Matter in the Floating World: Conversations with Leading Japanese Architects and Designers [Paperback]

Blaine Brownell (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 9, 2011

It can be argued that Japan contains a higher number of internationally significant architects and designers relative to its geographic size than anywhere else in the world. Japanese designers regularly implement radical experiments in new materials and building systems that successfully address imminent energy and resource challenges. These technological achievements are combined with an acute awareness of the ephemerality of existence, creating a rich dialogue between the concrete and the abstract.

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Princeton Architectural Press (March 9, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1568989962
• ISBN-13: 978-1568989969
• Product Dimensions: 7 x 0.8 x 9.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #814,056 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Blaine Brownell is an architect, author, educator, and former Fulbright scholar. He earned a B.A. in Architecture with a Certificate in East Asian Studies at Princeton University in 1992, and a Master in Architecture from Rice University in 1998. He worked with Yung-Ho Chang, Mark Wamble, and NBBJ before establishing the design/research practice Transstudio, which focuses on disruptive material applications and emergent environmental building strategies. Brownell is considered one of the preeminent scholars of advanced materials for architecture and design, having authored the Transmaterial series with Princeton Architectural Press (2006-2010), in addition to an online material catalog that has been likened to "a 21st Century version of The Grammar of Ornament." Brownell has been published in over forty design, business, and science journals, and has lectured widely in North America, Europe, and Japan. He was selected for a "40 Under 40" award by Building Design & Construction magazine in 2006, and Transmaterial was nominated for an International Book Award by the Royal Institute of British Architects in 2007. Brownell was a visiting research fellow at the Tokyo University of Science as a Fulbright recipient (2006-07), and has taught at the University of Michigan (2007-08) and the University of Minnesota (2008-present).

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars As a gift December 10, 2012

By Jennifer Williams

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

My son is an interior architect and was delighted to find this book under our Christmas tree. He was surprised I chose so well - I had to get lucky eventually!