2 comments about Louis Kahn: Essential Texts.

1. When one reads Kahn, one finds a hope. This hope is a hope that promises
   growth. His last and best philosophical claims, "Silence" and "Light"
   invites reader to the "unmeasurable" dimension. It's the dimension of
   vertical sublimity and archaic gravity that he saw during his travels in
   Egypt and residency in Rome.
   
   Reader is surprised by the fact that Kahn composed Kimbell and Dakka
   by poetry long before actual buildings were built. His individual rooms
   form a community ,,, his material reveals the story of construction ,,,
   his light brings life to every corner of the building.
   
   Steven Holl used to say that he wanted to work for Kahn right after
   schooling because he was the only architect (except one landscape
   architect) who has a thought. In Holl's words, "Kahn had an idea
   that brought about phenomena."
   
   I sometimes wonder what makes me come back to Kahn. For long, I thought
   I was under the spell of Vincent Scully. Then, I thought Exeter/ British
   Art Gallery/ Kimbell mesmerized me. Few years ago, I was thrilled to
   see Kent Larson's unbuilt projects' renderings. Recenltly,
   Nathaniel's "My Architect" shocked me.
   
   Reading this book, now I know why I stick to Kahn.
   It's his words. Words that can only be spoken by a person who dares
   to pick up burning charcoal. Words that can only be charged by a
   person who lives solely on proselytizing architecture.
   I hope Kahn's powerful words wet your thirst and silence your
   worries as well.



2. I was required to purchase this book for a class on Louis Kahn, and have found it to be an indespensible source of inspiration in everything that I do. I took the class as an art history major who has an intense fascination with architecture, and a love of all things Kahn. The book is a serries of lectures and conversations between Kahn and his students. Some of the questions posed are questions that as creators we all face, and Kahn's answers which may not always offer a perfect solution, make the reader aware that the questions we cannot answer are the source of passion in design. Kahn has an amazing ability to enliven the art of architecture. Because of several events in my life I have chosen the path of design for my future, and one day that road should include architecture. I keep this book close at hand, for days I feel overwhelmed. Kahn's simple words sooth the soul and sometimes make a heart skip a beat.

2 comments about Robert A. M. Stern: Buildings and Projects 1998-2003.

1. This is a beautifully done book, the photos just pop off the page and the buildings are just amazing. Mr. Stern is a master of many styles, but I must admit I think he is best when working in Georgian traditional, he really gets this style, I love the vivid photographs of the buildings he produced in high Georgian, they are just breathtaking. I really enjoyed all of the photographs and the text was highly informative. I must admit I did not love all of his buildings, but I did appreciate the first rate photography and even the buildings that where not my taste, I found an appreciation of through this book, and that is saying something....uh I think?



2. This monograph of Stern's recent work is incredible. The photography is stunning, and the book covers both built and unbuilt projects. Highlighting Stern's masterful interpretation of what he calls "modern classicism" as well as his numerous successes with Art Déco and other styles, this book is a must-have for any architectural enthusiast.

1 comments about Classical Architecture: An Introduction to Its Vocabulary and Essentials, with a Select Glossary of Terms.

1. The ne plus ultra of visual references for classical design. Treats each component independently, both verbally and visually, and helps one aquire a weighted and balanced perspective on the full range of formal options.
   
   The perfect companion to Sir John Summerson's slight but powerful Classical Language.
   
   Highly recommended.

1 comments about Built upon Love: Architectural Longing after Ethics and Aesthetics (Inside Technology S.).

1. This book cannot come at a better time in my life. I've been asking questions (to people who bother to listen as well as to my own self) which had seemed to be from far different worlds. But as I read this book, those questions suddently connect to one another, and if Perez-Gomez didn't provide the answer to some of the questions at least it is a relief that there are people out there who have been asking the same questions. Written in a way that one can feel the similarity of structure of this writing to other arts (a theatre play, a poem, an ode, etc), Built Upon Love might first give an impression to reader of such writings that use Greek myths and legends only to get away from the issues the writer actually knows very little about. But as one reads further, it turns out the writer of this book does know what he writes about, and it just suddenly dawns why he began the book the way it did.
   This book is heavenly gift for my research. Recommended for those who passionately love architecture, and the art of making.

3 comments about Skyscraper: Vertical Now (Universe Architecture Series).

