- Paperback: 208 pages
- Publisher: Abbeville Press (30 Aug 2006)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0789208539
- ISBN-13: 978-0789208538
- Product Dimensions: 24.9 x 24.9 x 1.9 cm
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 1,231,702 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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13 of 14 people found the following review helpful
Stretching the Limits of Architecture
14 Aug 2005
Format:Hardcover
When I looked at the cover of this book I saw what I expected, a very modern house fairly small house in a heavily forested setting. Then I turned to the first page of the introduction and pictured was the country home of the Eleventh Duke of Marlborough in 1722. His home, called Blenheim Palace, was not moden, definitely not small and incidentally was the birthplace of Sir Winston Churchill. Next to it though was the tiny cabin used by Henry David Thoreau at Walden Pond.
The book is organized into four chapters with houses separated by style. The styles he features are:
Organic -- homes made to fit in with the surroundings. This includes both a sensitivity to the site and landscape but also to building materials: stone, timber, adobe.
Verhacular -- Powerful and beautifyl homes that fuse vernacular references and ideas with contemporary demands for open-plan living and flexible spaces.
New Modern --Where new materials and technology bring in innovation with engineering challenges but still preserve a respect for their rural surroundings.
Experimental -- Where anything goes. Well away from the restrictive covenents, building codes and other pressures of society, these are homes that stretch the limits of thematic, structural and let the country be one of the great laboratories of architectural change.
This book provide great photography and descriptions with a selection of houses from around the world.
The book is organized into four chapters with houses separated by style. The styles he features are:
Organic -- homes made to fit in with the surroundings. This includes both a sensitivity to the site and landscape but also to building materials: stone, timber, adobe.
Verhacular -- Powerful and beautifyl homes that fuse vernacular references and ideas with contemporary demands for open-plan living and flexible spaces.
New Modern --Where new materials and technology bring in innovation with engineering challenges but still preserve a respect for their rural surroundings.
Experimental -- Where anything goes. Well away from the restrictive covenents, building codes and other pressures of society, these are homes that stretch the limits of thematic, structural and let the country be one of the great laboratories of architectural change.
This book provide great photography and descriptions with a selection of houses from around the world.
10 of 11 people found the following review helpful
A good start on the typology of the country house
29 May 2007
Format:Paperback
Impressions on the title alone, the name of the book is initially a little misleading; the term "country house" conjuring up imagery of a vanished way of life of servants and English manors rather than a building type. However, the contemporary image on the cover and the 208 pages throughout the book powerfully re-affirm that all of the houses featured are simply new and in the country.
Bradbury presents 30 case studies which span 4 continents in an attempt to highlight good rural design and celebrates how architects worldwide have sought to reinterpret and reinvent the genre of the country house in a contemporary fashion. He does this by breaking the book into 4 thematic chapters; choosing to categorize the case studies into topics such as organic, vernacular, new modern and experimental.
Most case studies featured have a devoted 6 pages of text each accompanied by large colour pictures. Plans and sections are also included with a majority of the case studies which adds to the further understanding of the buildings.
The chapters follow an introduction in the book that provides a concise synopsis on the history of the country house, charting the development of country houses worldwide from Blenheim's Palace to Throreau's hut. It further enriches this topic by analyzing the notion of the country house and the symbolic weight that has been associated with it throughout literature and historical connotation, from the `sprawling classical country house' to the more modest modern inspired `bucolic retreat'.
I suppose that by publishing this book Bradbury is trying to argue that contemporary design of this building typology can achieve good outcomes and perhaps was conceived in response to Britain's strict and archaic planning laws that make it hard for this design to be possible.
Bradbury also places a strong emphasis on ESD principles and a presents a romanticized relationship with the landscape. This book has been targeted at a mainstream audience that possess an interest in architecture or design. It is quite similar to the glossy publications with titles like Small Spaces, Poolside Architecture etc. that profile a genre in housing.
Bradbury has written a number of books before regarding architecture and his writings are concise and intelligent, yet easy to follow. With so many examples being provided around the world, it is questionable to say how representative a sample this is of the contemporary country house for the scholar, but considering there are few publications profiling the genre at present it is a very good start. It is easy to be seduced by the chosen collection of inspiring projects from some of the world's best architects.
Bradbury presents 30 case studies which span 4 continents in an attempt to highlight good rural design and celebrates how architects worldwide have sought to reinterpret and reinvent the genre of the country house in a contemporary fashion. He does this by breaking the book into 4 thematic chapters; choosing to categorize the case studies into topics such as organic, vernacular, new modern and experimental.
Most case studies featured have a devoted 6 pages of text each accompanied by large colour pictures. Plans and sections are also included with a majority of the case studies which adds to the further understanding of the buildings.
The chapters follow an introduction in the book that provides a concise synopsis on the history of the country house, charting the development of country houses worldwide from Blenheim's Palace to Throreau's hut. It further enriches this topic by analyzing the notion of the country house and the symbolic weight that has been associated with it throughout literature and historical connotation, from the `sprawling classical country house' to the more modest modern inspired `bucolic retreat'.
I suppose that by publishing this book Bradbury is trying to argue that contemporary design of this building typology can achieve good outcomes and perhaps was conceived in response to Britain's strict and archaic planning laws that make it hard for this design to be possible.
Bradbury also places a strong emphasis on ESD principles and a presents a romanticized relationship with the landscape. This book has been targeted at a mainstream audience that possess an interest in architecture or design. It is quite similar to the glossy publications with titles like Small Spaces, Poolside Architecture etc. that profile a genre in housing.
Bradbury has written a number of books before regarding architecture and his writings are concise and intelligent, yet easy to follow. With so many examples being provided around the world, it is questionable to say how representative a sample this is of the contemporary country house for the scholar, but considering there are few publications profiling the genre at present it is a very good start. It is easy to be seduced by the chosen collection of inspiring projects from some of the world's best architects.
broad range of styles, photos need better color correcting
19 Feb 2011
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
Lots of floor plans and cross sections. The photos contain a lot of information however the image/color quality is a bit off - some photos have a green tint to them, others are contrasty. For the price not bad - but better eye to detail would have been appreciated.
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