Product Description
Theorizing a New Agenda for Architecture: An Anthology of ArchitecturalTheory collects in a single volume the most significant essays on architectural theory of the last thirty years.

A dynamic period of reexamination of the discipline, the postmodern eraproduced widely divergent and radical viewpoints on issues of making, meaning, history, and the city. Among the paradigms presented arearchitectural postmodernism, phenomenology, semiotics, poststructuralism, deconstruction, and feminism.

By gathering these influential articles from a vast array of books and journals into a comprehensive anthology, Kate Nesbitt has created a resource of great value. Indispensable to professors and students of architecture and architectural theory, Theorizing a New Agenda also serves practitioners and the general public, as Nesbitt provides an overview, a thematic structure, and a critical introduction to each essay.

The list of authors in Theorizing a New Agenda reads like a "Who's Who" of contemporary architectural thought: Tadao Ando, Giulio Carlo Argan, Alan Colquhoun, Jacques Derrida, Peter Eisenman, Marco Frascari, Kenneth Frampton, Diane Ghirardo, Vittorio Gregotti, Karsten Harries, Rem Koolhaas, Christian Norberg-Schulz, Aldo Rossi, Colin Rowe, Thomas Schumacher, Ignasi de Sol -Morales Rubi , Bernard Tschumi, Robert Venturi and Denise Scott Brown, and Anthony Vidler. A bibliography and notes on all the contributors are also included. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (13)

Fantastic
An excellent collection of readings covering a wide variety of philosophical architectural readings.Highly recommended for those who want to understand the essential theory behind true architecture.

merely passable
while nesbitt's introductions to the various sections and articles/excerpts are often quite good, i cannot give this book more than a "passable" rating.the selections are heavily weighted toward a the ideas of a select few authors/theoreticians, creating a fairly lopsided look at recent architectural theory (as can fairly easily be seen in a review of the table of contents).in addition, those familiar with the topic sections covered (for example, semiotics and its relation to architecture), will find the excerpts chosen to represent certain theoretician's bodies of work rather inappropriate and incomplete.i have not yet had the opportunity to read any similar anthologies of very recent architectural theory, but this is certainly not one which should impress, or one that should be used as a stand-alone source.

Post Modernist psyco-bable
As an arcaheology student studying vernacular architecture, I found this particular text to be a waste of time. It does nothing for the history of architecture, nor does it lend itself to coherent reading.

Excellent Architectural Theory text
Architectural Theory from 1965-1995 is complex, nuanced, and somewhat pretentious. Part of the problem is that contemporary Architectural Theory (and I would call this "Postmodern" theory) is connected to Continental Philosophy, which is also quite pretentious and often inaccessible to the vast majority of readers. Quite frankly, a lot of postmodern theory is, in my opinion, meaningless, but very hip, drivel.

That being said, if one is able to separate out the drivel, there is also a great deal to gain from reading postmodern theory. They key is to learn how to separate the good from the bad. This book won't teach you that, so you may often wonder, after reading a text, whether you just don't get it, or if there is really anything to get at all. All of the authors whose essays are contained in this text are very important in contemporary architecture, and any student or enthusiast of contemporary architectural trends needs to understand these figures, such as Koolhaas, Eisenman, and Tschumi (also, all major figures at architecture schools in the US). I would say every one of the authors here has some good points, although some of them write in far more verbose and pretentious language than others. But, this book is simply presenting the important figures in architectural theory, so I won't fault the book for the flaws of the texts contained within. It would be irresponsible NOT to include all of these texts. Judge them for yourself, and remember that each of theorists in these pages has critisized the work of other theorists in the textbook. They aren't all equal, and nobody has claimed they are.

The only problem with this book is that it doesn't contain any illustrations. Now I know this isn't meant to be a coffee-table book with pretty buildings, but it's very problematic to have architecture texts without illustrations. I highly recommened looking up some of the work of each of the architects in here. For example, if you don't understand what Eisenman is talking about, take a look at some pictures of his buildings and it may become clear. Also, remember that most of the texts in this book, when first published, DID contain pictures accompanying them, so something is lost in their removal. Some of the texts need pictures more than others. I think Rem Koolhaas, more than most of the rest, relies quite heavily on images to get his point across in his fantastic books (especially S,M,L,XL and Delirious New York), and republishing his work without these images takes a good deal of the meaning away, and also makes the texts much more dry.

I recommend this book, but probably just as a reference or a jumping-off point from which to explore certain trends and theorists further. The organization of this book is quite nice, outlining each theoretical trend (such as deconstructivism, phenomenology, or critical regionalism), and making clear the overlap (many theorists have essays in several sections). Again, this book is probably not for the casual architecture fan, and reading it is not as fun as opening up a Koolhaas book or other beautifully-made visual book, but if you really want (or need) to understand the most important trends and theorists in contemporary architecture, this book is a great buy.

Correcting Ignorance
I am an architecture student at Washington University.This book is a great stepping stone into Architectural Theory.But, why I am really writing this review is to correct the unread
individual who wrote a review of this book prior to me.

phe·nom·e·nol·o·gy - noun

1. A philosophy or method of inquiry based on the premise that reality consists of objects and events as they are perceived or understood in human consciousness and not of anything independent of human consciousness.

2. A movement based on this, originated about 1905 by Edmund Husserl. ... Read more

Product Description
Since the 1980s, the diagram has become a preferred method for researching, communicating, theorising and making architectural designs, ideas and projects. Thus the rise of the diagram, as opposed to the model or the drawing, is the one of the most significant new developments in the process of design in the late 20th and early 21st centuries. Diagrams of Architecture is the first anthology to represent - through texts and diagrams - the histories, theories and futures of architecture through the diagram.

Spanning the Pre-historic to the Parametric, Diagrams of Architecture illustrates over 250 diagrams and brings together 26 previously published and newly commissioned essays from leading international academics, architects, theorists and professional experts. These combine to define the past and future of the diagram's discourse. Prefaced with a critical introduction by Mark Garcia, each text investigates a central concept or dimension of the diagram ranging from socio-cultural studies, science, philosophy, technology, CAD/CAM, computing and cyberspace and virtual/digital design to methodology, environment/sustainability and phenomenological, poetic and art architecture; as well as interior, urban, engineering, interactive and landscape design.

·         The first critical, multidisciplinary book on the history, theory and futures of the architectural diagram.

·         Includes seminal articles on the diagram from the history and theory of architecture such as those by Peter Eisenman, Sanford Kwinter, MVRDV, Neil Spiller, Lars Spuybroek, UN Studio and Anthony Vidler.

·         Features 16 newly commissioned articles by leading architects and theorists, including Will Alsop, Charles Jencks, Hanif Kara, Patrik Schumacher, Bernard Tschumi, Leon van Schaik and Alejandro Zaera-Polo.

·         Includes a full-colour critical collection of over 250 of the most significant and original diagrams, many of which are previously unpublished, in the history of architecture from around the world.

