SUMMARY

The interview explores how the speaker’s intellectual identity was shaped by a modest upbringing in South Africa, uneven schooling, and early exposure to culture through mentors rather than family wealth. It emphasizes the decisive role of teachers, books, and informal networks in directing him toward architecture and architectural history. The discussion highlights his growing dissatisfaction with narrow architectural training, his deep engagement with modernist theory and history, and his involvement in left-leaning intellectual and social circles. A major focus is the shift from architectural practice to historical and theoretical research, especially through European study, key scholarly influences, and archival discovery, which ultimately defined his career as a historian and critic rather than a conventional practicing architect.