Warm, inviting, embracing the indoor-outdoor lifestyle with a touch of the exotic, tropical modern homes are a dream of paradise realized. Contemporary tropical residential architecture has risen from a geographically specific homegrown aesthetic to a source of inspiration for the world s great modern architects and designers. Set in exotic locales, with pools, lush foliage, colorful gardens, these homes define a way of life. Frequently elegant and uncluttered, the houses serve as models of smart and beautiful design with lots of ideas for homeowners who do not necessarily live in a tropical or subtropical climate, but who wish to have something of that appeal and sensitivity in their own home. This book presents some of the most innovative interpretations of the genre from the past five years by internationally recognized architects and interior decorators, such as Tadao Ando, as well the work of young up-and-comers of great talent, including German-born, Bali-based Alexis Dornier, and Mexico s Roof

This book aspires to create a wide perspective on the various trends in current Finnish office architecture, from traditional brick buildings to the imaginative glazed towers and glass facades today. Featuring 14 contemporary buildings -- a selection of the very best of Finnish office architecture from the present century -- these buildings show that modern Finnish office architecture represents cutting-edge high-technology with a humane and caring aspect.

Growing numbers of us work not only from home, but from anywhere; job flexibility has become a key requirement for employers and workers alike. This, in turn, has created new challenges for architects and designers many of whom themselves start out working from home who are tackling demand head on with innovative solutions that allow clients to transform their spaces to suit a wide range of needs, from multifunctional studios to homes that seamlessly combine work and family life. Divided into five thematic sections, this book explores the exciting variety of ways that the workplace can be integrated into the domestic environment. From stand-alone multifunctional furniture to mobile room dividers and dynamic solutions that fold out or pop up to create new work areas, each design addresses the unique needs of the space, client and working practices for which it was required, and tackles new questions about the rapidly evolving relationship between work and domestic life in the 21st century. This es

show up to 2 reviews by default Wherever they go, anyone who visits Barcelona today will come across the works of Spanish architect Antoni Gaudi (1852-1926), the architect who has attracted art-lovers from all over the world to Spain. It was there, in the capital of Catalonia, that the famous master of architecture produced nearly all of his works. Raised during the Industrial Revolution, Gaudi strove to distinguish and reaffirm the identity of his native Catalonia as Spain and the rest of Europe modernized. Early neo-Gothic designs were the stepping-stone to the mature, original style that came to be synonymous with his name. Incorporating bold colors and odd bits of material into his designs, Gaudi created inspiring, visionary buildings and helped establish Barcelona (most notably with the still-unfinished Sagrada Familia cathedral) as a city of the world.

TASCHEN's Great Adventure began back in 1980, when eighteen-year-old Benedikt Taschen opened a shop in his native Cologne,Germany, to market his massive comics collection. Within a year he began publishing catalogs promoting his wares, but it wasn't until 1984 that his first art-book breakthrough occurred: he purchased 40,000 remainder copies of a Magritte book printed in English,reselling them for a fraction of their original price. From a young age, Taschen had been interested in art but found that art books were too expensive and hard to obtain, and the success of this daring move proved that Taschen was not alone in thinking that the art-book market should be democratized. Soon he began reprinting books under his own name for budget prices and the next year he published his first original title and the first book in the Basic Artseries: Picasso. Before long, high-quality-yet-still-inexpensive hard-cover books were added to the lineup and in 1989 the landmark double-jumbo Van Gogh: The Complete Painting

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To Alvar Aalto life, art, architecture, and creativity were inseparable from everyday work. When developing ideas or researching a design challenge he moved as easily in the world of natural sciences as he did in the world of art. This remarkable book celebrates the 1998 centenary of Alvar Aalto's birth. It is not the most comprehensive book on his work, but it is without question the most sumptuous and poetic. 23 projects from different decades are featured, ranging from private houses to public buildings. The text, written by Marku Lahtti, director of the Alvar Alto Museum, intelligently complements the photographic genius of Maija Holma, whose bold images capture the finest details of Aalto's structures and interiors. Works include Finland Hall, Helsinki; Art Museum, Aalborg, Denmark; Helsinki University of Technology, Helsinki; House of Culture, Helsinki; Villa Mairea, Noormarkku; and Aalto's own house in Helsinki. Alvar Aalto - A Gentler Structure for Life is a visual feast and featur