Product Description
Adored for his exuberant and original architecture, more than fifty years of Morris Lapidus’s designs are celebrated in this first-ever monograph. Known for inventing the postwar resort hotel with the Fontainebleau and the Eden Roc in Miami Beach, Morris Lapidus (1902–2001) is revered for his joyful interpretation of modernist tenets through an American vernacular of spectacle and whimsy. Lapidus enthusiastically embraced modernism’s formal freedom and sensuality while rejecting its more rigid principles, producing a unique style that seamlessly blends baroque fantasia with modernism’s clean lines and flowing spaces. His exuberant curving walls, zigzagging facades, and deft manipulation of space created dramatic forms that transform the moods of their occupants. In 2000 Lapidus was honored by the Cooper-Hewitt as an "American Original," an award created especially for him. This comprehensive volume presents the highlights of Lapidus’s extraordinary career. From seductive modern shops and private residences to iconic hotels and residential towers in New York, Miami Beach, the Caribbean, and beyond, this iconoclast proves that "too much is never enough." ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

The Lapidus of Glamorous
Until I quickly went through this book I wasn't sure whether Morris Lapidus' creations survived. Thankfully, they do. Although I wished for a lengthier biography of the man, I am content with the author Deborah Desilets' aim of whetting my appetite for larger portions, because the black=and-white photos speak volumes about the scope of his talent and you can find a couple biographies to satisfy that longing elsewhere. Like other reviewers, Morris Lapidus appears to sybolize the kind of architect (fictional Howard Roark) Ayn Rand had in mind when she wrote "Atlas Shrugged." As compact and small as the photos are, this small tome serves notice that small, diminutive men with imagination and drive can astound the human eye with their creations.If this book was 2 in. square, I would still grab it hoping only for photographs knowing full well the rarity of its creator. Now, I am thankful that I can place a name to these lasting monuments.

Too much is never enough
Though there is the word Memoirs in the title this is just a collection of thirty-five photos of the architect's work over fifty-seven pages with an eleven page biography in the front of the book.

Some of the photos are interesting, a lovely aerial shot of the Fontainebleau and Eden Roc shows how good Lapidus was at creating exuberant over-the-top hotels in the perfect setting: Miami Beach.Mostly though the photos are just dropped onto the pages with no real sequence or thought, a few are in color.No page numbers either, the back four pages of captions use thumbnail spreads to identify them.

I'm not quite sure why this book was published as it's so superficial and in the same format as one on industrial designer Raymond Loewy.Both books can be picked up for under a dollar which should tell you all you need to know.

Too Much Is Never Enough: The Autobiography of Morris Lapidus, Architect looks a much better bet.

***SEE SOME INSIDE PAGES by clicking 'customer images' under the cover. ... Read more

Product Description
"We have always recommended these books to our customers and even our own engineers for developing a better understanding of technologies and specifications. We find the latest PCI Express book from MindShare to have the same content and high quality as all the others."--Nader Saleh, CEO/President, Catalyst Enterprises, Inc.PCI Express is the third-generation Peripheral Component Inter-connect technology for a wide range of systems and peripheral devices. Incorporating recent advances in high-speed, point-to-point interconnects, PCI Express provides significantly higher performance, reliability, and enhanced capabilities--at a lower cost--than the previous PCI and PCI-X standards. Therefore, anyone working on next-generation PC systems, BIOS and device driver development, and peripheral device design will need to have a thorough understanding of PCI Express.PCI Express System Architecture provides an in-depth description and comprehensive reference to the PCI Express standard. The book contains information needed for design, verification, and test, as well as background information essential for writing low-level BIOS and device drivers.In addition, it offers valuable insight into the technology's evolution and cutting-edge features.Following an overview of the PCI Express architecture, the book moves on to cover transaction protocols, the physical/electrical layer, power management, configuration, and more. Specific topics covered include: *Split transaction protocol *Packet format and definition, including use of each field *ACK/NAK protocol *Traffic Class and Virtual Channel applications and use *Flow control initialization and operation *Error checking mechanisms and reporting options *Switch design issues *Advanced Power Management mechanisms and use *Active State Link power management *Hot Plug design and operation *Message transactions *Physical layer functions *Electrical signaling characteristics and issues *PCI Express enumeration procedures *Configuration register definitions Thoughtfully organized, featuring a plethora of illustrations, and comprehensive in scope, PCI Express System Architecture is an essential resource for anyone working with this important technology.MindShare's PC System Architecture Series is a crisply written and comprehensive set of guides to the most important PC hardware standards.Books in the series are intended for use by hardware and software designers, programmers, and support personnel. 0321156307B08262003 ... Read more

Customer Reviews (18)

Quick and Accurate
This book was delivered quickly, in exactly the condition described.I would certainly use them again.

Detailed and comprehensive
The book goes into detail in a progressive way so the text is well understood and not confusing. Crucial points are ofter repeated in the text so the careful reader or developer does not forget them.

PCI Express System Architecture
The book is well organized.The illustrative examples are very helpful.The contents of the book follow the specification very well but much better organized.

well written and complete but a little dated
this book was written before the pci express standard was ratified so much of the information is speculative. nevertheless, it is well written and complete.

Perfect reference for PCIe newbie
I have 2 PCEe books and this one is the best one. I don't have any experience on PCI and PCI-X. This books really have a lot of basic stuff which is very good for PCIe beginners. ... Read more

Product Description

Customer Reviews (34)

Good introduction to cloud computing
Overall this book was a great overview of cloud computing. It would be great to see a new addition or online addendum that is less Amazon-centric and provides more information regarding other players. However, this is a great reference whether you are designing a new application or looking to convert an existing application. After working with cloud computing for over a year I can say that I wish I would have had this book before I started because many of the considerations and concepts that are discussed in the book I have learned about through hard work and sometimes trial and error.

See my full lengthy review at [...]

A good overview of Cloud Computing and Amazon cloud
If you are looking to learn some essentials about Cloud computing and Amazon Cloud computing services, this is a book for you. The book covers the basics of cloud computing, addresses its costs vs. benefits, also discussed security, disaster recover, and scalability. This book is heavily focused on Amazon Cloud Computing with some information about Rackspace and GoGrid. It does not include many other Cloud providers and services like Force.com (Salesforce), etc. This book is a good reading and reference in general.

Good for the right audience
In Short: If you're looking for a book that explains how the AWS EC2 & S3 services can be used to implement transactional web applications on the IaaS model, while accommodating enterprise architectural needs, such as security, disaster recovery, and scalability, this is a good book for you.

This book provides a good introduction to cloud computing, but it focuses on a specific usage paradigm. As such the title is a little misleading; instead of providing a variety of cloud application architectural patterns, this book focuses on web application development using the Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) model. That is to say, the discussion covers a subset of IaaS; it neither covers other models (e.g. PaaS) or other uses of the IaaS model (workflow-based, sometimes called "scientific" or grid-based, applications).

The book also focuses on Amazon Web Services (AWS) as the implementation context. I think this is a practical approach, given the aforementioned usage focus as was just mentioned. The VAST majority of web application development using the IaaS model is implemented via AWS.

If you are a developer who knows that the usage pattern described above is applicable to your needs, this is a great book to get introduced to AWS prior to a design effort for a new project. It covers high-level (architectural) concerns such as reliability and security which should be considered at the outset of such a project. It is concise, and clearly written (assuming a technical audience).

If, however, you are looking for more of an overview, perhaps cataloging all the various architectural options that fall within cloud computing, or if you are looking specifically for information on other cloud usage patterns (grid computing, Platform as a Service, or Software as a Service), you'll want a different book.

What a bore.
This book was such a bore to read.The phrase 'Building Applications' led me to believe that this book might possibly be about building applications.Unfortunately, it was mostly CIO-speak.Awful, awful.

Easy to read introduction focusing on architecture, best practices.
Book provides a good overview of cloud architectures and best practices, with a slant towards architecting transactional web-based systems for security, failure recovery, and so on. Heavy emphasis on Amazon S3, EC2 and related offerings, so if you are curious about deploying to Amazon's cloud, a good overview. Nice short book at 150 pages, easy to read in a few settings. But if you are new to this space, a good overview doesn't need to be 1000 pages to get you going. Also contains a couple of appendices that describe Amazon APIs and other cloud ISPs such as Rackspace. I recommend this book if you are looking at a quick overview of architectures and discussion of issues you need to think about to deal with security, data integrity, costs, disaster recovery. Your choice of cloud provider may not be Amazon, but these issues need to be considered regardless. ... Read more

Product Description
Detailing makes a landscape unique, and a landscape architect outstanding. Featuring many of the world's most highly acclaimed landscape architects, the book presents 40 of the most recently completed and influential landscape designs.

