RIBA Bookshops: latest books about Architects, Designers and their Work

Peter Zumthor 1986-2013: Buildings and Projects

Peter Zumthor unarguably ranks among the most important contemporary architects. He is revered worldwide for the stringency of his architectural concepts, the clarity of his designs, his sensitivity for location and context, and for his conscious and careful use of materials. He is celebrated for the pure and atmospheric spaces he has created, such as Therme Vals (Vals, Switzerland), Kolumba Art Museum (Cologne, Germany), or in 2011 the Serpentine Gallery Pavilion in London, Hortus Conclusus. Yet his lesser known residential buildings in Switzerland or the Steilneset Memorial for the Victims of the Witch Trials in Vardø (Norway) have also won great acclaim from architectural critics.

Zumthor is much admired by students and teachers of architecture alike for his philosophical approach to the task of building and for his writings on architectural thought. Peter Zumthor 1986-2012 is the first comprehensive monograph on Zumthor's work in more than fifteen years. Around 40 of his buildings and unrealised projects are presented in detail with brief descriptive texts by Zumthor himself, with photographs, sketches, drawings and plans. A complete list of works 1979-2012 rounds out the book. Photographs are contributed by Hélène Binet, Hans Danuser and others.

Thomas Durisch, born 1963 in Minneapolis, graduated as an architect from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich (ETH Zurich) in 1990. He has been working at Peter Zumthor's studio from 1990-94 and runs his own practice in Zürich since 1995. He was curator of the exhibition Peter Zumthor: Bauten und Projekte 1986 2007 at Kunsthaus Bregenz in 2007.

Peter Zumthor, born 1943 in Basel (Switzerland), trained as a cabinet maker and was educated as designer and architect at the College of Applied Arts in Basel and the Pratt Institute in New York. He runs his own architectural studio in Haldenstein (Switzerland) since 1979. He is also been lecturing at the Academy of Architecture of the Università della Svizzera italiana in Mendrisio (Switzerland) and various universities and colleges in Europe and the US. Zumthor has also been awarded many prizes for his work, including the highest honours in international architecture: the Praemium Imperiale (Japan, 2008), the Pritzker Prize (USA, 2009), and the Royal Institute of British Architects Royal Gold Medal (UK, 2012).

engeneering 3: Bollinger + Grohmann

For the engineers of Bollinger + Grohmann, it is of central importance to understand design and construction in the planning process as a unit. That is why they see their task as further development and reinforcement of the respective design: in dialogue with the architects and other technical planners – and not least through their knowledge of how to design load-bearing structures. In order for innovative structures to be created, their genesis cannot be based just on structural and mechanical principles, but is instead the product of experience with materials, construction methods and technologies. This examination of interdisciplinary topics, as well as an open and interested consideration of adjacent disciplines, led to the development of an integral planning approach that allows the office to react to the wide range of requirements of worldwide projects. The many spectacular constructions of re- cent years speak for themselves: The limits of feasibility seem to no longer apply, mathematical laws are assigned a new dynamism, and common structures are newly interpreted.

Houses of Maine: Elliottt + Elliott Architecture

Elliot + Elliot Architecture is a Maine-based architectural practice whose careful attention to their surroundings has made for work that resonates strongly even beyond its local context. Residing, working and building along Maine's rugged coast has not only translated into refreshing architectural forms whose roots in tradition are clear, but also into collaborative processes with local builders and artisans, in the spirit of the shipbuilders and craftsmen of Maine's history. Featuring seven of their most emblematic residential projects, Houses of Maine: Elliott + Elliott Architecture demonstrates that, in the right hands, the rough-around-the-edges individualism and harsh natural environment for which this coast is known allow for a balanced, serene, and vernacular architecture whose links with the past create nothing less than a confidently optimistic preview of the region's architectural future.

Young Architects 14: No Precedent

The Architectural League Prize is an annual competition series of lectures, and exhibition organized by the Architectural League and its Young Architects and Designers Committee. The League Prize was established to recognize specific works of high quality and to encourage the exchange of ideas among young people who might otherwise not have a forum. Participants in the program are chosen through a portfolio competition that is juried by distinguished architects, artists and critics, and the Young Architects and Designers Committee. The committee, a group selected each year from past winners of the League Prize, is responsible for developing the program's theme and selecting competition jurors. Open to designers ten years or less out of school, the completion draws entrants from around North America. The lecture series and exhibition by winners of the competition provide a lively public forum for the discussion of their work and ideas.

