric canon’s centrepiece. The following interview with Murray Fraser, general editor of the new edition and professor of architecture and global culture at the Bartlett School of Architecture, University College London, explores the paths of his intellectual development, starting with changes from within the ‘centre’ — the former British Empire and its traditionally defined scope of architectural history — through to his eventual shift towards a global outlook. The conversation also offers a retrospective look at architectural education in the 20th century, now seen as a postcolonial ‘tipping point’, and discusses recent scholarship that led to the reformulation of 'Sir Banister Fletcher’s A History of Architecture'. Ultimately, Fraser’s intellectual trajectory identifies two critical factors that ushered in the new 'Sir Banister Fletcher’s Global History of Architecture': a seismic change that took place within British architectural education, and the ensuing efforts to redefine architectural history for global audiences.
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