Each project is presented with color photographs, site plans, and sections as well as numerous construction details. There is also a brief descriptive text, detailed captions, and in-depth information for each project. The projects are presented in clear and concise layouts over four pages. All the drawings are specially commissioned, styled in a consistent manner, and presented at standard architectural scales for easy comparison. Intended for architects, engineers, and landscape architects, the book will also be invaluable for architecture, garden, and landscape design students, for whom it will be a resource not only for understanding the work of the best contemporary landscape architects, but also as a tool for their own design work. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Excellent condition
I was very excited to see the book arrived still in its plastic cover and included the CD that accomanies the book. The book did take a little longer to arrive than the other books I ordered on the same date. Otherwise it arrived in excellent condition and I was very happy with the service.

best book
The book very good
It is a lot of helpful information for architects and designers.

On the book it is applied cdrom with all drawings
There is only one minus, on drawings there are no signatures, such as in the book.

In the rest - all is good.

A useful resource for design details
Detailing is difficult for young design professionals. College education does not cover enough detail design, the only ways to learn how to develop details are: 1) learn through working experience in design offices; 2) teach yourself by reading good books.

"Detail in Contemporary Landscape Architecture" can alleviate this problem. It is a book on design details, not construction details. It has color interior photos and sections and plans drawn to scale. It can help young design professionals to understand design details by comparing photos to drawings. It is also a good collection of details of 40 well-known projects, which can inspire you to develop your own design details.

If you want to really learn more about construction details, you can simply find a good set of construction drawings and reading it word-by-word from beginning to end, and try to understand it. You may need to read the set several times and seek answers from more experienced colleagues to completely understand it.

"Detail in Contemporary Landscape Architecture" has 192 pages. It is a useful resource for design details.

Gang Chen, AIA, LEED AP BD+C, Author of "Planting Design Illustrated," "LEED GA Exam Guide," "Architectural Practice Simplified," and other books on various LEED exams, architecture, and landscape architecture



... Read more

Product Description
Landscape architecture covers the entire range of outdoor design: the fascinating scope of this field ranges from open space planning near, on or even inside buildings to self-sufficient creations in residential areas or in the open nature, and Land Art that uses nature as raw material for a work of art. The different geographical and social contexts shape the design of the creative and playful solutions applied to 1000 projects from around the world. While the main focus are parks and gardens, this publication also presents numerous other types of categories such as greened facades, stone gardens, memorials and waterscapes. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

Great book for specialists
I bought this book as a gift for a friend who has a degree in landscape architecture. It is wonderfully illustrated with helpful photographs. It is however one of those works which is most useful only to those who are in the field.

Precedents Galore
Fantastic book. I'm a 4th year landscape architecture major and I wish I'd have had this book 3 years ago. It's a fantastic book to just flip through and find precedent for your own designs. I've had several fellow students stop by my desk just to peruse it. The text to picture ratio is great for a design oriented reader (i.e. lots of pictures very few words.)

my only gripe is with the index. it would have been fantastic if instead of organizing it by country and designer, they'd used type of project.

The Most Inspirational Landscape Architecture book out there!
I have had this book for a little over a month now, and I cannot get enough of it. It is basically a 1000+ page picture book to help give food for thought with your designs. Great starting place to look for inspiration. It is organized beautifully; broken up by region, country, and city. There is only a small paragraph of text for each project, but that shouldn't be the reason your buying this book anyways. It has such a broad range of designs there is bound to be something in there for any landscape architect. Wetlands, urban plaza's, parks, green roofs, gardens, river fronts and anything you can think of. I can see this book being used by students, professionals, or even people that just want a very cool coffee table book. It is a great investment, esp. with the $75.00 price tag I got it online for (its tagged at $125.00!) I cannot say enough about this book

absolutely awesome, photographs are wonderful, info is clear
10000xLandscape Architecture is a wonderful book for your collection or as a gift. The pages are tabbed so that well organized information is at your fingertips. It is an insprirational book full of ideas that have been phycically constructed and photographed. I would highly recommend this book to Architects, Community Developers, City Planners, gardeners, landscapers, and of course an absolute must for any Landscape Architect.

... Read more

Product Description
With a focus on the process of design, this book's practical approach serves users with a design manual for those interested in gaining knowledge and developing skills in the design of landscapes for private residences. This useful reference clearly illustrates and discusses the actual procedures and underlying principles utilized by experienced residential landscape designers. Extensive illustrations in the form of plans, sections, elevations, diagrams and perspectives show users the application of material presented. Content provides the quality fundamentals of residential site design–exploring functional and artistic elements, with a focus on appreciation of quality and updated standards for site development, maintenance techniques and training. Architecturally responsive design material is emphasized throughout–examines landscape designs and structures that blend with the existing house character. Includes useful chapters on Functional Diagrams and Form Composition–critical subjects in creating functionally and visually successful design solutions. Also features reorganized and revised chapters–expanded section on planting design (Ch. 11); and Chapter 14 on Design Alternatives. A good reference for those who are beginning their design careers, as well as those currently practicing residential design. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (8)

Great book
I own a small landscape company and this book has helped me better my landscape designs and understand some of the basic principles of design.

I highly recommend this book if you are studying landscape design. Could see it being useful for a home owner also like someone else had reviewed. Most of the home owner books are packed with garbage about buying their plans etc.

This book offers no plans inside really but it does guide you on how to make your own.

RESIDENTIAL LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE
THIS COVER IT NOT THE BOOK THAT ARRIVED. THIS COVER SHOWN IS FOR AMERICAN STUDENTS. THE BOOK SENT TO ME IS FOR INTERNATIONAL USE AND "NOT FOR SALE IN THE U.S.A." THIS BOOK WAS SHIPPED FROM MALAYSIA AND NOT FROM OHIO AS DESCRIBED WHEN SOLD TO ME. FALSE REPRESENTATION.BE HONEST WITH YOUR CUSTOMERS!!!!

Basically informative...
The book gives you a pretty good overview of each phase of a job in residential landscape architecture, and also, what is expected of the landscape architect. At times, however, I felt that the author was trying to fill some space with wordy repetition. It does provide a basic roadmap of a job in this field of work, from start to finish. It also covers standard basic design elements. For that, it's worth the read. I'm not sure it's worth the price.

Easy ordering and arrived in good condition
Ordering was easy and I received the book in the time frame the shipping outlined. The book was listed as in 'good' conditon so I wasn't exactly sure what that meant but it was in great condition - looked almost new. There wasn't any writing or highlighting on any of the pages nothing ripped or stained - I was very pleased with the condition on the book and would definitley order from them again. And the price was right I saved around $50.00 off of the new book price.

A Review from the Perspective of the Novice Home Owner
Full Disclaimer.I bought this book specifically for the purpose of trying to design my yard without having the to dish out the exhorbitant cost of having a professional landscaper feng shui my yard.I am not a college student (probably the intended audience) but felt that being a reasonably intelligent person, I would be able to use some basic concepts to create my own design.

I found that the book was pretty easy to follow and tied together some basic concepts related to design.It was certainly a useful tool but you must be prepared to read and learn.Again, as a new home owner with a blank slate of a yard, I would recommend going to nice areas around you and take some pictures of the more appealing landscapes and pay attention.Search around on the internet.

If you are more interested in more of a pictorial representation with some side notes or bullet points then this is not the book for you.This is a college level book intended for perspective landscape designers. ... Read more

Product Description
In this book, Bernard Rudofsky steps outside the narrowly defined discipline that has governed our sense of architectural history and discusses the art of building as a universal phenomenon. He introduces the reader to communal architecture--architecture produced not by specialists but by the spontaneous and continuing activity of a whole people with a common heritage, acting within a community experience. A prehistoric theater district for a hundred thousand spectators on the American continent and underground towns and villages (complete with schools, offices, and factories) inhabited by millions of people are among the unexpected phenomena he brings to light.