1. Beautiful Photography for Architecture/skyscraper Fans. This book is excellent for what I enjoy: The basic Stats, designer, and great photos of buildings. 5 stars.



2. 64 projects in this small size survey at only 6.5 x 8.25 inches (16.5 x 21 cm) are depicted mainly by photos, but good ones. Many projects also include renderings, plans, models, sketches, site plans, details, sections, hard line presentation drawings, etc. Following the introductory part on 10 pages with many illustration, each of 64 projects is headed by a title page, half filled with text and half - with illustration(s), followed usually by a page (rarely more) of illustration(s). There is an assay at the end about WTC proposals followed by several pages with photos of WTC projects. This is an album-like book with a slight tech. edge. It is similar to the book "Skyscrapers: The New Millennium" (ISBN: 3791323431), but only a half of its size. Like all from the Universe Architecture series, it is compact and well published. Interestingly, the SEG Apartment Tower presented on pp. 192-5 has a design of its one side found latter in all four sides of the Freedom Tower by David Childs.
   CONTENTS:
   6 preface
   8 vertical now: the skyscraper at the beginning of the 21st century
   GLOBAL/LOCAL
   20 TAIPEI FINANCIAL CENTER C. Y. Lee & Partners, Taipei, 2004
   24 JIM MAO TOWER Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, Shanghai, 1997
   28 PETRONAS TOWERS Cesar Pelli & Associates, Kuala Lumpur, 1997
   HIGH-TECH
   36 HONGKONG SHANGHAI BANK HEADQUARTERS Foster and Partners, Hong Kong, 1985
   40 CENTURY TOWER Foster and Partners, Tokyo, 1991
   42 BANK OF CHINA I. M. Pei & Partners, Hong Kong, 1989
   44 WAN XIANG INTERNATIONAL PLAZA lngenhoven, Overdiek und Partner, Shanghai, 1995 (designed)
   46 HEARST TOWER Foster and Partners, New York, 2001 (designed)
   48 DEBIS HEADQUARTERS Renzo Piano Building Workshop, Berlin, 1999
   52 NEW YORK TIMES HEADQUARTERS Renzo Piano Building Workshop, New York, 2000 (designed)
   MONOLITHIC
   60 LONDON BRIDGE TOWER Penzo Piano Building Workshop, London, 2002 (designed)
   62 MILLENNIUM TOWER Foster and Partners, Tokyo, 1989 (designed)
   66 AL FAISALIAH COMPLEX Foster and Partners, Riyadh, 2000
   68 30 ST. MARY AXE Foster and Partners, London, 2004
   70 TORRE AGBAR Jean Nouvel, Barcelona, 2003
   74 SHANGHAI WORLD FINANCIAL CENTER Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates, Shanghai, 2008
   76 KOWLOON STATION TOWER Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates, Hong Kong, 2007
   78 TOUR EDF Pei Cobb Freed and Partners, Paris, 2001
   80 SONY CENTER Murphy/Jahn, Berlin, 2000
   82 AURORA PLACE Renzo Piano Building Workshop, Sydney, 2000
   84 DAEWOO TOWER 88 Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates, Pusan, 1997 (designed)
   88 NATIONAL BANK OF DUBAI Carlos Ott and Norr Limited, Dubai, 1998
