Architecture should be an affirmation of place—that is, the physical product of a truly environmentally responsive approach. To work with the place and its traditions is not to be trapped in a dull set of conventions. The tension between timeless ways and the all-too-timely circumstances that call a new building into being should lead to a vital architecture. The tension between the past and the presence of the past should foster an architecture more culturally resonant than one that is either is all about the past or all about the present. —Robert A. M. Stern
Robert A. M. Stern is dedicated to the synthesis of tradition and innovation. In more than thirty-five years of practice, he has produced a wide range of building types with a variety of stylistic influences, all inspired by the great legacy of American architecture. His firm, Robert A. M. Stern Architects, was first recognized for its distinguished houses, and residential design remains the cornerstone of the practice. This beautifully illustrated monograph—a companion to the best-selling Robert A. M. Stern: Houses—presents twenty-six of the firm’s most memorable houses.
Located in diverse settings across North America—from a valley in Colorado with sweeping views of the Aspen mountains, to a bluff overlooking Long Island Sound, to an island off the coast of British Columbia—these remarkable houses reveal the architect’s emphasis on the importance of context and his dedication to exploring the nature of place. Each house invokes the vernacular architectural heritage particular to its region, while gracefully reflecting its unique natural surroundings. Whether they are shingle style “cottages” by the sea, colonial Georgian country estates, or elegant Regency designs, Stern’s houses are unique both for their timelessness and their ability to evoke a conversation with the past—a dialogue he believes lies at the heart of architecture.
Robert A. M. Stern: Houses and Gardens
An artful photographic voyage documenting the impact of modern industry and consumerism on our planet, A Common Destiny presents a hauntingly beautiful vision of a world perched on the edge of an abyss. Juxtaposing images of pristine wilderness with photos of mines, abandoned nuclear reactors, large industrial farms, and spaces that exemplify artificiality and our increasing distance from nature—such as indoor ski slopes in Dubai, large-scale suburban housing development sites, and lavish casinos—Cédric Delsaux creates a powerful meditation on our ruthless hunger for mass production and energy.
Industries rarely accessible to the public are shown here in 135 oversized, full-color plates-petroleum fields, quarries, steel mills, meat-packing plants, poultry farms, enormous greenhouses, and assembly lines. Of equal interest are dozens of images that bear witness to today’s dizzying pace of construction throughout the world, revealing how our attempt to accommodate an ever-growing population often overlooks the needs of its least fortunate. Glamorous skyscrapers abut the poorest slums, closely placed residential towers block out natural light, and thoughtless sprawl ensures that residents of large cities spend their lives in a maze of concrete.
Each striking, thought-provoking photograph is a work of art that allows us at once to marvel at our own industriousness and be shocked at its ramifications; we are asphyxiating the planet with our own inventions. Guided by thought-provoking essays from prominent environmental writers and activists including best-selling author Bill McKibben, renowned scientist James Lovelock, and Nobel Peace Prize winner Wangari Maathaï, the volume takes the reader on a journey from the least populous places on earth to the most densely inhabited, and urges us to reflect on our own habits and to resolve to take a more conscientious, active role in preserving natural resources.
A Common Destiny: A Photographic Journey Through a Changing World
This book stresses a theoretical approach to landscape aesthetics, including habitat theory and prospect-refuge theory, based on an analysis of research literature and experience in a wide area of art and science. This edition covers recent developments in the field.
The Experience of Landscape