The beauty of"primitive" architecture has often been dismissed as accidental, but today we recognize in it an art form that has resulted from human intelligence applied to uniquely human modes of life. Indeed, Rudofsky sees the philosophy and practical knowledge of the untutored builders as untapped sources of inspiration for industrial man trapped in his chaotic cities. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (8)

GREEN DESIGN FROM THE EXOTIC PAST
Architecture Without Architects by Bernard Rudofsky demonstrates
that anonymous builders achieved great form based on function.

Confess right now -- designers, planners, architects!!You don't have
this book? You don't even know about this book or its author, Bernard
Rudofsky?Verdict: You are culturally deprived, whichmeans possibly
professionally challenged.Certainly missing chances for inspiration on the job.

This classic contains a sweeping revelation of universaltraditionsof
"vernacular" architecture -- structures and spacesbuilt byuntutored hands in
"primitive" cultures,many now destroyed.Their images remain as amazing
testaments toingenious answers to survival issues and creature comforts
in remote locales which, we see, have considerable sophistication.

Today's higher education for the design professions, focused on formal issues
of a few recent centuries,may have turned you away from study of remote cultures
in distant times, viewing vernacular as "inapplicable"in a high-tech world.
On the contrary, these places and structural events (including whole mountainsides)
demonstrate the significant human act of building with nature-given materials,
for human needs and use, with sensitivity to innately purposeful form,
without a thought about the disruptive gloss of fashion cycles.

Bernard Rudofsky was a brilliant iconoclast and innovator. As a restless architecture
student in Vienna in 1923, he cut looseto undertake a wanderjahr exploring distant
places and forgotten world cultures.Backpacking across Europe, Middle East,Asia,
and Africa,he photographed what he discovered-- indigenous building
forms and construction methods that created real architecture, unburdened by
pretensions and formal imitations. He documented solutions that were
simple and direct, and elegantly ingenious in the interest maklng things work.

Today more than ever, "primitive" construction can amaze and instruct, and inspire
by addressing ever-present habitation needs -- climate conditioning by controlled air flow,
light control with roof and wall materials, floor heating, even lifts and elevators,
all achieved by design strategies unacquainted with modern mechanics
-- i.e."energy" powered by ingenuity.

In the early 1960's, after his exhibition "Are Clothes Modern?" for New York's MoMA,
Rudofsky prepared an exhibition on anonymous architecture,broadening his own photo
documentation with collectors' images from other distant realms, enriching the
theme of enduring historic form and purpose.

His exhibition "Architecture Without Architects" (1964-65) brought avant-garde insight
to the expanding horizon of modernist values, demonstrating that vernacular form and
purpose are indivisible,and usually immutable -- as they are serving their purpose
to perfection.

In this recapitulation of the exhibition, there are shelters, streets, and functional
enclosures crafted for the lasting use of whole communities. There are the "found"
habitations of rocky hillsides, undergroundvillages safely recessed from climate and
predators; habitable hilltop fortresses, medieval streets lined with shady pedestrian
arcades; a city of roofs built as"windscoops" to direct breezes into each room; huts
made of decorative woven matting, some with vegetal roofs;decorative pidgeoncotes
to facilitate fertilizer production; aerated vermin-proof granaries;streets shaded by
mats and vines, high structures built of grass.

The know-how of the anonymous builder shown here presents the a major untapped
source of architectural inspiration for industrial man. The wisdom derived goes beyond
economic and esthetic solutions that press onour wasteful modern mechanical
solutions. In the author's words, It touches on the "increasingly troublesome problem of
how to live and let live, how to keep peace with one's neighbors" while dealing with
the diminishing natural resources we allmust share.

Here is Green Design before it was invented -- again. Here is Civic Design
and indeed Urban Design when few except Rudofskyrecognized it.
This book of arrestingimages and informed ideas may stir you to speculate:
What might simple ingenuity forgefor us in our low-energy future?

Jane Thompson
Thompson Design Group Inc.
Boston, MA 02210

good classic
this is a great classic book - a little sad it's all in black and white, sometimes grainy images, but a wonderful view on what existed in 1960s. i'm sure a lot of it has now disappeared.

Bummer ... all photos in black and white only
Great book with great pictures and well organized, but all images are only in black and white, and the paperback itself feels flimsy.Thought it was a great present for a friend of mine, but the B/W is quite a let-down.

My Dream.
As the author shows, you don't need a degree to build practical beautiful buildings. Just the need and some perseverance can do wonders as shown inside.

A Classic Presentation
Originally published in 1964, concurrent with the exhibition Architecture Without Architects shown at MOMA, this slim volume of text and photographs radiates heat and light when reviewed almost forty years later. In fact, Rudofsky's introductory essay is so fresh today it is almost inconceivable it was written the better part of four decades ago! Offering a scathing attack on modern approaches to the landscape and to problems of living more generally in a time of rampant population growth, Rudofsky shrewdly pointed to the fact that "part of our troubles results from the tendency to ascribe to architects-or, for that matter, to all specialists-excessive insight into problems of living when, in truth, most of them are concerned with problems of business and prestige." But what transpires when the focus can be maintained on functionality, efficiency, ease of use, and a design aesthetic that remains humbly in tune with and loyal to the mood and visual imperative of the land under development? To answer these crucial questions Rudofsky takes us back a few thousands of years to the origins of architectural strivings (even preceding man's earliest efforts) and the material results thereof.

The essential point Rudofsky cares to make in these pages is that "vernacular architecture does not go through fashion cycles. It is nearly immutable, indeed, unimprovable, since it serves its purpose to perfection." Rooted in a practical, harmonious relationship with its setting, 'primitive' architecture exemplifies the art of living well through its consistent use of frugality in construction, cleanliness in line and detail, and a general respect for "creation." Further, its impetus is aligned with a human dimension fundamentally as opposed to an excessively hubristic predisposition to conquer nature at whatever cost. Finally, from Rudofsky's vantage, these principles are usefully to be understood as timeless guidelines for the future as well as descriptions of the past.

According to Rudofsky, sophisticated people seek rugged country where what is intrinsic holds sway. His search for the origins of a humanistic architecture was always in rugged terrain where people's lives must necessarily challenge the difficulties of topography and the vicissitudes of climate. His primary heuristic interest was in elucidating the solutions creatively and spontaneously generated by these people in order to make such rugged locales inhabitable AND livable. Architecture Without Architects demonstrates the way in which basic solutions to complex problems were developed historically and why those solutions are so important to remain cognisant of today. ... Read more

Product Description
The Architecture of Light makes lighting design approachable. This vivid, image packed text of lighting concepts and techniques serves as the perfect companion for lighting design students and professionals alike. Built around a successful teaching curriculum, this text provides a logical step by step progression through the phases of conceptualizing, refining, drafting and presenting lighting design. Written by a practicing professional lighting designer who is also an award winning design instructor, The Architecture of Light presents a perfect blend of visual design tools and fundamental lighting knowledge. In addition to theory and discussion, The Architecture of Light also provides complete chapters of common lighting details, case studies and a catalog of specific lighting tools. Every architect, interior designer and design student deserves a working knowledge of lighting design and this single book makes it possible.

Remember to check out all of the teaching and learning resources available on the Architecture of Light webpage.You will also find the full 15 week lighting curriculum. Each weekly lecture pack is a downloadable ZIP file that contains PowerPoint presentation, assignments, grading sheets, relevant handouts, and an overview. I encourage designers, educators and students alike to download these lecture packs. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (41)

Fantastic Book!!!
After learning about lighting for interior design, I knew there was more information to fill the gaps.Sage Russell did just that with a clear writing format and easy steps to follow for successful lighting design.

