So I'm sure all of us vowed that over the holidays we would most definitely read those books that have been sitting beside our beds throughout term, accruing library fines.
What have you read? Anything decent, any duds?
I've been pretty bad.. only completed one book so far, and it was a light read at that, consumed entirely while sitting in the sunshine by the waterfront on the weekend. The book was a biography of Frank Lloyd Wright, written by pulitzer prize winning architectural critic Ada Louise Huxtable.
I'd reccomend it if you're looking for a good insight into FLW's life, the man he professed himself to be, the reality, his connection with his buildings and the heartbreak which took place at Taliesin.
I have also been working through On the Rise, a book by another critic Paul Goldberger. It's a collection of his essays on architecture, regarding postmodernism in New York in particular. It's getting a bit repetitive, and is obviously more relevant to the 70's and 80's than today but interesting to read about the decline of modernism.
A discussion forum for the students at the school of Architecture and Design of VUW.
I too haven't gotten nearly as muc reading as I had hoped too. Four weeks went by way too fast.
ReplyDeleteAldous Huxley's "A Brave New World" a science fiction novel set in a dystopian future. A future where people are born in test tubes conditioned to obey and given numerous forms of distractions in the forms of entertainment and drugs. A future based on Henry Ford's mass production model to maximize efficiency and productivity. One can't help but contrast this novel with George Orwell s 1984 written over decade and a World War later. Where Orwell's people are controlled by fear Huxley's future is one were people are to distracted and disinterested to care much. Having spent most my life in post cold-war world I can't help but find Huxley's future much more convincing and scary.
Architecture books,
Hasan Fathy's "Architecture for the Poor" in which the Egytian architect attempts to provide a truly vernacular solution to house the poor in Egypt. By drawing on ancient mud building techniques Fathy devises up plans to develop a village that is both sustainable and economical. Book is also full of interesting facts regarding basic construction.
Donlyn Lyndon and Charles W. Moore "Chambers of a Memory Palace". The book is a great introduction into the elements of architecture, but what I particularly like is that the book is composed as a series of letters written back and forth between the two authors. This makes for an interesting and engaging read.
Slightly off topic, but was wondering what books people have found particularly inspiring? What architecture books speak to you? I remember M-D saying Le Corbusier's "Towards a New Architecture" was quite meaningful to him.
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ReplyDeleteI finally got around to reading 'Cradle to Cradle'. One of those books that makes you sit back and think. "... we're fucked". I found it quite surprising (and scary) to read that sometimes, recycling does more harm to the environment than just burying the waste in a landfill. A really enlightening read.
ReplyDeleteEric have you hada chance to look at those Adbusters magazines?
I found "Eyes of the Skin" to be a really inpiring book when I read it last year. i'm interested in reading some of his other books. Does anyone have "the Thinking hand" ? Heh we could start a book club 'critters bookclub'!
Spencer has my copy of Thinking Hand. I believe 'Poetics of Space' by Gaston Bachelard breaks from a typical 'architectural' reading of space, he focuses more intently on the philosophical aspects of what makes up space and the dialectics between, dear I say it "inside and outside" and vivid memories associated with minor details like the touch of an old door handle or smell of a room. I have only just begun reading it and I am sure much of its content is going to take the shortest possible route to my ears.
ReplyDeleteIf you want to read authors slightly ephemeral (spiritual) check Stephen Holl's writings, Anthony Vidler who wrote a piece about the sublime and picturesque in contemporary times.
Finally read invisible cities, very enjoyable read.
Have been meaning to read a stack of books but instead am very slowly getting through 'Phenomenology of perception' by Merleau Ponty, at this pace i will be still reading it in third year. I enjoyed 'Poetics of Space' over summer, maybe thats whats slowing me down lack of sun.
ReplyDeleteRay I'd love to borrow the Thinking Hand once Spence is done with it. I have attempted to read Poetics of Space, but I don't enjoy Bachelard's writing style so found it a bit of a chore. Maybe it's one of those lost-in-translation things. Will try again some day.
ReplyDeleteHere's a review for a new book, which revisits modern architecture in terms of its 'glamour' (think Schumann's photographs for example...).
ReplyDeleteCould be an interesting read wrt having just viewed 'Mon Oncle'...