No comments about Constructions (Writing Architecture).

No comments about Worlds Away.

No comments about Modernizing Main Street: Architecture and Consumer Culture in the New Deal (Center for American Places - Center Books on American Places).

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.

No comments about A Tax Guide to Conservation Easements.

3 comments about Joel Sternfeld: Sweet Earth.

1. Fascinating stories of individual and group quests for happiness and order. The accounts of American utopian experiments are detailed, poignant, and non-judgmental, leaving the reader to draw his/her own conclusion about precisely what went wrong. Many lessons to learn from this gorgeous collection by Joel Sternfeld.



2. With text and one photo on each spread 'Sweet Earth' follows in the same format as Sternfeld's previous fascinating book On This Site rather than the straight photobook style of 'American Prospects' or 'Stranger Passing'. The Editorial Reviews, above, will give you a good idea about the contents.
   
   The photos are a rich selection of the various experimental communities across the Nation and nearly all of the sixty shots are exteriors. They give you an idea of how varied some of these places are, from Dome Village in Los Angeles (domes predictably) Oneida Community Mansion, New York to the eleven homes of Surreal Estates in Sacramento. The text facing each photo tells of the background and current status of each place.
   
   The book is the usual excellent production from Steidl, Germany. Good paper, printing in 175dpi with simple, clean typography and design. I thought it was a pity though that only one photo was devoted to each place. Sternfeld must have taken plenty and it would have given more coherence to the book's purpose to give as full a picture as possible of these intriguing Utopias.
   
   ***FOR AN INSIDE LOOK click 'customer images' under the cover.



3. This a great photography book. The prints are very nice.
   If you like Joel Sternfeld, you will love this book.

3 comments about Field Guide to New England Barns and Farm Buildings (Library of New England).

1. Despite many mistakes in the layout and composition of this little book, the author has done an admirable job of researching and presenting a dauntingly diverse subject, except for the inadequate photography. One imagines him spending many hours taking and cataloguing and captioning the numerous photos, which are essential to understanding the subject and its details. Too often, however, the camera is too far away or the photos are reduced to such small size that the reader comes away with an impression, rather than a clear idea. It's evident the book suffers from budgetary constraints, and in this instance those constraints have hurt badly.
   A final complaint -- the title is misleading. Despite the inclusion of a few Connecticut tobacco barns, this is a guide to NORTHERN New England barns. Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine barns are well represented.



2. Having just purchased an old barn, I found precious few resources to assist in gleaning a history. Visser's book was concise, informative, and a pleasure to read. It provides valuable insight to the development of agricultural styles, and valuable clues to dating the agrarian landscape. Excellent source.



3. The following is an excerpt from a review in Vernacular Architecture Newsletter, Feb. 1999.

   The outbuildings of rural dwellings have customarily received less attention than the dwellings themselves. The fields of architectural history and historic preservation have long focused on dwellings, for such reasons as their sheer abundance and the fact that they may have been repositories of the fanciest and trendiest architectural detail. But visitors to rural areas will often find that a farmstead's ensemble of outbuildings may overshadow the dwelling in size, number, or visual prominence. The outbuildings reflect past activities of people and animals, and connect the dwelling to the system of fields, fences, driveways, and other farmscape elements.

   Thomas D. Visser, Associate Professor and Interim Director of the Historic Preservation Program at the University of Vermont, recognizes that barns and other outbuildings are far more important than as mere picturesque elements of the rural landscape. From the massive barn to the lowly privy, "each has a story to tell." In his Field Guide to New England Barns and Farm Buildings, Visser provides "clues for deciphering the many layers of history spread over the rural landscape... to help observers... realize the wonderful insights that can spring from an understanding of the evolution of our rural heritage."

   Visser's book may be used two ways, as a reference book and as a handy, portable field guide. It stands alone as a good concise history of New England farm buildings with an understandable concentration on barns, the most necessary structure of a farmstead other than the dwelling. The specific fieldwork for this volume took two years and was concentrated in areas preselected for their relevance. The fieldwork not only made possible this excellent guide to identifying, understanding, and appreciating farm buildings, but recorded a dwindling cultural resource. Visser has for years encouraged the preservation of barns, building interest among their owners. This book, it is hoped, by increasing awareness of these often neglected structures, will advance the cause of their preservation.

   The Field Guide to New England Barns and Farm Buildings will prove informative and entertaining to a wide audience, from agricultural historians to New England residents who haven't truly appreciated the value of farm buildings as cultural resources.

5 comments about Conservation Design for Subdivisions: A Practical Guide To Creating Open Space Networks.

1. Check out some of the final subdivision design parameters on page 87. While other reviewers might benefit from the author's justified concern for conserving open space--especially in communities where cookie-cutter style developers 'rule the Board', the end result for some of the plans in this work APPEARS to be large-lot American sprawl, with ecological considerations that don't go far enough. Perhaps Arendt's GROWING GREENER, which I've not seen, will get us closer(?)



2. What a concept! Rather than trying to get the most acreage per lot, make smaller lots with more shared open space. A must read for every developer, planning board, and zoning commition. Easy to follow examples show how to preserve historic and environmental features while adding to the value of the land that is developed.



3. If we developed land in the manner the author teaches, America would look so much nicer! A very common sense approach to maintain rural character in an area and stop sprawl from destroying your area. Every developer, planner, new home buyer, builder, conservationist and private citizen should read this and also buy the author's book, "Rural By Design".



4. Cheers for Randall G. Arendt, et al. For years my government agency has been fighting a loosing battle in Florida with unmanaged and unfettered urban growth. It seemed as though nothing could stem the tide of urban sprawl until two things happened. One was an election of a more centralist government and the other was the introduction of "designing for conservation" into our policy making levels. This concept was brought into clear focus by Arendt's book. The authors not only presented a practical and economically sound guide for growth that can benefit developers, but the reference can act as a mechanism to help preserve the environmental cohesiveness of any community. The policy makers in our community were so impressed with this book that fifteen (15) copies were purchased to be placed into the hands of influential politicians, developers and regulatory agencies.



5. As a land developer this book brought into focus the problems that haave been growing as more and more of the land in my area has been consumed, and we have less and less to develop. At first I thought it would be another environmental tirade against land development,but instead realised it was a very practical and economically sound guide for development that would benefit me and also help maintain the character of my community. Arendt's concern is for the environment and the preservation of open spaces and connective corridors of space and natural habitat between differing parcels of land in a given area. His solutions achieve these goals, but of special interest to me as a developer is that his solutions also mean no loss of density, reduced costs and higher land values. Excellent illustrations, easy to understand and worth the price many times over.

No comments about Continuous Productive Urban Landscapes: Designing Urban Agriculture for Sustainable Cities.

2 comments about Open: New Designs for Public Space.

1. I haven't read this book, except for some excerpts. However, I've read a number of pieces on how marvelous Roppongi Hills is. The people who write these pieces don't have much first-hand experience. I live beside Roppongi Hills. They've built a massive outdoor speaker system right across the street from some existing housing. That's turned a whole neighborhood into a noise pollution hellhole.

   Take these puff pieces with a grain of salt.




2. OPEN: new designs for public space proves that public space has a rich and exciting future. With inspiring projects from six continents, this attractive volume casts a wide net that includes both traditional forms of public spaces (plazas and squares) and exciting hybrids, such as temporary installations that can transform unused spaces into inviting community resources. The essays and interviews also present architects and designers acting as facilitators as much as form makers. In addition to architects, landscape architects and planners, the volume is enriched by contributions from artists, graphic and industrial designers as well as critics and thinkers.