Architecture

The cream of contemporary rural residential architecture.

Children's fascination with buildings is a natural outgrowth of their curiosity about anything strange or huge or complex. This unique book brings together thirteen architectural wonders that have intrigued children for years. Through activities such as games, quizzes, drawings and other activities, it teaches them the history behind each of the buildings, and presents fascinating facts about the design, historical use, and construction techniques. This book features pyramids built by men with pulleys, a tower that leans, an opera house shaped like a sailboat, a museum built like a spiral, and the most recent example, a bird's nestA" stadium where the 2008 summer Olympics were held. Each of these buildings and more are introduced to young readers through lively texts and illustrations that will serve to heighten their interest and knowledge about the world's most important architecture, and perhaps inspire them to dream and build on their own.

More than 50 examples of the world's best contemporary commercial interior design.

Attractive, useful and entertaining, this collection of great buildings is a course in architectural history for readers of all ages.

The fifty buildings presented here in chronological order represent the most compelling, intriguing, and awe-inspiring structures from all over the world. Along with the Pyramids of Cheops, the Parthenon, and the Colosseum, readers will learn about other masterpieces such as the Hagia Sophia in Turkey; Cambodia's Temple Complex at Angkor Wat; the Potala Palace in Lhasa; and the Jewish Museum in Berlin.

Each entry features full color photographs of the structure along with informative text presented in a dynamic format. Readers can find basic information about each building's artistic relevance, style, and contextual history while timelines and sidebars offer additional notes about architectural periods and techniques. From ancient Jordan and Guatemala to modern-day Manhattan and Munich, this world tour of great edifices offers a mini-course in architecture that will satisfy even the most passionate student's lust for learning about the world's greatest buildings.

The American House covers houses and domestic dwellings in the United States from 1000 to the present day. This illustrated reference book features examples ranging from the Blackfoot Indians' iconic Tipi dwelling to contemporary buildings which mark the latest developments in American design and construction.



Like Phaidon's bestselling title The House Book, The American House is very accessible and easy to use. It presents a balanced selection of the hundred best and most important houses in the United States. Each house has been selected for its architectural merit, innovative design, and contribution to the history of American domestic architecture. The selection spans history and covers all key house styles in American architectural history, ranging from the nineteenth-century Stick style and Federal houses to New Urbanist houses of the 1980s and 90s, as well as contemporary builds by today's leading architects, including Steven Holl, Rural Studio, and Rick Joy.
Other examples include early twentieth-century Prairie-style houses of the Midwest and International Style icons of the great modernism era, such as Philip Johnson s Glass House (1949). The selection also covers regional styles, such as the Palm Beach houses of Florida and 'Painted Ladies' of San Francisco, as well as lesser-known national treasures like Biltmore (1889-95), the largest private house ever constructed in the United States. Many national favorites are featured, including the White House (1814-29) and the home of Mark Twain (1874). Styles represented include the farmstead home, the log cabin, the plantation house, the saltbox, the brownstone, and even the mobile home.



Each entry consists of a full-page image with an accompanying text, detailing the house's historical and architectural significance. The book is organized chronologically, so readers can trace the development of the house from traditional styles to the visionary ideas of today's architects, by way of quintessential American ideas like the Airstream trailer (1947). The chronological sequence positions each house within the architectural canon, but it also offers surprising juxtapositions. The traditional log cabin of John Davis's Pioneer Farmstead (ca. 1830) sits next to the Federal grandeur of Roosevelt's New York home, Springwood (1826-1915), while Michael Reynolds' New Mexico Earthship (1996) appears alongside Tod Williams and Billie Tsien's breathtaking postmodern New York townhouse.



The book also features a glossary of terms and movements, a directory of houses open to the public, and an index. The American House is a practical resource and an easy-to-use guide, unique in its appeal to both the general reader and the practicing architect.