Customer Reviews

Wiel Arets: Works and Projects

5 star:		(0)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is not a bad book by most standards, however, I will admit there is little exciting or provocative about it. The book follows a very "safe" linear/ chronological organization that one might expect to find when reading a firm profile; however it makes for a far less thoughtful reading experience than books that have published W. Arets' ideas about architecture (which include An Alabaster Skin and Strange Bodies , I think both out of print, leaving Works, Projects, Writings as the best available book in my opinion.)

Here's the dilemma this book presents me as a reviewer. It is an educational book about W. Arets work in that it provides brief statements about each project and talks about his story in the preface; yet it is not truly educational about the complete thoughtfulness of the work. While the heavily used computer renderings in this book show what his buildings look like, they fail to capture the depth that is better communicated through analog/ hand drawings and photography of the work I've seen in other sources.

While it fringes on a three star book, in the realm of other available Arets publications, I cannot say that it a mere "C" grade in the realm of books as a wider spectrum. Therefore it is a four star book because it has value on my bookshelf; serving as a direct illumination concerning the profession's involvement with the computers (because I can compare it to the other books.) A tough call, if you had just one book to buy on Artes maybe you should pick one of the others, unless you're a prospective client or if you really don't care about reading architectural his theories.