Acknowledgments
1From the bottom of my heart, I wish to thank all the devoted and inspired individuals who assisted me in preparing these new editions of Buckminster Fullers books:
2 I could not have undertaken this project without the unswerving support of my beloved wife, Cheryl. She was my partner, primary advisor, and tireless editor in reviewing the new materials I wrote. She always encouraged me to seize this moment to bring focus to the grave challengesand opportunitiesfacing our planet.
3 It was a great pleasure to work again with Dr. Janet Brown. She joined me in the multi-month process of re-reading the books for the series, updating facts and figures, and finally in being an expert editor. And as in any project I undertake at this point in my life, John Ferry is at my sideas he has been for over 25 years. He backed me up with finding photos, selecting images, assembling materials, researching background facts, and resolving any other loose ends, not to mention the management of our numerous other projects. And finally, intern Josh Pang single-handedly forged our entrance into the paradigm of ebooksa first for Bucky.
4 I want to also thank Roberto Trujillo, head of Stanford Universitys Department of Special Collections, for his support of my research at the R. Buckminster Fuller Archive. I especially want to thank Mattie Taormina, the Head of Public Services and Manuscripts Processing Librarian, who facilitated my research and expedited my needs for scans of images from the archive. Living nearby, it was an unexpected treat to be able to spend some days in their beautiful reading room to joyfully commune with Bucky through his own working papers.
5 I particularly would like to express my appreciation for Lars Müller. Lars and I have been enjoying talking about this project for almost ten years, ever since he designed the two beautiful volumes of Your Private Sky: The Art of Design Science. Lars is a great artist of book design, and his encouragement all along the way inspired me to pursue the vision of presenting these books to a new generation in a fashion fitting to their remarkable prescience. I want to also acknowledge his fine team at Lars Müller Publishers in Switzerland: Michael Furrer, Katharina Kulke, and Lea Pfister, supplemented by Jonathan Fox in Spain. I cannot imagine a more competent team to undertake such a task.
6 And finally I want to express my gratitude to my dear Fuller family: my sister, Alexandra Fuller May, a passionate champion of design revolution, who urged us to go for a design that would reach a vital new audience. My mother, Allegra Fuller Snyder, who cheered me on in this project, and gave of her aesthetic wisdom and deep sensitivity for Buckys way of being. My father, the late Robert Snyder, who joined the fold and gave so much to this work as a pioneering documentarian of Bucky. My aunt Alexandra Fuller, who died five years before Allegra was born. And dear dear Bucky and Anne, who gave so much for us.
- 1.
- S.
7 R. Buckminster Fuller
Utopia or Oblivion: The Prospects for Humanity
8 First published 1969
9 Except for very rare typographical or grammatical
corrections, Buckminster Fullers words
have not been changed from the first edition.
10 Send any corrections to:
[email protected]
11 New Edition, 2008
Ebook Edition, 2018
Edited by Jaime Snyder
12 Design: Integral Lars Müller
13 ľ 2008, 2018 Estate of R. Buckminster Fuller
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced,
stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or
by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording
or otherwise, without prior permission of the Publisher.
14 Print Edition published by
Lars Müller Publishers
Pfingstweidstrasse 6
CH-8005 Zürich
www.lars-muller-publishers.com
Ebook Edition published by
The Estate of R. Buckminster Fuller