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Buildings have always been reused but the process of doing so has rarely been treated as a distinct artist discipline. However, a huge amount of press coverage has been devoted to remodelling projects, such as the Tate Modern in London, the Baltic Art Factory in Gateshead, the Grand Louvre pyramid and courtyard in Paris, and the Reichstag in Berlin, to name but a few.

By attracting prestigious architects to its practice, it would appear that remodelling, once the dowdy cousin of the more glamorous architecture, has gained a new respectability. The likes of Foster Associates, Herzog & de Meuron, Carlo Scarpa and Sir John Soane rub shoulders with lesserpknown talents such as DDRM, Paul Keogh Architects and LOT/EK to demonstrate the universatily of the principles of designing new uses for old buildings.

Re-readings responds to remodelling as a distinct discipline, making sense of the considerable structural, aesthetic, environmental, contextual and programmatic challenges of remodelling existing buildings. Illustrated throughout with a rich international portfolio of case studies, it explains the theory behind the way that architects and designers interpret and adapt buildings. It proposes that the complete analysis of the history, fabric and function of a building is key to designing its successful reuse, an exercise that Giancarlo de Carlo called the revelatory capacity of reading. Indeed, this re-reading is the only way to establish a meaningful symbiotic relationship between the new and old. It clarifies the choices of strategies and tactics available to the designer in pursuit of architectural delight by authoritatively breaking this complex process down into a number of straightforward stages.

Filled with images from around the world, Re-readings is a treasure trove of inspirational images from around the world supporting simple design lessons that will enlighten and fire the imagination, providing ample design ammunition for the student and practitioner alike for years to come.