From Architecture to the City

Arte Charpentier tries to understand the culture of another in the spirit of partnership and to build solutions together that are innovative for tomorrow’s cities, sustainable and sensitive to the needs of man and his environment. It includes architects, urban designers, interior designers and landscape architects, with 130 people worldwide.

Established in 1969, Arte Charpentier Architects has acquired an international reputation. Working for public and private clients, the firm participates in numerous competitions in Europe, the Middle East, the Asian Pacific, China and Africa. The firm is characterized by team spirit, innovation and a respect for local cultures, with particular attention given to the issues of the environment and sustainable development.

2011 Competitions Annual

The 2011 Competitions Annual is a comprehensive volume dedicated to some of the more interesting competitions that have taken place during the past year. This 240 page, full-color book represents a broad spectrum of design competitions that were featured on the COMPETITIONS website (www.competitions.org).

The content includes Kaohsiung Port and Cruise Service Center Terminal Competition, Taiwan; The Serlachius Museum Competition, Finland; A New Mosque and Museum of Tirana & Religious Harmony, Albania; Daytona Museum of Arts and Sciences, Florida; Taipei City Museum of Art; Fargo Urban Infill Competition, USA; The Center for the Promotion of Science, Belgrade; Barge 2011 Design Competition, Boston; New School Vision: Cleveland Design Competition; Fez, Morocco Infill Competition; Laval University School of Architecture “Emblematic Addition”, Quebec; Indianpolis Monument Circle Competition; Gowanus Lowline Ideas Competition, USA; Miami Seaplane Terminal Competition.

Wiel Arets - Bas Princen

The multi-talented architect Wiel Arets (*1955 in Heerrlen) is also known as a designer, author, and editor of many books and series of books, and is a professor at the arts universities in Berlin, Madrid, and Washington. In this publication he links his interest in architecture to a passion for books. This architecturally ambitious book presents about ten projects by Wiel Arets, Architects (WAA), which was founded in 1993 and has branches in Amsterdam, Berlin, Maastricht, and Zurich. At the same time it is a book about the increasing importance of architecture books and their design development in recent decades. The concentrated photographs by Dutch photographer Bas Princen not only capture the atmosphere of the works and buildings, but also convey the impact and powerful symbolism of architecture in its primeval sense, as protective shelter.

Mary McFadden

The first large-format illustrated volume to be published on one of the most fascinating and distinctive American fashion designers of the 20th century, renowned for her elegant and exotic clothing and her adventurous, well-travelled life.

Kuwabara Payne Mckenna Blumberg Architects

Kuwabara Payne McKenna Blumberg Architects, founded in 1987 in Toronto, is one of most innovative architectural offices in North America today. They have made a name for themselves both for their integrated design process embodying collaboration with experts, clients and future users as well as the diversity of their aesthetically refined and finely detailed designs. The work ranges from cultural institutions such as the Toronto International Film Festival and Orchestra Hall in Minneapolis to ecologically innovative concepts such as Manitoba Hydro Place in Winnipeg, developed with leading climate engineers Transsolar of Stuttgart. A respectful approach toward the integration of heritage buildings is also a characteristic feature, illustrated by the designs for the Royal Conservatory and the Gardiner Museum in Toronto. Finally, educational and research facilities are also a strong focus in KPMB’s work exemplified by the Centre for Innovation and Governance Campus in Waterloo, Ontario, and the Joseph L. Rotman School of Management in Toronto, as well as future projects for the Massachusetts Institute for Technology (MIT) and Princeton University in the United States.

