Ballard's London

Disaster zones, warped modernity, fetishised sex - J. G. Ballard has both been declared one of Britain's most important novelists of the twentieth century and dismissed as a marginal figure "beyond psychiatric help." He has earned praise and condemnation, written bestsellers and obscure avant-garde works, gained coveted prizes and prosecutions for obscenity. For forty years, his extraordinary work has moved between science fiction, apocalyptic visions, autobiography and fictions of the contemporary urban landscape.

In this talk, Roger Luckhurst will explore the maverick author’s perverse relationship to London, from his early fascination with apocalyptic visions of the capital, his interest in the new landscape of motorways and high-rises in the 1970s, to his perverse revels of white-collar crime in the affluent gated communities of Chelsea and edgeland shopping malls. Since the talk uniquely takes place in Erno Goldfinger’s house, Luckhurst will also explore Ballard’s engagement with the architect’s ideas and buildings.