Books: Ando. Complete Works, Updated Version 2010

Tadao Ando is considered one of the greatest living architects, but until now it has been nearly impossible to find a good comprehensive monograph on his work, thankfully Taschen has just published an enormous coffee table book on this world-renowned Japanese Architect. Tadao Ando always works within the constraints of landscape, and is known for his use of concrete and its interaction with natural light. The book is lavishly illustrated with brilliant color and black & white photography, as well as large drawings, sketches and scale models of his buildings. Each project is examined and presented in a way that clearly shows Ando’s unique genius.

Philippe Starck describes him as a “mystic in a country which is no longer mystic.” Philip Drew calls his buildings “land art” that “struggle to emerge from the earth.” He is the only architect to have won the discipline’s four most prestigious prizes: the Pritzker, Carlsberg, Praemium Imperiale, and Kyoto Prize. Combining influences from Japanese tradition with the best of Modernism, Ando has developed a completely unique building aesthetic that makes use of concrete, wood, water, light, space, and nature in a way that has never been witnessed in architecture. His designs include award-winning private homes, churches, museums, apartment complexes, and cultural spaces throughout Japan, as well as in France, Italy, Spain, and the USA. This book, created at the height of Ando’s illustrious career, and thoroughly updated for this new 2010 edition, presents his complete works to date.

Ando. Complete Works, Updated Version 2010, Jodidio, Philip, Hardcover, 30.8 x 39 cm (12.1 x 15.4 in.), 600 pages, Published by Taschen, ISBN: 9783836509497
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Monograph: Vincent Van Duysen: Complete Works

For more than two decades, Belgian architect Vincent Van Duysen has created a series of exquisite buildings and residences, from the Low Countries to New York, with profoundly elemental spaces enriched by a refined palette of materials. The results are sublime, rich, minimal yet tactile.
This is the complete monograph of Van Duysen’s work, including his domestic architecture, office and commercial spaces, as well as furniture and decorative objects for such leading international manufacturers as Tribù, B&B Italia, Poliform and Swarovski. Van Duysen celebrates the essence of form, the elegance of proportion and the refinement of hidden details. His is an architecture for connoisseurs, and this comprehensive publication reveals why he has become such a celebrated figure. Over thirty projects are presented in detail, each with a project profile, many accompanied by specially commissioned photographs, along with a complete project chronology.

Collected together in a large-scale format, the book includes an introduction by noted architecture critic Marc Dubois and tributes by architects David Adjaye, Alberto Campo Baeza and Michael Gabellini, fashion designer Ann Demeulemeester and furniture designer Patricia Urquiola, all of whom provide fascinating insights into Van Duysen’s inspirational output.

Vincent Van Duysen: Complete Works, Foreword by Ilse Crawford, Introduction by Marc Dubois, 29.50 x 23.20 cm, Hardback, 288pp, 382 Illustrations, 252 in colour,
ISBN 9780500342619, Published by Thames & Hudson

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Books: New Architecture in Japan

With a comprehensive overview of more than 100 projects built or designed in Japan over the past 10 years, New Architecture in Japan is an informative and beautifully illustrated book. Photographer Edmund Sumner manages to capture not only the power of architectural space, but he always allows a glimpse of the surrounding urban landscape by including neon signs, pylons, high voltage power lines and pedestrians into the images. Critical essays by Yuki Sumner and Naomi Pollock contextualize the work, and each project is described in detail with the required drawings.

Included in the book are museums, private houses, schools, shops, hospitals, airports and chapels. Both cutting-edge, emerging young practices – such as Sou Fijimoto and Junya Ishigami – and established, internationally known architects – among them Toyo Ito, Tadao Ando, Kengo Kuma and SANAA. This illuminating survey is essential not just for architects and designers but also for anyone fascinated by Japan’s unique – and increasing – influence on architecture worldwide.

