The Werkgruppe Graz designed the terraced housing estate in Graz-St. Peter in 1965, during a period of societal upheaval. The complex was eventually built between 1972 and 1978. The planning groupmembers of the avant-garde artists association Forum Stadtparktook a stand against the established system of residential construction, which was characterized by monotone design and the urban sprawl of single-family homes. Instead, they championed the utopian approach of involving residents in the planning process, which was reflected in the developments basic structuralist framework with adaptable living units. Comprised of four terraced housing blocks in exposed concrete at the edge of Graz, the estates sculptural, brutalist appearance received international acclaim. Gelebte Utopie is the first book to provide a collection of texts of architectural commentary and context on the settlement. It additionally offers insights into the inhabitants living spaces and is enriched with artistic projects.

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Eugen Gross is an architect, author, and amateur actor. He was professor at the Graz Ortweinschule and a founding member of Werkgruppe Graz, an architects collective that completed almost a hundred projects both within Austria and elsewhere between 1959 and 1989. The terraced housing estate in Graz-St. Peter is their largest project. Andrea Jany is an architect and researcher. Following her training at the Bauhaus Universität in Weimar, Virginia Tech, Stanford University, and TU Graz, she gained ten years of project management experience in planning and held a postdoctoral research and teaching post at Stanford University. She now teaches and conducts research in the field of residential construction.

„Die Publikation „Gelebte Utopie“ liefert erstmals eine Sammlung von architekturhistorischen und -kritischen Texten über die Siedlung, gibt Einblicke in die Lebenswelten der Bewohnenden und ist angereichert mit Originalskizzen, -plänen und -fotografien sowie mit künstlerischen Projekten.“ (Modulor, 02/2023)