How Buildings Learn: What Happens After They're Built Reprint Edition

by Stewart Brand (Author)

67 customer reviews

ISBN-13: 978-0140139969

ISBN-10: 0140139966

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Buildings have often been studies whole in space, but never before have they been studied whole in time. How Buildings Learn is a masterful new synthesis that proposes that buildings adapt best when constantly refined and reshaped by their occupants, and that architects can mature from being artists of space to becoming artists of time.

From the connected farmhouses of New England to I.M. Pei's Media Lab, from "satisficing" to "form follows funding," from the evolution of bungalows to the invention of Santa Fe Style, from Low Road military surplus buildings to a High Road English classic like Chatsworth—this is a far-ranging survey of unexplored essential territory.

More than any other human artifacts, buildings improve with time—if they're allowed to. How Buildings Learn shows how to work with time rather than against it.

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Editorial Reviews

Review

"It's about time somebody wrote this book. This quirky, thoughtful volume, bursting with curiosity and intelligence, may make our everyday world more visible to more Americans. Architecture is too important to be left to architects alone."
—Mixed Media

"A stunning exploration of the design of design … How Buildings Learn will irrevocably alter yor sense of place, space, and the artifacts that shape them."
—Michael Shrage, Wired

"Penetratingly original."
—Philip Morrison, Scientific American

"An extremely attractive volume that will forever alter the way we respond to the buildings around us. We may also hope it will alter the way architects design buildings."
—Harold Gilliam, San Francisco Chronicle

"A fascinating and indefinable book … How Buildings Learn is a hymn to entropy, a witty, heterodox book dedicated to kicking the stuffing out of the proposition that architecture is permanent and that buildings cannot adapt."
—Stephen Bayley, The Times (London)

"The book's diagnosis is clear and to the poiny, and its illustrations of how buildings change are both fascinating and instructive. This is, in short, one of the rare books that every architect should read."
—Thomas Fisher, editor, Progressive Architecture

"A book of good sound-bites and laser-sharp insight … No architecture students should complete their preliminary studies without reading it from cover to cover."
—Patric Hannay, The Architects' Journal

About the Author

Though honored as a writer—with the National Book Award for the Whole Earth Catalog, Eliot Montroll Award for The Media Lab, Golden Gadfly Award for his years as editor of CoEvolution Quarterly—Steward Brand is primarily an inventor/designer. Trained as a biologist and army officer, he was an early multimedia artist. He has created a number of lasting institutions, including New Games Tournaments, the Hackers Conference, and The WELL, a bellwether computer conference system. He is co-founder of Global Business Network, a futurist research organization fostering "the art of the long view."

Paperback: 256 pages
Publisher: Penguin Books; Reprint edition (October 1, 1995)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0140139966
ISBN-13: 978-0140139969
Product Dimensions: 10.8 x 0.7 x 8.6 inches
Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 67 customer reviews
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #113,770 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #109 in Architectural History
- #21 in Historic Architectural Preservation
- #51 in Architectural Criticism

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John

Buildings + Time. Read!!!

January 24, 2017

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

I checked this book out at the library a long time ago and it completely changed the way I look at houses. Read it and you'll understand why old houses are always more interesting than new ones.

In my case, I bought this book again because I'm planning to build my house in a couple of months and I don't want it to be yet another house that falls apart in 20-30 years because it's useless and/or ugly.

Stewart Brand is thorough and observant, and he has a fascinating perspective on the built world as it relates to time. I will be reading more of his work as soon as I have the time.

4 people found this helpful

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FozzieBear

Best book on software architecture (to say nothing of real architecture) I've ever read.

June 11, 2017

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

Amazing that a book published in the mid-nineties is still garnering regular reviews - this says something about the enduring appeal and quality of Brand's work. I first bought a copy of this book in the mid-nineties, and I've been handing them out to colleagues ever since. To me the book speaks beautifully about architecture and how our built environment evolves, but that's not its real appeal to me. As a computer scientist, I'm fascinated by the more general lessons that can be drawn from this book about complex systems, the interplay between their temporal layers, and how understanding this can lead to better systems designs in a host of fields. I've applied these lessons in areas from software engineering to organisational and cultural change, and my sense is that this book's importance -- like Alexander's Timeless Way of Building -- extends far beyond architecture. If you're involved in evolving organisations, software, towns or buildings, you'll not regret taking the time to read it.

3 people found this helpful

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Jeff B

Valuable read if you are interested in the topic.

December 15, 2017

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

This book is obviously not for everyone, but if you are interested enough in the topic to be reading the reviews, then you will be happy with the purchase. The Author tends to ramble a bit at times, and he makes repeats a few points more than needed, but so far I have gotten a lot out of this, and it has change the way I think about buildings, evolution, and how to judge the merits of a building's design.

I would strongly encourage anyone thinking of building a house to get this book.

One person found this helpful

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Norty

An excellent and enjoyable study in how buildings are designed and ...

March 19, 2015

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

Brand opens the door to the history of renovations, adjustments, and satisficing we do with our buildings. We built the building -- but what if it doesn't fit? What if the halls are too narrow, the atrium too echoey, and the lecture halls tucked out of the way? Why does the roof leak? What happens when technology changes and you have to retrofit data connections into a 300 year old building? Ever try to make a 300 year old building ADA compliant? Brand explores the history of building design, the changes owners make to their buildings, the strategies buildings take in longevity (flexible vs historic monument), and the 6 layers that make up a facility: Site, Structure, Services, Space Plan, Stuff, and Skin. An excellent and enjoyable study in how buildings are designed and how they change.

5 people found this helpful

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Chip Sams

essential reading for anyone involved in facility planning or operation

February 13, 2008

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

I am an acoustical and systems design consultant who specializes in worship and performing arts facilities, and use this book regularly in my practice. I have found no better resource for introducing the facility planning "layperson" to the enormous blind-spot that many in the architectural design and construction profession have regarding the relevance of buildings to the functional needs that should define their design, as well as the ongoing process of maintaining this relevance over time.

While highly specialized rooms such as auditoria do not usually lend themselves to significant modification over time, or to strategies such as "loose fit," Brand's advice about the risk of architectural experimentation in the fundamental form of most buildings is spot on. This book is an extremely engaging read, and also serves as an excellent introduction to other key literature on architectural programming, scenario planning, the evolution of the architectural profession, and so forth.

As other reviewers have suggested, anyone who lives or works in a building can profit from reading this book. I would add that anyone who works in the construction or facility management industries, or who expects to be involved in planning a building project from the perspective of the owner or user, has a duty to seek out the sort of education that this book provides.

5 people found this helpful

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Sam Stern

Perfect combination of deep research and accessible writing

August 27, 2017

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

This book is incredible! Timeless, well researched, fascinating throughout.

2 people found this helpful

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Amazon Customer

The best coffee-table book ever written

May 6, 2017

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

Can't describe how much this book still impresses me. It's clever, sustains interest, perfectly logical and perfectly illustrated. A meaningful topic, treated with grace and humor--a work of genius. The perfect balance of learning something new while enjoying every square centimeter of print.

2 people found this helpful

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Mary K.

This is a great book!

February 18, 2019

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

We were pleased to get a used copy in such good condition (my husband keeps giving copies away). We often find ourselves referring back to illustrations and insights from the book.

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How Buildings Learn: What Happens After They're Built Reprint Edition

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