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Must read books about architecture?

futurething

Hello everyone!

I want to pursue architecture and I'll be applying for universities this year.

I'm looking to do some reading prior to starting my studies. I want to learn about the history of architecture, some of the important buildings that have affected the course of it's development and the philosophy behind them.

Where should I start?

 
Nov 2, 20 11:06 am
b3tadine[sutures]

Start with Mabel O. Wilson's book 


https://www.amazon.com/Race-Mo...


This is where pedagogy is currently.

Nov 2, 20 11:12 am  · 
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x-jla

A World History of Architecture, Fazio 

Nov 2, 20 11:50 am  · 
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For An Architecture of Reality by Michael Benedikt. And then some David McCauley books where he draws these amazing views of buildings and how construction and infrastructure work. 


Nov 2, 20 12:20 pm  · 
3  · 
randomised

Start at the beginning (de architectura)!

Nov 2, 20 12:52 pm  · 
1  · 
apscoradiales

Not really a "must-must", but it is a very interesting book.

Beyond Habitat by 20 Years by Moshe Safdie.

Also, An Outline of European Architecture by Nikolaus Pevsner.


Nov 2, 20 1:22 pm  · 
4  · 
Non Sequitur

genuine thumbs up on the Beyond Habitat recommendation.

Nov 2, 20 1:30 pm  · 
1  · 
apscoradiales

That was one of the best reads about architecture, building and life in a office. Unfortunately, I lost the book...does he still have an office in toronto?

Nov 2, 20 2:01 pm  · 
 · 
Non Sequitur

Missed this reply. Don't think Safdie's moustache has an office in Toronto. Last time I checked, it was Boston and a few in Asia. I would not mind another Safdie project here. I already have 2 within a 1km radius from my office.

Nov 3, 20 9:02 am  · 
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apscoradiales

He used to somewhere on Avenue Road a few years ago.

Nov 3, 20 10:32 am  · 
 · 
BabbleBeautiful

Experiencing Architecture by Steen Eiler Rasmussen

Nov 2, 20 1:34 pm  · 
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atelier nobody

Architect?: A Candid Guide to the Profession by Roger Lewis

From Bauhaus to Our House by Tom Wolfe

Looking Around and How Architecture Works, both by Witold Rybczynski

Nov 2, 20 1:53 pm  · 
1  · 
The_Crow

Anything by Ken Frampton, but specifically "Modern Architecture: A Critical History"



Nov 2, 20 2:33 pm  · 
2  ·  1
b3tadine[sutures]

Frampton is a misogynist punk, and apologist for Nazi sympathizers.

Nov 2, 20 2:48 pm  · 
 ·  1
archanonymous

Can you offer an alternate arch historian/ theorist with equally thorough research and writing on the foundations of modern architecture who isn't a bad person?

Nov 2, 20 2:50 pm  · 
 · 
b3tadine[sutures]

I did.

Nov 2, 20 2:51 pm  · 
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x-jla

Thought we settled this. If Einstein ate babies, E would still equal MC2. Can we just judge the work and the author separately...

Nov 2, 20 3:07 pm  · 
1  ·  1
archanonymous

Seems pretty niche to teach the entirety of the architectural cannon through the lens of "race" but I do like Wilson's writing generally.

Nov 2, 20 3:08 pm  · 
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b3tadine[sutures]

Was the question where to start, or the entirety of the canon of architecture. If it was either, I'd still start there.

Nov 2, 20 7:41 pm  · 
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x-jla

Being that the majority of world history happened before western imperialism, id say it’s not a good place to start.

Nov 3, 20 12:10 pm  · 
 ·  1
b3tadine[sutures]

Well, given that the book doesn't begin with western imperialism, I'd say we are good.

Nov 3, 20 1:52 pm  · 
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x-jla

“A critical history from the enlightenment to the present”

Nov 3, 20 2:19 pm  · 
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x-jla

a European intellectual movement of the late 17th and 18th centuries emphasizing reason and individualism rather than tradition. It was heavily influenced by 17th-century philosophers such as Descartes, Locke, and Newton, and its prominent exponents include Kant, Goethe, Voltaire, Rousseau, and Adam Smith.“

Nov 3, 20 2:20 pm  · 
 · 
x-jla

I’d say that represents a limited time span, a limited perspective. 400 or so years is a bleep in time. There are buildings, still standing that are 10x that old.

Nov 3, 20 2:24 pm  · 
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b3tadine[sutures]

Yeah, and I'd say buildings of the era you've cited have infinitely more relevancy than buildings prior to Enlightenment. You want to study those, take an electives course, or read Wrath of Gnon.

Nov 3, 20 5:11 pm  · 
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randomised

Just posted this in another thread, might be useful here too:

pdf here: http://www.sze.hu/~eptansz/Dep...

Nov 3, 20 3:30 am  · 
1  · 

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