A Must-Have Book for Everyone in Lighting
This book is a must-have if you are in any way involved with lighting.The author writes as if he's speaking to you which makes for an enjoyable read.I have read the book several times and as my own knowledge grows I continue to absorb new and useful information which I missed on previous reads.It also makes for a handy reference when you are questioning a lighting layout.I would have given this book 10 stars if there wasn't a limit!

Excellent architectural lighting textbook for architecture students
As a teacher of Environmental Control Systems, for architecture students (which includesboth Illumination and Acoustics, my main field of interest) I needed a text capable of providing a design approach, coupled broadly to the technical aspects of the discipline. Sage Russell's book clearly accomplishes this masterfully, and has gained a following among the Studio Design professors as well. The materials are stimulating and the writing is entertaining. I can truly recommend it in this context.

Great intro to lighting
I am building a new LARGE home and wanted to get information to figure out the lighting scheme. This book was actually interesting and enjoyable to read. I have already read dozens of different books to be prepared for the homebuilding process (I will be my own general contractor) and have found this to be one of the most useful with real information and not just buzzwords.

That being said, if the author or publisher is reading this, you MUST do a thorough proofreading before the next printing because there are MANY typos in the book (I would seriously fire whoever was in charge of proofreading!)

I am very happy I bought this book since I really had no background in lighting and this provided a good basis.

Creative logic to lighting design
Rich with colorful images, this is a five star lighting text that offers a creative logic to lighting design.I have successfully used this book as the introduction to lighting in a pre-architecture and interior design course at the sophomore level.My course used many of the available PowerPoint presentation slides, instructor's notes, and assignments provided by the author.Because of the practical approach taken by the text, I was able to match weekly assignments to each weekly lecture and students built a course portfolio of lighting exercises that will be useful in additional studio work. When technical information is so easily accessible online, I particularly appreciatethe author's balanced perspective that honors the aesthetics of architectural lighting and helps students become intrigued with its magic. ... Read more

Product Description

Awarded for its unique ink illustrations, this newly revised edition of Architecture is Elementary is a self-instruction book that concisely and coherently discusses the principles of architectural design. Stimulating lessons challenge the lay person and trigger creative responses. New features include a fresh design and layout, 50 new illustrations of recent and planned buildings, and new lessons that update the book for the world of 21st-century architecture.

Customer Reviews (5)

A Concise Visual Glimpse of our Surroundings
I found Architecture is Elementary to be very informative -- covering the basics which expanded my view of what is around me in nature and in human-created forms. The illustrations are particularly helpful and well crafted.I would recommend this book to anyone who would like to better understand architectural styles and expand their thinking.

A good book for today students
Students of architecture today do not know the meaning of the Modern Architecture, this elementary book helps them understand the spatial conquest made by humanity from the cave to the lightest eco-buildings.

ICK AND UGH
I am sorry to report that this book is awful. It is either condescending, or it is meant for elementary students. It was for a college-level arhcitecure study. There are no pictures, only drawings. I despised it.

Superior book for art teachers
The sequence and research given in this book is a comprehensive base for anyone teaching architecture, social studies, buildings, or practical geometry.Timelines, black/whie drawings throughout.

An excellent resource on the subject matter!
An excellent source of information for anyone interested in the field of Architecture. Perfect for beginners and experienced architects alike! Well-written and coherent. ... Read more

Product Description
Notes: This is an OCR reprint. There may be numerous typos or missing text. There are no illustrations or indexes.When you buy the General Books edition of this book you get free trial access to Million-Books.com where you can select from more than a million books for free. You can also preview the book there. ... Read more

Product Description
The early middle ages were an exciting period in the history of European architecture, culminating in the development of the Romanesque style.Major architectural innovations were made during this time including the medieval castle, the church spire, and the monastic cloister. By avoiding the traditional emphasis on chronological development, Roger Stalley provides a radically new approach to the subject, exploring issues and themes rather than sequences and dates. In addition to analysing the language of the Romanesque, the book examines the engineering achievements of the builders, and clearly how the great monuments of the age were designed and constructed. Ranging from Gotland to Apulia, the richness and variety of European architecture is explored in terms of the social and religious aspirations of the time. Symbolic meanings associated with architecture are also thoroughly investigated. Written with style and humour, the lively text includes many quotations from ancient sources, providing a fascinating insight into the way that medieval buildings were created, and in the process enlivening study of this period. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Early Medieval Architecture
The text arrived in good shape, and was just as described.What kept this from being a 5-star review was the sluggishness of the delivery, some 3 1/2 weeks after being ordered.

comprehensive and entertaining
Mr. Stalley has written an excellent piece of work by combining the architecture in the early middle ages with its historical context. The content is entertaining and informative. It starts by describing the origin of the basilicas, their evolution along time and the influence that the medieval society (either royal, secular, or religious) had on both, design and construction, of these outstanding long lasting works.

Flagship Volume in New Art History Series
Published last year, this is one of the initial volumes to appear in the extremely good, new "Oxford History of Art" series, which almost outdoes even the recent "Everyman Art Library", which it resembles.Both series are an attempt to make available up-to-the-momentoverviews of selected areas of the history of building, sculpture,painting, and photography.Whereas the Everyman series seems to beopen-ended, Oxford have divided their survey of world art into categoriesby area and/or subject, although only a handful of titles have appeared todate.

Both series are superbly well printed and illustrated; eachincludes maps, charts, timelines, and bibliographies.What Thames andHudson's "World of Art" series did well for several decades,these two series are now achieving in a more strictly periodizing form,with greater emphasis on method and, in the case of Oxford, on Theory.

Inboth the Oxford and Everyman series, the most fascinating volumes are thosewhich treat subjects broken down or combined in unusual ways.Thus, AlisonCole's "Art of the Italian Renaissance Courts" (l995) seeks tocompare Naples, Urbino, Milan, Ferrara, and Mantua--- bringing relativeclarity to a topic that most surveys tend to gloss over.Similarly, LorenPartridge's Everyman"The Renaissance in Rome" (1996) treats theQuattrocentoand Cinquecentoin the Eternal City, chapter by chapter, interms of urban planning, churches, palaces, altarpieces, chapeldecorations, and halls of state--- all in a single volume.

BeforeStalley,the two Oxford volumes I had read were Jas Elsner's"Imperial Rome and Christian Triumph" and Craig Clunas's"Art in China".Both are by younger scholars and are massivelyimbued with new (politically correct) art history.Yet both books arefilled with challenging and brilliant examples and new information. Infact, the China volume is written (like all of Clunas's work) from aperspective that is truly revolutionary in Chinese studies.At the end ofthe day, both Elsa and Clunas are so skilled, both as writers andhistorians, that even the jargon of the new art history is eclipsed by thesheer quality of the two works.

Roger Stalley, Professor of the Historyof Art, at Trinity College, Dublin, writes clearly, penetratingly, andwithout jargon."Early Medieval Architecture" is deftlyconstructed, and the author claims that his chapters may be read "inalmost any order".This may indeed be the case (I read straightthrough and could scarcely put the book aside).It comes, of course, as nosmall recommendation that Stalley was a student of Peter Kidson's.

Whatmakes "Early Medieval Architecture" unique is the editorialdecision to relegate the entire topic of "late" medieval buildingto a separate volume by Nicola Coldstream.Therefore, hardly a mention ismade of "Gothic--- the question that Stalley addresses being:"What is Romanesque?"Like its subject the book is suitablyaustere, yet it is not without personality.The endnotes are unobtrusive,and there is a state- of-the-art Bibliographic Essay.All this issupplemented by some 150 varied and informative photographs and redrawnplans and building sections.There is virtually no attention to sculpture,as befits a scholar whose interests and sympathies are Cistercian; however,there is a sensitive underlying concern with the "language ofarchitecture" itself, such that the book would give pleasure to anyworking architect.