   90 ONE PEKING ROAD Rocco Design Limited, Hong Kong, 2003
   92 KINGDOM CENTER Ellerbe Becket, Riyadh, 2003
   94 ESPIRITO SANTO PLAZA Kohn Pederson Fox Associates, Miami, 2003
   96 TRUMP WORLD TOWER Costas Kondylis & Partners, New York, 2001
   100 CREDIT LYONNAIS Christian be Portzamparc, Lille, 1995
   102 MAX REINHARDT HAUS Eisenman Architects, Berlin, 1992 (designed)
   104 CCTV HEADQUARTERS Office for Metropolitan Architecture Beiiinq, 2008
   KINETIC
   116 HOTEL HABITAT Dominique Perrault, Barcelona, 2004
   118 TORQUED TOWER Santiago Calatrava, Malmo, 2003
   120 PARKHAVEN TOWER Kobn Pedersen Fox International, Rotterdam, 2002 (designed)
   122 MAAS TOWERS Archi-Tectonics, Rotterdam, 2003
   124 DONG BU HEADQUARTERS Kohn Pedersen Fox, Associates Seoul, 2002
   126 POSTEEL TOWER Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates, Seoul, 2003
   128 ROPPONGI TOWER Kohri Pedersen Fox Associates. Tokyo, 2003
   132 GASOMETER B TOWER Coop HimmelbC)au. Vienna, 2001
   SCENOGRAPHIC
   140 AUSTRIAN CULTURAL FORUM Raimund Abraham, New York, 2002
   142 1250 BOULEVARD REN LEVESQUE Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates, Montreal, 1992
   144 DG BANK Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates, Frankfurt, 1993
   146 PLAZA 66 Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates, Shanghai. 2001
   148 SHUN HING SQUARE K.Y. Cheung Design Associates, Shenzhen, 1996
   152 INTERNATIONAL FINANCE CENTER 2 Cesar Pelli & Associates, Hong Kong, 2004
   156 BURJ AL ARAB W.S Atkins, Dubai, 1999
   MEDIATIC
   162 TOUR SANS FINS Jean Nouvel, Paris, 1989 (designed)
   164 5 TIMES SQUARE Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates, New York, 2002
   166 LVMH TOWER Christian de Portzamparc, New York, 1999
   170 AlA TOWER OMA Asia, Hong Kong. 1998
   172 THE CENTRE Dennis Lau & Ng Chun Man, Hong Kong. 1997
   174 CHEUNG KONG CENTRE Leo Daly with Cesar Pelli, Hong Kong, 1999
   ECOLOGICAL
   180 COMMERZBANK HEADQUARTERS Foster and Partners, Frankturt, 1997
   182 MENARA UMNO TB Hamzah & Yeang, Georgetown, 1998
   184 CONDE NAST BUILDING Fox & Fowle, New York, 1999
   186 RWE HEADQUARTERS Ingenhoven Overdiek und Partner, Essen, 1996
   190 DEUTSCHE POST AG Murphy/Jahn, Bonn, 2001
   192 SEG APARTMENT TOWER Coop Himmelb(l)au, Vienna, 1998
   196 GSW ADMINISTRATION BUILDING Sauerbruch Hutton Architekten, Berlin, 1999
   198 ADIA HEADQUARTERS Kohn Pedersen Fox International, Abs Dhabi, 2004
   200 110 BISHOPSGATE Kohn Pedersen Fox International, London, 2005
   202 ELEPHANT & CASTLE, ECO-TOWER T.R. Hamzah & Yeang, London, 2010
   204 WORLD TRADE CENTER PROPOSALS, LMDC COMPETITION 2003
   FOSTER AND PARTNERS 214
   SKIDMORE OWINGS & MERRILL 218
   RICHARD MEIER, PETER EISENMAN, CHARLES GWATHMEY, STEVEN HOLL 222 THINK 226
   UNITED ARCHITECTS 230
   STUDIO DANIEL LIBESKIND 234



