ABSTRACT
The significance of local architecturallanguage(s) 1 as a context for design review is emphasised. It is argued that the issue of design review and control is not primarily an issue of aesthetics (which can too easily be represented as an elitist concern to impose personal preferences) but an issue of language (which is fundamental to human experience and has meaning, not necessarily in the same way, for the whole population). Existing approaches to development control are framed in terms of architectural language. Shape grammars, as a representation of architectural language, and the city of Adelaide, South Australia, as a context for discussion, are described. The processes involved in expressing and using local architectural language as a basis for design review are discussed.