Stalley has given us ten chapters starting with"The Christian Basilica", where his subject overlaps slightlywith that of the Elsner's book.Appropriately, the argument returns againand again to Rome.The next chapter is an exercise in setting forth thearchitecture of the Carolingian Renaissance, where light is shed in an areaof architectural history that for the novice is more typically hedged withexceptions and speculation.A third chapter pursues the "iconographyof architecture" in Rome, Milan, Ravenna, and Jerusalem, as well aslesser-known places.

Chapter 4 is devoted to secular architecture andis somewhat revisionist in tone.The very fact that such an exercise isprovided bodes well for the clarity of Stalley's enterprise, and there arenumerous photographs throughout the book that succeed in demonstrating arelationship between ecclesiastical buildings and the architecture offeudalism.

Chapters 5 and 6 treat, respectively, the patron-as-builderand the builder-as-engineer.In this, the architectural expertise ofcertain early patrons is stressed, while the engineering argument is softpeddled, in the sense that techniques of vaulting are not allowed todominate a more all-embracingexplanation of the general integrity of thebuilding fabric. As the author reminds us, the story of vaulting has toooften been permitted to get out of hand, leading the discussion of earlymedieval structure well beyond what is warranted by evidence and probablyaway from what must have been the original aims and concerns of earlymedieval builders themselves, whether "engineers" ornot.

Chapters 7 and 8 deal with the influences of pilgrimage andmonasticism on early medieval building. Here a number of relevantstatistics and medieval texts are cited that raise the discussion wellabove what is ordinarily expected to suffice the undergraduate reader.Forexample, the names of the seven major services or "offices" ofBenedictine communal worship are set out and, where needed, explanation isoffered.The discussion of the famous St. Gall plan is commendable in itsdetail, while the full-page photographic detail of the plan is printed incolor to show the use of red ink on parchment.Included here is mentionand illustration of the recently restored Cistercian abbey church atFontenay, which as a caption points out, may reflect the destroyed motherhouse at Clairvaux.

The final two chapters are a magisterialrecapitulation of the "Language of Architecture", starting off"During the course of the eleventh century a new architecturallanguage emerged in western Europe...", and of its subsequent diversitythroughout Europe.In summary, this is an exciting book that matches someof the recent strides forward in early medieval social and politicalhistory and provides a superlative discussion of a topic that has rarelybeen so coherentlypresented and illustrated in a single volume.

DavidB. Stewart, Tokyo Institute of Technology ... Read more

Product Description
Double-page spreads feature a geometric shape on one side and a related architectural element on the other. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

Fantastic with one flaw
This a wonderful book with great photographs. The shapes are presented simply in black and white across from the color photograph.This helps children first learn the shape and then find the shape in the architecture.My one less star is because the depicted oval is really an ellipse.This happens often in children's books for some reason.An ellipse always has two axes of reflection; an oval has one or more. So, an egg-shape is an oval, but not an ellipse.

Fun reading
As an architect, I enjoy giving these books as gifts because they are different from your run of the mill children's books.I like how they use building pieces to teach about basic shapes and colors.It is not a book that highlights popular or historic architecture - its more about the components.

My twins Love this book
The book shows basic shapes through line drawings and on the facing page different architectural elements of that shape, mainly photos of windows. My twins are 13 months old and they choose this book as one of their favorites. The photographs are crisp and reality based (no cartoons), the typeface is large and clear, and the shapes are bold and basic. The twins like it read to them as well as flipping the pages themselves. We may soon need another copy as it is getting a lot of use. I would recommend this book to any small child, beginning reader, or even a little older.

My twins LOVE this book!
The book shows basic shapes through line drawings and on the facing page different architectural elements of that shape, mainly photos of windows. My twins are 13 months old and they choose this book as one of theirfavorites. The photographs are crisp and reality based (no cartoons), thetypeface is large and clear, and the shapes are bold and basic.The twinslike it read to them as well as flipping the pages themselves.We may soonneed another copy as it is getting a lot of use.I would recommend thisbook to any small child, beginning reader, or even a little older. ... Read more

Product Description
A detailed examination of the hottest areas of architectural design today.Over the past decade, digital tools have radically transformed the design, practice, and construction of architecture. But behind the photorealistic renderings of projects that are never built is an entire body of design research that informs the latest innovations in design and construction.

Edited by a pioneer of the digital revolution, this new book takes its cue from the practice of mass-customization, one of the most important design and retail trends of recent years, to consider how variations on the same design idea can be applied to a broad spectrum of architectural, engineering, and construction solutions.

The book has three parts: a group of essays by leading thinkers on design; comparative studies on variation; and case studies. Full of ideas, examples, and current research, this exciting new publication is well-priced for students but sophisticated enough for professionals. 500 b&w Illustrations ... Read more

Product Description
The Renaissance architect Andrea Palladio was one of the most influential figures that the field of architecture has ever produced. For classical architects, the term Palladian stands for a vocabulary of architectural forms embodying perfection and beauty. Of even greater significance than Palladio's buildings is his treatise I quattro libri dell'architettura (The Four Books On Architecture), the most successful architectural treatise of the Renaissance and one of the two or three most important books in the literature of architecture. First published in Italian in 1570, it has been translated into every major Western language.This is the first English translation of Palladio in over 250 years, making it the only translation available in modern English. Until now, English-language readers have had to rely mostly on a facsimile of Isaac Ware's 1738 translation and the eighteenth-century engravings prepared for that text. This new translation by Robert Tavernor and Richard Schofield contains Palladio's original woodcuts, reproduced in facsimile and positioned correctly, adjacent to the text. The book also contains a glossary that explains technical terms in their original context, a bibliography of recent Palladio research, and an introduction to Palladio and his times.The First Book discusses building materials and techniques, as well as the five orders of architecture: Tuscan, Doric, Ionic, Corinthian, and Composite. Palladio describes the characteristics of each order and illustrates them. The Second Book discusses private town houses and country estates, almost all designed by Palladio. The Third Book discusses streets, bridges, piazzas, and basilicas, most of ancient Roman origin. The Fourth Book discusses ancient Roman temples, including the Pantheon. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (5)

Quatro Libri
Andrea Palladio's Quatro Libri is a timeless work on classical architecture.All four books are consolidated into one book that has been translated into English.This book was very easy to read with hundreds of woodcuts that read as very detailed renderings.It was enjoyable to take my time and read an instruction book on how to create beautiful classical architecture from the Master himself. My architectural alumni never bothered to mention Andrea Palladio or his four books in the design studio except to mention them in my architectural history classes.This had to do with ignoring classical architecture and practicing contemporary architecture.How unfortunate.This book is a timeless piece of work.I recommend this book to anyone (especially architecture students) before you go to Europe to study architecture.My favorite book is book IV on temples.While this is the largest book, it is the most interesting.Palladio documents the great works of Roman antiquity of both ruined and preserved works (Pantheon).The lesson to be learned by all contemporary architects is Palladio's timeless use of proportions of which he goes thru great efforts to document in the Quatro Libri.

Excellent book
I'would recommend this book to anybody who's searching for something real classical architectural mold or old type building design! #1

Andrea Palladio: The Four Books on Architecture
One of the most celebrated and influential of architectural texts has been republished in a highly readable version by Robert Tavernor and Richard Schofield (the first new English translation since 1738!) with facsimiles of Palladio's woodcuts, correctly placed in the text. It makes a wonderful introduction to the timeless principles of architecture and to Palladio's dazzling oeuvre. How agreeable it would be to browse this classic in the shade of the Villa Rotunda on a hot summer afternoon. (Michael Webb is the book reviewer for LA Architect magazine.)

Modern Translation Details Ancient Architectural Secrets
Palladio was not the first to publish a bookillustrating principles of classical architecture but he was the most convincing. Palladio'sfinely detailed, measured wood cut illustration --reproduced at a slightly smallerscale in this translation--,made the long lost principles of Romanarchitecture and construction easy to understand.

