Becoming an urban morphologist: Michael P. Conzen

Abstract

The field of urban morphology cannot be separated from the research of M.R.G. Conzen. For decades, Jeremy W.R. Whitehand wrote extensively about how M.R.G. Conzen became an urban morphologist and then laid further foundations for what would become the historico-geographical approach within the field. Recently, a paper published in this journal explored how Whitehand developed his own commitment to urban morphology. This paper reveals a third explicit ‘corner’ of an early triangle in the Conzenian school ‒ Michael P. Conzen. By tracing his intellectual journey, the article exposes a lifelong curiosity about urban built environments, beginning at the age of twelve with his striking ‘A Survey of Askrigg’, and explores the reasons and motivations for ‘becoming an urban morphologist’. If, from early on, Michael Conzen absorbed his father’s fascination with urban morphology, a desire to pursue a substantially independent path also defined a large part of his career. He maintained a continuous activity in urban morphology, even after his relocation to the United States, cementing his key role within the historico-geographical approach.