Le Corbusier's Secret Laboratory: From Painting to Architecture

Charles-Édouard Jeanneret, known as Le Corbusier, had an unparalleled influence on the design, function, and construction of twentieth-century buildings, both public and residential. In addition, he was an artist and designer-an aspect of his creativity which was somewhat eclipsed by his architectural renown. Le Corbusier had originally intended to be a painter and his early studies were primarily focused on art and decoration. For more than five decades, Le Corbusier oscillated between contradictory poles: his fascination with mechanical objects on the one hand, and his search for poetic form on the other. The intermingling of his more private aesthetic pursuits and his more public works took place in his "secret laboratory," inside his artist's studio. This volume consolidates the diverse facets of his oeuvre, offering a more complete understanding of his paintings, drawings, sculptures, tapestries, furniture, architectural sketches and plans-as well as his books and photographs. In tying together these disparate strands, we gain greater insight into the path of his overall creative evolution. This unified overview is revealing both for scholars of Le Corbusier's work and for all those seeking a better understanding of this exceptionally talented and significant historical figure. The book's five chapters cover a wide spectrum, ranging from the purist paintings and early villas to Le Corbusier's later reinterpretation of his values and his final works.Perhaps the most important visionary of modern architecture, the Swiss-born Le Corbusier (1887-1965) broke new ground in re-imagining residences, workplaces and urban environments-aiming to provide an enhanced quality of life for all-especially for the poorer classes. Prolific and an enthusiastic traveler, his work can be found at locations throughout Europe, India and America.

Zaha Hadid: Heydar Aliyev Centre

Zaha Hadid: Heydar Aliyev Centre is devoted to the new cultural center designed by Zaha Hadid in the Azerbaijani capital of Baku. As one of the most important cultural centers in the country, the building houses a variety of institutions under one roof. With the design, the renowned architect won the architecture competition in 2007. Inside its surface of fibre-glass reinforced concrete the building contains an auditorium that seats over a thousand, a conference center, a museum, and a library. Its open, inviting, and curvilinear design, which picks up and expands on forms from the surrounding environment, strongly differentiates the building from the city's monumental architecture of the Soviet era. Photographs by Helene Binet and Iwan Baan display the building in all of its facets, making it possible for the reader to experience its formal, haptic, and spatial qualities. Essays explain conceptual and technical aspects of this impressive piece of architecture.

Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects

Pelli Clarke Pelli, founded in 1977 by Cesar Pelli, is an architectural office of worldwide renown. They are known in particular for their elegant and technically advanced tower designs. These are usually characterized by taut, seamless envelopes without exposed profiles – their visual structure is achieved by subtly staggered forms or variations in the colour or materiality of the façade glazing. The unusual office structure of Pelli Clarke Pelli informs the work: an almost craft-like perception of architectural design and a close personal relation with the client are typical for their approach. A model-making workshop within the office helps to find the appropriate form. Many projects also fulfil urbanistic roles: They create urban spaces or act as iconic landmarks within the city fabric. The publication encompasses a selection of works from the past eight years. Amongst the documented projects are Bloomberg Tower in New York, Minneapolis Central Library, Transbay Transit Center in San Francisco, National Museum of Art in Osaka, Xiao Bai Lo Tower in Tianjin and Torre Cajasol in Sevilla.

Frank Lloyd Wright Calendar 2013

Le Corbusier: Secret Photographer

In Le Corbusier: Secret Photographer Tim Benton reflects on the famous architect's use of photography, starting with the young Charles-Edouard Jeanneret's attempts to take professional photographs during his travels in central Europe, the Balkans, Turkey, Greece, and Italy. While Le Corbusier always claimed that he saw no virtue in taking photographs, he actually bought three cameras and took several hundred photographs between 1907 and 1917, many of them of publishable quality. In 1936 he acquired a 16mm movie camera and took 120 sequences of film and nearly 6,000 photographs with it. This completely unknown body of material is the basis for the publication. It reveals Le Corbusier to be a sensitive and brilliant manipulator of a range of photographic styles. Le Corbusier: Secret Photographer provides dramatically new insights into Le Corbusier's visual imagination, his changing attitudes towards nature and materials in the 1930s, and his distrust of progress.

Good Design 13

Gute Gestaltung 13 presents prizewinning designs from all disciplines. Whether architecture, corporate design, digital media, graphic fine arts, product design, photo, or fi lm, the works awarded prizes by the Deutscher Designer Club (DDC) in its annual Gute Gestaltung (Good design) competition demonstrate design excellence and skilful use of form. They document the high level of quality maintained by the contributing designers and firms. This book invites comparison, both within and between the various categories, making it a valuable and handy compendium of project assignments and creative solutions.