In hisFour Books ofArchitecture of 1570, Andrea Palladio balancedillustrations of ancientRoman construction,that he had drawn from observing ruins,with brief,straightforward practical interpretations of historicaldescriptions ofRoman architectural design and construction from Vitruvius's FirstCenturyBC Treatise on Roman And Greek architecture, which had been found a centurybefore in a Swiss monastery.To this treatise on Roman architecture,Palladio added examples of his own imaginative designs to demonstrate howancient principles of engineering, planning, construction and decorationcould enhance public and private buildings of his day.

Palladio'ssuccessful Four Books were published and translated many times. They becameone of the most cited references for architects in the West, where theydominated architectural studies until academic training for architectsbecame standard in the 19th century.Variations on Palladio's designs areeverywhere. Thomas Jefferson's house, Montecello, is one of the best knownexamples in the U.S.. Jeffersonowned a copy of Palladio's 1570 edition ofthe Four Books.

Robert Tavernor and Richard Schofield'swell written,carefully annotated scholarly, 1997translation of Palladio's Four Books--the first new English translation since 1738-- from MIT Press is apleasure to read for what it reveals much about both great principles andfine detail of classicaldesign and construction practices. The textexplains how Palladioorganized roomsin urban palaces as well as how hearranged living, storageand work areas in his rural villas to takeadvantage of the climate.Practical details about construction include building foundations, sizing windows, designingclassical columns as wellas instructions for to selectingand harvesting timber: Cut treesonly inthe fall after the sap has run out. Cure the lumber, covered withexcrement,under a shelter for two years to prevent rot.

The text alsodetails how toquarry, cut and set stone --always in place--, how toprepare cement, mortar and concrete and how to build masonryformedconcrete walls, as the Romans did. The reinforced masonry used today is thesame inprinciple as Roman walls. We have merelymodified the pratice inthis century with larger hollow bricks,Portland cement and steelreinforcing.

It's not possible to understand Roman and modernarchitectural history in the West or building technology with withoutstudying Palladio.Original editions of Palladio's 1570 book are availablein a few rare book libraries. Occasionally a copy turns up in rare bookauctions.Robert Tavernor'snew English translationof the Four Booksmakes Palladio accessible to modern English readers.

An exemplary edition
This is one of the most important of architectural manuals.Palladio's influence was enormous; one magnificent example of American Palladianism isThomas Jefferson'sUniversity of Virginia Library; others can be found in thework ofPhilip Johnson. The design of The Four Books ofArchitecture is one of the reasons for this success.Drawings and plans fill the page, comments are sparing,invitations to use the eye and imagination as well aspractical instructions. In this respect Palladio'sbookresembles that of the equally influential, equallyvisionaryPaul Klee in his Pedagogical Sketchbooks.Seeing so much of his influence in public buildings, it ishard not to find theoriginal sourcebook refreshing.I'd suggest looking through it alongsidea general survey of the buildings themselves, like translatorRobert Tavernor's Palladio and Palladianism(in Thames and Hudson's World of Art series). Tavernor has done his job very well. The english translationis neither anachronistic nor colloquial, but as lucid as the original. The book's designers have really donebrilliantly in finding the most suitable typefaces to matchPalladio's original woodcuts and in choosing a size andformat, down to the weight and colour of the paper, that makes these ideas handsome and vivid now.An exemplary edition.Richard Bernas. ... Read more

Product Description

This book provides practical advice on how to develop an enterprise architecture practice. The authors developed different tools and models to support organizations in implementing and professionalizing an enterprise architecture function. Coverage applies these tools and models to a number of different organizations and, as a result, will help readers avoid potential pitfalls and achieve success with enterprise architecture.

Customer Reviews (1)

Good book for beginners
I have not gone through the whole book but going through the first 3 chapters I kind of liked the pace at which the book is written. The fundamentals are clearly documented with equal emphasis on product , process and people. Nice clear diagram to covey the concepts. I think it is a good buy. ... Read more

Product Description
A completely updated and revised edition of the classic reference work on architecture--now expanded with entries on landscape architecture.

This is a major revision and expansion of what has long been recognized as a basic reference in its field. Besides updating the existing text, the authors have broadened the book by including many new entries on landscape architecture as well as by significantly increasing their treatment of American architects and architecture. This is a highly readable work, worldwide in scope, covering architecture from ancient times to the present. Major entries on key individuals, styles, movements, materials, and terms range up to several pages in length and include cross references and bibliographies for further reading. This is an essential addition to the reference shelf of every architectural student and buff.

"Commendably wide in scope . . . special care has been taken to make the definitions and terminology as close and consistent as possible."-- Architect and Surveyor

"Immensely useful, succinct and judicious . . . this is a book rich in accurate fact and accumulated wisdom."-- The Times Literary Supplement

"A magnificent panorama of world architecture, scholarly conciseness at its best."-- Art Review ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

Perfect!
The product was in great condition and came directly to my house in a matter of days.

a necessity for current architects and architecture students
This book is quite useful throughout your entire career. You can look up words in it like a dictionary or read it like a book just to widen your vocabulary on architecture. By using the exact vocabulary, your speech and writings will sound more professional and convey the message precisely.

more objective
I would have liked it to be more objective and less judgemental in places.It's possible to do so and still convey the message that a design or an artist was over rated or not very good.But, this is only the case in some instances. I love rounded corners and the design and soft texture of the cover.A few more line illustrations and contextural outlines would also be nice.A good reference to have if you enjoy art and architecture or if you travel.

An essential for everyone's reference shelf .
From Aalto to Ziggurat, the bounty of information provided in this well illustrated and value priced volume will keep you informed for a very long time. A great general reference of architecture and landscaping for both the student and the home owner alike. ... Read more

Product Description
Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free.This is an OCR edition with typos.Excerpt from book:variegated stone, the quantity is unlimited, the kinds innumerable ; where brighter colours are required, let glass, and gold protected by glass, be used in mosaic—a kind of work as durable as the solid stone, and incapable of losing its lustre by time—and let the painter's work be reserved for the shadowed loggia and inner chamber. This is the true and faithful way of building ; where this cannot be, the device of external colouring may, indeed, be employed without dishonour ; but it must be with the warning reflection, that a time will come when such aids must pass away, and when the building will be judged in its lifelessness, dying the death of the dolphin. Better the less bright, more enduring fabric. The transparent alabasters of San Miniato, and the mosaics of St. Mark's, are more warmly filled, and more brightly touched, by every return of morning and evening rays ; while the hues of our cathedrals have died like the iris out of the cloud ; and the temples whose azure and purple once flamed above the Grecian promontories, stand in their faded whiteness, like snows which the sunset has left cold.XIX. The last form of fallacy which it will be remembered we had to deprecate, was the substitution of cast or machine work for that of the hand, generally expressible as Operative Deceit.There are two reasons, both weighty, against this practice : one, that all cast and machine work is bad, as work ; the other, that it is dishonest. Of its badness I shall speak in another place, that being evidently no efficient reason against its use when other cannot be had. Its dishonesty, however, which, to my mind, is of the grossest kind, is, I think, a sufficient reason to determine absolute and unconditional rejection of it.Ornament, as I have often before observed, has two enti... ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

rip off
The kessinger edition of this book is a rip off!!! do not buy it!!!
i received a copy in which the margins on the pages were 2 inches all around and the text was so small.everything seemed to be copied with a fax machine, so there was lots of tiny black dots all over the pages.the images are so unclear.they were black and white with no grayscales and it was so hard to make out what the images were.i returned this book for a refund.
buy the dover edition instead.its practically the same text except the text fills up the whole page and the pictures are clear. its also less than half the price of the kessinger edition.

