He introduces the reader to communal architecture--architecture produced not by specialists but by the spontaneous and continuing activity of a whole people with a common heritage, acting within a community experience. A prehistoric theater district for a hundred thousand spectators on the American continent and underground towns and villages (complete with schools, offices, and factories) inhabited by millions of people are among the unexpected phenomena he brings to light.The beauty of primitive architecture has often been dismissed as accidental, but today we recognize in it an art form that has resulted from human intelligence applied to uniquely human modes of life. Indeed, Rudofsky sees the philosophy and practical knowledge of the untutored builders as untapped sources of inspiration for industrial man trapped in his chaotic cities.

    

    

    Its coastal resorts are particularly distinguished, nowhere more so than at Brighton where Nash's orientalizing Pavilion sets the tone. Elsewhere castles and fortified town walls along the coast attest to Sussex's military past; Chichester cathedral and Battle Abbey to its medieval endowments. In East Sussex, 12th century churches are important survivals in villages also rich in the timber-framed houses for which Sussex is famous. On a grander scale, there are atmospheric country houses such as Petworth House and Uppark. The 20th century makes its mark in the sober and dignified Festival Theatre at Chichester, the exhilarating De la Warr Pavilion at Bexhill, and the uncompromising forms of the University of Sussex campus.