New Architecture in Japan, by Yuki Sumner and Naomi Pollock with David Littlefield, Photography by Edmund Sumner, Published by Merrell, Hardback, 272 pages, 400 colour illustrations, 237 plans, 25 x 25 cm (9.75 x 9.75 in), ISBN: 9781858944500
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Books: The Iconic House: Architectural Masterworks Since 1900

Presenting the most architecturally significant houses since 1900, The Iconic House is a comprehensive record of the most important works to date. With specially commissioned photographs by Richard Powers, and written by Dominic Bradbury, the book not only looks at the architects and their designs but also the close communion between the architect and client–a relationship, sometimes harmonious, but often conflicted.
The houses are experimental and innovative, their influence has spread throughout the world and many have established new architectural paradigms that affect the way we perceive a beautiful home. Each featured house includes floorplans, a short biography of the architect with key buildings, and are sorted chronologically with a giant date to anchor the description.
Not to be overlooked is a bibliography at the back of the book, as well as a gazetteer and list of houses by type which offer further information including which homes are open to the public.

Some of the architects whose work appears in The Iconic House include Tadao Ando, Shigeru Ban, Marcel Breuer, Richard Buckminster Fuller, Charles & Ray Eames, Eileen Gray, Greene & Greene, Walter Gropius, Herzog & de Meuron, Philip Johnson, Louis Kahn, Pierre Koenig, Rem Koolhaas, John Lautner, Le Corbusier, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, Richard Neutra, Oscar Niemeyer, Eero Saarinen, UN Studio, and Frank Lloyd Wright.

The Iconic House: Architectural Masterworks Since 1900, by Dominic Bradbury, Photographs by Richard Powers, Publisher: Thames & Hudson, Hardcover, 351 Pages, ISBN: 9780500342558

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Books: Concrete Creations: Contemporary Buildings & Interiors

Concrete, as the Romans knew it, was in effect a new and revolutionary material. but it wasn’t until after its re-invention in the 18th century that the material combined with reinforced steel transformed the world as we know it. While concrete fell out of favor in the 70s after unpopular modernist architectural movements like Brutalism and large-scale government sponsored urban renewal projects, it is now enjoying a period of revival and innovation.

Concrete has overcome its once tarnished image – thanks to recent advances in technology, the once dull substance has been transformed into an impressive material. Thanks to its especially moldable character, concrete’s flexibility knows no rival. In liquid state, it can fill any form making its application practically boundless.
Big-name architects and newcomers alike have discovered this trend long ago, and the book presents a selection of 60 of the most memorable projects recently completed. With high-quality images, detailed plans and informative project descriptions.

Highlights include private homes by Wingårdh Arkitektkontor, Akira Sakamoto and Thomas Bendel as well as projects by Moshe Safdie, Tadao Ando, Zaha Hadid and Fernando Romero.

Concrete Creations: Contemporary Buildings and Interiors, Selected by Dirk Meyhöfer, Hardcover, 23.5 x 23.5 cm, 256 pages, 410 colored illustrations, Publisher: Verlagshaus Braun ISBN 9783938780329
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Max Ernst Museum by SMO Architektur

Thirty years after Max Ernst’s death, his home town of Brühl opened a museum for their prodigal son. It has been set up in the former Brühl Pavilion, a neoclassical palais built in 1844, where Ernst went dancing as a schoolboy.

Max Ernst Museum, by Van Den Valentyn Architektur/SMO Architektur
Photos by: Rainer Mader

Max Ernst Museum: Van Den Valentyn Architektur/SMO Architektur, Hardcover, Pages 64, Illustration 27 colour, 38 b&w illustrations, 26cm x 24cm, ISBN 9783883759494
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Books: Le Corbusier And The Maisons Jaoul

In his article published in the Architectural Review in 1955 James Stirling observed that, “frequently accused of being an ‘internationalist’ Le Corbusier was, in fact, the most regional of architects”. With the construction of the vaulted Maisons Jaoul, built for André Jaoul and his son—and their wives—made entirely of brick, concrete, stone, and timber, the house is the antithesis of everything commonly referred to as “Corbusian.”

The book is the first detailed examination of a lesser-known, yet architecturally significant house. Filled with detailed drawings, plans, rare photographs, and indeed even a glimse of the contents of the house and the type of furnishings installed. The book ends with the critical reception by the houses, mainly in the British and American press during the 1950s and ’60s.

Le Corbusier himself never explained this radical change in direction, leaving this design a mystery for future generations to decipher. The book is a welcome addition to the study of this well-known architect but will certainly pose the question: Perhaps Le Corbusier is not a modernist after all?

