Constructing Architecture: Materials, Processes, Structures [Paperback]

Andrea Deplazes (Editor), G. H. Söffker (Translator)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 3764371897 | ISBN-13: 978-3764371890 | Publication Date: October 1, 2005 | Edition: 1

This internationally prizewinning volume now appears in its second, revised and expanded edition. Since the first edition was published in 2005, it has been adopted as a textbook at many universities.

Organized into chapters on "Raw Materials/Building Materials (Modules)," "Building Components (Elements)," "Building Methods (Structures)," and "Buildings (Examples)," the book now includes a new section on translucent materials and an article on the use of glass. The chapter on "Building Elements" now includes a discussion of facades, and the chapter on "Structures" has been expanded to cover "Principles of Space Creation." The examples section now includes extensive documentation of current projects whose systematic character is oriented around the production process.

Experience with the preceding edition has shown that the book has become an indispensable handbook for reference and reading not only for students and teachers but also for architects.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Andrea Deplazes is a professor of architecture and construction at the Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule (ETH) Zürich (Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich). As co-owner of the architectural firm Bearth + Deplazes in Chur, Switzerland, his renown extends far beyond Switzerland’s borders.

Product Details

• Paperback: 512 pages
• Publisher: Birkhäuser Basel; 1 edition (October 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 3764371897
• ISBN-13: 978-3764371890
• Product Dimensions: 11.7 x 9.5 x 1.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #842,164 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Essential book for architecture students and teachers, June 11, 2006

By 

J. I. Azpiazu "Ignacio Azpiazu" (New York, NY & Buenos Aires, Argentina) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Constructing Architecture: Materials, Processes, Structures (Paperback)

The English title might be misleading--this book is not about 'construction', but rather about what the Germans call Baukunst, the art of construction, or the art of 'putting buildings together', considering the spatial order as an inseparable part of that putting things together.
The book provides a structured approach to the basics of contemporary architectural composition, several essays introducing fundamental concepts and giving you the bibliography to go into them in detail (the key part is making them all fit into an overall framework, and pointing at the sources that normally take years to discover), and illustrate several remarkable buildings in remarkable detail, with excellent descriptions reaching a depth and quality of analysis unfortunately missing in typical architectural publications.
Andrea Deplazes, the editor and author or co-author of many of the articles, teaches at the Zurich ETH (and I would guess the same must be true for the authors of most of the other articles), which for well over a hundred years has been one of the few true schools of architecture in the world. The book glows with the power of this accumulated knowledge developed in a true academic environment since the times of Semper. It also gives a glimpse at how the ETH consistently produces first class ordinary architecture, and for that matter first class extraordinary architecture too.
This book will be of huge value to every architecture student, teacher, and architectural designer. I bought it by a fortunate mistake --I thought a construction book from the ETH was sure to be an excellent reference book on technology, and the mail delivered a treasure trove of architectural knowledge instead.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great resource, March 19, 2006

By 

Diana "Diana" (Michigan) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Constructing Architecture: Materials, Processes, Structures (Hardcover)

I purchased this book for a construction class and as an architecture student, I find it very helpful. The book is not a construction how-to and the images are not very detailed nor are any of the images in color, but it is a compilation of a variety of architectural examples that use different or innovative construction methods. A great supplement to a studio course for inspiration and incorporating interesting structure into projects.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The best student foundation book, June 11, 2007

By 

curt dilger (phila usa) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Constructing Architecture: Materials, Processes, Structures (Paperback)

I have reviewed many attempts at a comprehensive description of the complex subject of architecture, and this is the best. This book is far better than the exhaustively recommended Francis Ching (all due respect), and even better than Unwin's Architectural Notebook, which is also excellent. This is the very first book I would recommend for any serious architecture student. It covers tectonics and construction in elegant detail but, even more importantly, this book delves into the conceptual intentions behind the tectonics, at every scale. Telling examples, well chosen, illuminate the ideas, and the case studies feature some of the finest contemporary architecture in the world today. Simply the best.