3. Yet another work of fluff about skyscrapers. This is simply eye candy with no depth or discussion of how the genre' will survive after 9/11. yawn, more garbage from the city that never sleeps...

1 comments about Privacy and Publicity: Modern Architecture as Mass Media.

1. The best way, somtimes, to talk about a larger condition is to delve into specifics. Colomina uses Loos and Corbusier to draw out comparisons about the use of information.
   
   Considering the amount of architectural monographs being churned out on a daily basis, and the creation of terms such as "information architecture," it's extremely valuable to look at how modern architecture might have started from an alliance between types of publicity and design.
   
   Both Loos and Corbusier come out, biography-wise, as extremely creepy, though shrewd in shaping how their work is percieved by the traces that they leave behind. In Corbusier's case, he leaves an archive stuffed with minutia, an overabundance of information to supplement the built work. Loos, on the other hand, leaves very little, and thus what little remains of his work requires imagination to fill gaps in his story. What a designer can gather from this is to ask the question: how does what we do effect what our work is? Colomina's work functions reflexively as well as she works from "evidence" to create representations of both architects.
   
   It is a compelling argument, passionately written, and not the least boring.

5 comments about The Old Way of Seeing: How Architecture Lost its Magic.

1. I have six shelves filled with books on architecture, design, urban planning, and proportion, including several books by Christopher Alexander, Andres Duany, Jim Kunstler, Philip Langdon, Peter Katz, and Jane Holz Kay. This one's my favorite. It's the most accessible and useful. What differentiates it is that it provides abundant photos, with lines overlaying them, that very clearly illustrate the author's point. His writing style is easy and generous. It's been a while since I read it, but I'm pretty sure Hale does not advocate brutal Le Corbusier-inspired design. He might have used one picture to illustrate that these ancient principles can also be used in modern architecture.
   
   Hale focuses on illustrating things like the proportion of individual windows and how their proportion and placement do or do not harmonize with the side of the house they're on. I believe the principles Hale explains perfectly complement those that Andres Duany writes about. The biggest difference is that Duany focuses on design issues at the larger scale of street widths, building heights, and walking distances. I think if Duany added design harmony at the building level, one very coherent, unified theory would be the result.
   
   One take-away of this book for me is this: You're looking at a house or building and something about it pleases you, but you can't put your finger on exactly what. He clearly illustrates what those things are for you, which satisfies your logical left brain. On the other hand, he strongly encourages designers to use their intuitive right brain, which instinctively knows what proportions and details are pleasing in a building. In the end, you design with the right brain by letting it loose to play with form, and then you can fine tune using the regulating lines the left brain loves so much.
   
   Far from advocating the "architect as auteur," Hale reminds us that almost no old houses were built using architects. Ordinary people, like farmers, built things of great beauty just by using the wise right brain to "eyeball" things like proportion, balance, harmony, and placement.



2. I purchased this book on the recommendation of a woodworking magazine writer I have come to respect. Though the book is on architecture I can see how many of the principles apply to furniture making as well. I understand what this author is saying, but sometimes thought that his geometric "hidden" relationships were somewhat stretched. I think I could probably do the same thing with any building if I looked at it long enough. It sometimes felt like a real tough read for me (it certainly helped me go to sleep many nights). Given this book appears out of print and he hefty price I paid for it, I would certainly look elsewhere if you are coming from the same direction I came from on the purchase. An understanding of the golden ratio, shadow lines and looking at some classic pieces (shaker, federal, etc.) will probably yield equal or better benefit to your own furniture design making. Though out of my league, I would stretch to say the same exact thing to an architect.



3. This book is quite good and contains some surprising revelations on why buildings look the way they do. It's an excellent book but can be vague in some areas as the author attempts to convey some very theoretical concepts.



4. Jonathan Hale's book so truly reveals the source of the hidden 'feel' in older buildings as also described by Christopher Alexander in 'A Timeless Way of Building', and which also draws parallels to other aspects of life.

   Hale cites the turning point in society away from the honoring our human 'intuition' to the honoring of 'rational' or 'calculating' thinking which so drastically altered the 'feel' and look of architecture, and he puts this date around 1830. Alexis de Tocqueville also described the 'calculating' way of thinking in America which he encountered after that time..and who is also cited by Hale.

   Truly worth the read, and it will probably change not only the way you look at buildings from now on, but also the way 'calculating' thinking dominates so many aspects of life now. I personally find when I get back into situations where the people and their decisions operate more from the basis of intuition, I feel a lot more human and natural, and no longer feel obliged to say the 'accepted' things which so many of us find ourselves saying, but not really believing. Hale's book has helped me understand why this is, and made me feel more comfortable with being natural and intuitive.




5. The "old way of seeing" is a phrase that architect/author Hale coins that describes an aesthetic sense that cannot be easily categorized in terms like Historic, Modernism, or Post modernism. He builds a thorough argument calling for a combination of design that incorporates universal human fondness for pattern with a designer sense of intuition and play. He argues that such "old way of seeing" has been lost in much by both the designer and the wider public and that today's contemporary architecture and built environment is the result. It's not that Hale is a traditionalist or even a Neo-traditonalist... it's just that he argues that most contemporary architecture (and all design for that matter) deals too much with style and superficial symbols than with basic elements of design such as proportion, balance, and structure. At first this may sound like he is supporting a Modernist view of design, but this is not the case, He has some of his severest criticism of the sterility, blandness and generally lack of delight that results from this"form follows function" paradigm.