Be forewarned:Unashamed moralizing and aesthetic certainty
If you are looking for a "practical guide to the
structures and tools" of architecture, this is NOT
your book nor your guide.
For John Ruskin is an art critic, classicist, and
moralizing aesthetic prophet.He is not an "art for art's
sake" temporizer or relativist.He not only knows what
HE believes...but he believes he knows what YOU should
believe too.If that makes you uncomfortable or makes
you feel hampered, you might want to pass him by until
you feel you can accommodate the "insult" and "restrictions"
on your "free will choices."Otherwise, there is much of
beauty, wonder, and insight to be gained in these pages.
Ruskin's point of view is that of a classical Platonist
mixed with the moralizing tenor of an exhorting (but not
shrilly so) prophet toward beauty, Truth, and clarity of
vision...and moral purpose in Art. He also has a wondrous
prose style which is both clear, compelling, and entrancing.
This edition published by Dover as a reprint is of the
second edition of the work from 1880.It also includes
14 plates of drawings which Ruskin did to illustrate the
points which he makes in the text.
Along the way, Ruskin includes shortened Aphorisms
in the margin which restate the bold face print points
which he is making in the text.In Chapter 2, titled
"The Lamp of Truth," Ruskin stands forth most forcefully
and dynamically (and perhaps to the "modern," most
tendentiously) as the classical Platonic moralizer
and aesthetic apostle/prophet/priest.Though raised
a strict Protestant, Ruskin rebelled and left Christianity
for a classical Paganism based on beauty, Truth, and clarity.
Needless to say, this more than tended to alienate him
and isolate him from the mercenary, industrialized
Victorian world which was chugging along outside his
hermetically sealed temple dedicated to Truth, Beauty,
Goodness, and Clarity.Mercantilism and "practical
progress" don't exactly exalt those four princples as
the means or the goals whereby to make money and become
successful in the eyes of the world or popular opinion.
But if you want to read about Truth and Beauty and
read it through the eyes and soul of a lover of those
qualities -- and read it expressed in most beautiful
prose and style (which is both poetic and powerful),
then Ruskin and this work are clearly the choices you
should make.
This excerpt from Ruskin tied to Aphorism 29 {"The
earth is an entail, not a possession.") clearly shows
that Ruskin's vision and prophetic power extend beyond
the merely practical realm of architecture into an
all-encompassing total vision of responsibility and
reverence:"The idea of self-denial for the sake of
posterity, of practising present economy for the sake of
debtors yet unborn, of planting forests that our
descendants may live under their shade, or of raising
cities for future nations to inhabit, never, I suppose,
efficiently takes place among publicly recognized motives
of exertion.Yet these are not the less our duties; nor
is our part fitly sustained upon the earth, unless the
range of our intended and deliberate usefulness include,
not only the companions, but the successors, of our
pilgrimage.God has lent us the earth for our life; it
is a great entail.It belongs as much to those who are
to come after us, and whose names are already written in
the book of creation, as to us, and we have no right, by
any thing that we do or neglect, to involve them in
unnecessary penalties., or deprive them of benefits which
it was in our power to bequeath."
Read...enjoy...benefit...

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I found that tying in human traits to different styles of architecture was not interesting at all. There is no discussion of building techniques or the practical side of architecture.This would be more for the artist that is trying to project different human feelings into the structure.If you are looking for a techincal guide to architecture this is not it.

Architecture's Most Influential Written Work
This book is the origin of virtually every theory held throughout the history of architecture. The arts and crafts movement, Frank Lloyd Wright's organicism, and Corbusier's New Architecture are just a few examples of prominent theories whose foundations lie within the pages of this book.In this book, Ruskin prescribes the essential elements required to make timeless, meaningful architecture. This manifesto is a must for any student interested in the practice and study of architecture.

Wonderful architectural moralism
Ruskin is a master in morality and architecture. This combination, which is very nineteenth-century-like, mixes Ruskin with a wonderful mastery of the English language. The Seven Lamps is a must-read for all you folks who have not yetstudied architecture in all its facets. ... Read more

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GROWING A LITERARY NOVEL ORGANICALLY
Basically, there are two different approaches to generating the preliminary draft of a novel: Top Down and Bottom Up.

The top-down approach begins with a one-sentence statement of what the novel is about; expanding the sentence to a paragraph that describes the major events and the end; sketching each of the major characters; listing the scenes;and synopsizing in a 1000-word or longer essay.All of these steps must be completed before beginning to write the first draft. This is the approach urged in numerous fiction-craft books by authors who themselves write novels in genres such as mystery and thriller: The Weekend Novelist by Robert J Ray; and How to Write a Damn Good Thriller: A Step-by-Step Guide for Novelists and Screenwriters by James N Frey. (See my amazon reviews of these two books.)

Craft books by novelists who write in the literary genre are far fewer. The defining emphasis of this genre is character-and-language driven story, for which the bottom-up approach often works better. It calls for beginning with characters in a scene fragment; developing the fragment into a full scene; and then growing the scene into a sequence of scenes. In ARCHITECTURE OF THE NOVEL: A WRITER'S HANDBOOK, Jane Vandenburgh warns: "All of the other how-to books will programmatically fail you [she does not use the terms top-down or bottom-up]: The rules regarding the construction of our books are, of necessity, wrong for you because your book is individual.. . . A narrative design emerges in one way only, and this is in tandem with its use. We call this architecture, in which structure is shaped to fit its purpose and its use. To the degree this architecture is successful, we find the shape and its narrative beautiful" (pages 11-12). Strident tone, but she's right. Many literary writers such as Michael Ondaatje and Anne Lamott loathe synopsizing in advance and look forward to being surprised by the twists and turns that emerge in the process of drafting.

In the foreword, Anne Lamott extols: "'Architecture of the Novel' is a book after my own heart, rich in paradoxes and yet wonderfully plain, with an insistence on structure and discipline. It is also a call to freedom. . . . On how to listen as the story and its characters reveal themselves to us, how to soar as a novelist while keeping simple and real, almost make me want to write another novel." Vandenburgh cites Lamott'sBird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life -- in particular her widely anthologized essay on writing the first draft. The explicit adjective Lamott uses to characterize a typical first draft was censored in this review by Amazon as a profanity. Vandenburgh merrily uses the allegedly profane phrase and bestows on it the initialism SFD. Also cited are quotes from other novel-craft books such asE M Forster's Aspects of the Novel and James Wood's How Fiction Works to support her approach.

The second half of the book comprises a glossary of "evolving definitions of the tools and concepts I've found useful and necessary in thinking about the longer narrative" (p 165). For example: "Fractal Nature of the Narrative: A story resembles a mountain in its regular irregularity. A story grows by its own similarly shaped increments: These are its episodes. This is to say it will have the feeling of evolving rather than of being manufactured -- that of the conch shell or leaf rather than of the car being mass-produced on the assembly line" (p 243).

In the capacious glossary, Vandenburgh includes examples from recent films like "Slumdog Millionaire" (p 176) andJames Cameron's "Avatar" (p 250). Drawing on the latter film, Vandenburgh presents an update on the "show, don't tell" mantra:"We strive always, as novelists, to write in a manner that allows our readers to enter the scene. We want the narrator equivalent of the IMAX 3D experience, an enhanced sense of depth that the technology provides by what the film director James Cameron calls depth cues....What is successfully rendered in good 3-D film is the sense that -- as viewer -- we haptically occupy the time and place, as a physical space, in which the narrative is occurring" (p 214).

What about combining elements of top-down and bottom-up approaches? Two recent novel-craft books that do so: The Fire in Fictionby Donald Maass and Is Life Like This?: A Guide to Writing Your First Novel in Six Months by John Dufresne. (See my reviews of these two books on amazon.com)

ARCHITECTURE OF THE NOVEL: A WRITER'S HANDBOOK presents a bottom-up paradigm for generating, organically, the first draft of a literary novel. Highly recommended for MFA programs.
-- C. J. Singh ... Read more