"Victory City" Exhibit Provides Glimpse of Futuristic Urban Architecture

Colorful concepts for an ideal future city, characterized by urban efficiency and environmental best practices, will go on display

Oct. 17-Nov. 18, 2011

, in the University of Cincinnati’s Philip M. Meyers Jr. Memorial Gallery.

The exhibit it titled “Victory City” and features decades worth of works by Cincinnati native Orville Simpson.

Simpson’s vision for a utopian metropolis was driven by concerns regarding urban sprawl, pollution and sustainability.

For over six decades, from the 1930s to the 1990s, Simpson developed concepts for a Victory City that were aimed at protecting farmlands around Cincinnati that were being used for suburban development.

He conceived of model cities as self-contained, 102-story towers, sited in pristine agricultural landscapes providing farm-fresh food for daily consumption. Connections to other cities and distant sites were envisioned as taking place via monorail, reducing the transportation footprint on the land. With his plans, Simpson hoped to eliminate air pollution, traffic jams and urban sprawl.  

Simpson sited his first, modernist model "Victory City" between Cincinnati and Dayton, as the home of 262,000 residents. Ultimately, he hoped "Victory Cities" would proliferate and become home for 90 percent of the population in the United States.

Opening reception for the “Victory City” exhibit is set for 5-7 p.m., Thursday, Oct. 20.

“Victory City” will remain on exhibit at UC from Oct. 17 to Nov. 18. UC’s Meyers Gallery is free and open to the public, Sunday thru Thursday, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. For more information, call 513-556-2839.