   While Hale appreciates Post Modern's return to architecture as delight, he is equally critical of this movement as well, claiming that it focuses almost entirely on effect and status and symbol. He extends this criticism to todays' "Neo-traditonal" planners including Andres Duany and claims they are superficial and obsessed with codes and regulations which tend to deaden the designs.

   The author covers a lot of ground in this subject of architecture, art and design, but it is always interesting reading, with good photos and illustrations, Hale's easy writing style brings to life the issues he talks about, though at times he seems to stretch to make a point. He uses a photo of Audrey Hepburn's face superimposed with lines and diagonals to illustrate the "Golden Section" proportion to the accuracy of 1/1000 of a decimal. I'm tempted to say that some of the points he makes are not particularly objective and are the result of a "You'll see it when you believe it" tendency (like when the believing Catholic sees a miracle of the face of the Virgin Mary in the stains on the side of a building.)

   Overall, though this is a ground-breaking book on architecture and design, perhaps the most significant since Venturi's "Learning from Las Vegas" in the 1970's. It's well worth the time and energy to read. Ideas will spin from it long after one finishes the book. Just don't take every word as gospel.

5 comments about Paris: An Architectural History.

1. This slim guide is one of the most comprehensive guides to Paris architectural style over its history. Though the guide is very good,it omits alot but is still a really great resource to walk you through the centuries of building in the city. If you love architecture or Paris or both you will enjoy this book which is chock full of color photos, lithographs, old maps and desriptions of styles, movements and the history behind these. If you are a student or a tourist this is a fun guide.



2. the book will serve to be very beneficial to my daughter which is studying architecture in Paris.



3. First of all let me state that one star for this book is absolutely ridiculous, I must confess, I dont hold a PH.D in Parisian architecture, but i do know a thing or two about Paris, and this book is excellent, there are images and information about the architecture of Paris, that I had not seen before. I love Paris, and have always been fascinated with the architecture and Hausemans layout of Paris. If you have any interest in the architectural history of Paris, then really I cannot imagine you not having some appreciation of this book, maybe when your in Paris you can run by the afore mentioned reviewers copy he left out of disgust and save yourself some money. Highly recommended.



4. I took this book with me on a month-long architecture study trip to Paris this summer. I started reading it before the trip, and found it very dry and badly written (I have a B.A. in History, so I've read my share of dry texts!). I hoped that being in Paris would enliven the book. That didn't happen; Paris itself only highlighted the deficiencies in the book, the most glaring of which being the complete omission of the city's pre-Roman, Roman, and early Middle Ages history. (Saint-Chapelle is not in there at all!) In lieu of this, Sutcliffe spends an inordinate amount of documenting the development of the distinctive hotel-style residences in the city. There are the obligatory bits on Haussman and the Pompidou Center, but both - particularly the latter - are so opinionated that it made me question the credibility of the entire book. At the end of the trip, I left my copy behind in my dorm room. Au revoir!

   Unfortunately, I haven't found a good Paris architectural history to recommend instead of this one. If you're in the city and want a good, well-illustrated book on the development of early city (pre-Roman through the Middle Ages), pick up the exhibition catalogue at the archeological museum under the plaza in front of Notre-Dame.




5. This is without a doubt the best book I've found yet on Parisian architectural history. Sutcliffe has done an incredible job of merging discussion of the architectural features of Parisian buildings and monuments with the historical context that influenced (and was influenced by) them.

   If you have ever been fascinated by the spectacular buildings, monuments, and boulevards of Paris, this book will be a treat. After reading this book, Paris seemed like a totally new city to me. Apartment rows that I'd previously not even noticed suddenly took on meaning and importance for me. The larger patterns of the city became clear to me. And I felt a physical link with the history of Paris.

   I loved Sutcliffe's writing style, mixing humor with information and sharing his personal opinion of buildings with the historical facts. I also enjoyed the insights on the social atmospheres and values of each timeperiod and how they influenced the way in which the structures were built and what the public reaction to them was at the time.

   I have many books on Parisian architecture, but this is the one that I always come back to and read over and over...

No comments about Writing and Seeing Architecture.

1 comments about Architectural Representation and the Perspective Hinge.

1. Perez-Gomez wrote a very important book, the research on thearchitectural representation, and its roots, is enlightning, anddisturbing, in the sense that he pushes us to rethink our reflexes of perceptions and representation of architecture.