Material Transfers: Metaphor, Craft, and Place in Contemporary Architecture

Françoise Bollack's book explores the connections between contemporary expression in architecture and traditional materials and forms, rejecting the modernist taboo against imitation and precedent. It features eighteen projects by renowned architects, including Kengo Kuma, MVRDV, Lacaton & Vassal, and Herzog & de Meuron, that reinterpret traditional forms and materials in intriguing and radical ways.

Format: Hardback
Length: 224 pages
Publication date: 15 December 2020
Publisher: Monacelli Press

Françoise Bollack, an architect, architectural historian, and preservationist, delves into a thought-provoking exploration of the intricate connections between contemporary architectural expression and traditional materials and forms. Through the presentation of eighteen captivating projects, Bollack challenges the modernist taboo against imitation and precedent, tracing the rich history of adaptive and imitative design from the Renaissance to the Greek and Gothic revivals, and even to the nineteenth-century modular cast-iron facades considered the foundation of modern design by Philip Johnson. This comprehensive book examines projects across the United States, Europe, and Japan, encompassing a diverse array of building types, including residential, hospitality, commercial, and retail spaces, as well as cultural venues. What sets these projects apart is their audacious and radical approach to reinterpreting traditional forms and materials. From humble thatch extending beyond the farmhouse roof to adorn the walls of a Danish environmental center, to a photographic image of a Parisian façade transformed into a scrim on the façade of a new building, to the ghost of an ancient Italian basilica outlined in wire mesh, Bollack showcases a myriad of innovative and unconventional approaches. Featured architects in this captivating book include renowned figures such as Kengo Kuma, the architect behind the Tokyo 2021 Olympic stadium; MVRDV, a highly esteemed Dutch firm; Lacaton & Vassal and Chartier/Corbasson in France; Skene Catling de la Peña in the United Kingdom; Morris Adjmi in the United States; Max Dudler in Germany; Dortre Mandrup in Denmark; and Herzog & de Meuron in Switzerland. Each project showcases the unique talents and vision of these architects as they push the boundaries of traditional architectural practices, creating stunning and transformative spaces that redefine the relationship between tradition and modernity in the field of architecture.

Weight: 952g
Dimension: 209 x 264 x 22 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781580935432