Le Corbusier and the Maisons Jaoul, by Caroline Maniaque Benton, 19cm x 25cm, Hardcover, 176 pages, (122 color illustrations; 100 b/w),
Published by Princeton Architectural Press ISBN 9781568988009
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Books: Architecture Now! Houses

Some of the best houses built in the last few years, many of them featured on Daily Icon, can be found in a condensed format in the series Architecture Now!

Beyond the fundamental notion of shelter, what defines a house? What are its elements and limitations? This broad-ranging selection of extraordinary dwellings shows the concept to be infinitely malleable: one house seems to hover above the ground, another is embedded in it; some have stark minimal lines, others have tropical gardens; some are palatial, others monastic. From postmodern castles to hi-tech cabins, here is a connoisseur’s choice of the world’s most remarkable new houses, from deepest Patagonia to the Sydney suburbs, via the USA, Europe, Scandinavia and Asia.

Featured architects/firms/artists include:
3LHD Architects, Ábalos & Herreros, Ricardo Bak Gordon, Shigeru Ban, Blank Studio, Gianni Botsford, Nancy Copley, Correia/Ragazzi Arquitectos, Durbach Block, Eastern Design Office, Fuhrimann & Hächler, Terunobu Fujimori, Sou Fujimoto Architects, Kotaro Ide, Carlos Jiménez, Jouin Manku, Kamayachi + Harigai, Mathias Klotz, Kengo Kuma, Leven Betts Studio, MOS, Mount Fuji Architects Studio, Plasma Studio, Antoine Predock, Laurent Savioz, Shim + Sutcliffe, Álvaro Siza Vieira, Philippe Stuebi, Zhang Lei, René van Zuuk

Architecture Now! Houses, Edited by Philip Jodidio, 20 x 25 cm, 416 pages
ISBN: 9783836503747
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Books: Case Study Houses

The Case Study House program (1945–1966) was an exceptional, innovative event in the history of American architecture and remains to this day unique. The program, which concentrated on the Los Angeles area and oversaw the design of 36 prototype homes, sought to make available plans for modern residences that could be easily and cheaply constructed during the postwar building boom. Highly experimental, the program generated houses that were designed to redefine the modern home, and thus had a pronounced influence on architecture—American and international—both during the program’s existence and even to this day. This compact guide includes all projects featured in the XL version, with over 150 photos and plans and a map of where all houses are (or were) located.

Case Study Houses, Edited by Peter Gössel, Hardcover, 96 pages ISBN: 9783836513012

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Monograph: Frank Lloyd Wright: Complete Works

The Complete Frank Lloyd Wright
Part of an exhaustive three-volume monograph featuring all of Wright’s 1,100 designs, both realized and unrealized. This volume covers the postwar years and the “living architecture” period.

Frank Lloyd Wright (1867-1959) was one of the fathers of modern architecture; his work helped define the modern era, had a widespread cultural influence, and remains highly influential today, half a century after his demise. The mature work of his final years is the subject of this monograph, including all his designs from that period, even those never built. Based on unlimited access to the Frank Lloyd Wright Archives in Taliesin, Arizona, this penetrating study gives an unrivalled overview of Wright’s groundbreaking work, complex personal life, and eventual ‘starchitect’ status – included are drawings he made for an unrealized house intended for Marilyn Monroe and Arthur Miller.

Together with two forthcoming companion titles, this three-volume monograph will cover Wright’s entire oeuvre, from his early Prairie Houses, through the Usonian concept home and “living architecture” buildings, to late projects like the Guggenheim Museum and his fantastic vision of the “living city.” Author Bruce Brooks Pfeiffer, who served as Wright’s apprentice during the 1950s, highlights the latest research and gives fresh insights into the work, providing new dates for many of the plans and houses. A wealth of personal photos also illustrates the working routine at Frank Lloyd Wright’s fellowship.

Frank Lloyd Wright: Complete Works, Vol. 3, Edited by Peter Gössel, Author Bruce Brooks Pfeiffer, Hardcover, 40cm x 31cm, 584 pages, ISBN: 9783822857700

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