Product Description

Every architect dreams of a perfect client, and every client dreams of a perfect architect. Alas, these relationships don't always work out to everyone’s expectations. But when they do—when there are shared ideas and the communication flows—the results can be spectacular. The New Modern House features forty new buildings where the synergy between the right designer and the right client resulted in works that surpass everyone's expectations. The book is divided into five thematic chapters—conditions, materials, environment, budget, and aesthetics—and each contain eight case studies. These include Rafael Viñoly's Piano House in New York; Sean Godsell's Peninsula House in Australia; and Ahadu Abaineh's Tree House in Ethiopia, among others. Beautifully produced, The New Modern House captures these noteworthy designs with a wealth of color photography, plans, and drawings, and makes an ideal book for anybody dreaming of the perfect house.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #176543 in Books
• Published on: 2005-04-07
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 176 pages

From Publishers Weekly
Compiling photographs from 40 of the world's most innovative houses, this coffee-table book attempts to "open people's minds... to the potential of residential architecture." Divided into five rather vague categories-Conditions, Materials, Environment, Budget and Aesthetics-this volume presents homes that boldly challenge traditional conceptions of design. For example, the bizarre Natural Ellipse building in Tokyo, described as "two apartments 'vacuum packed' in a gleaming white skin," resembles an enormous egg, and one house in southeast England is economically made of rubber. These creations are nicely captured in numerous color photographs, but the introductions that accompany them are less successful. ("Ever since his decision to move out of the cave and get on the property ladder, man has sought out materials to build with," reads the characteristically banal intro to the "Materials" section). The book's design also detracts from the architectural wonder of these homes: the photographs are rarely given the full page that they deserve and are instead crowded by descriptions and blueprint sketches. The projects themselves, though, are creative and often over-the-top, like the glass house in Kent that's designed seamlessly within a plant nursery and the wonderfully innovative "Elemental Housing" project, a colorful solution to low-cost housing in the slums of Chile. This volume will no doubt interest architecture aficionados, but it falls short of being a fascinating introduction to the wonders of new modern design. 300 color illustrations.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review
The forecast for architecture seems bright, thanks to those architects featured in and affected by The New Modern House. -- Architectural Record, April 2005

About the Author
Will Jones began life as a carpenter and is now a freelance writer specializing in design. His articles have appeared in RIBA Journal, The Financial Times, Blueprint, and Dwell. He lives in London.

Customer Reviews

MODERN ARCHITECTURE
Mr. Jones really needs to give his photographer a bonus because his images really make this book, not that the text is not well thought and out and researched. Most of these homes are just spectucular, I love the use of glass, steel, and rich woods, it's so clean and elegant. You really come away with a new appreciation of current architectural styles as you puruse this wonderful book. Frankly, I could not live in many of these homes, but all of them radiate beauty and inovation. Highly recommended, if for no other reason than to get some ideas for your own home, uh, but you better have some stock in Apple.

Contemporary and very different modern designs by top designers and firms
Contemporary and very different modern designs by top designers and firms are the profile of Will Jones' The New Modern House, which packs in color photos of all kinds of structures, from seaside homes to complex, multifaceted layouts for flat landscapes. Accompanying discussions survey architectural intentions and design options, but it's the photos which capture attention.

Good not great
It's fun to look at nice houses on the cutting edge of design and this book contains plenty of those. The downside is that you don't get to see each house in much detail and the book contains a number of concept houses that are just mock-ups and haven't been built.