On August 19, 1418, a competition concerning Florence's magnificent new cathedral, Santa Maria del Fiore--already under construction for more than a century--was announced: "Whoever desires to make any model or design for the vaulting of the main Dome....shall do so before the end of the month of September." The proposed dome was regarded far and wide as all but impossible to build: not only would it be enormous, but its original and sacrosanct design shunned the flying buttresses that supported cathedrals all over Europe. The dome would literally need to be erected over thin air. Of the many plans submitted, one stood out--a daring and unorthodox solution to vaulting what is still the largest dome (143 feet in diameter) in the world. It was offered not by a master mason or carpenter, but by a goldsmith and clockmaker named Filippo Brunelleschi, then forty-one, who would dedicate the next twenty-eight years to solving the puzzles of the dome's construction. In the process, he did nothing less than reinvent

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.

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Glasgow Style: The life and work of Glasgow School pioneer, Charles Rennie Mackintosh Scottish architect, designer, and painter Charles Rennie Mackintosh (1868?1928) was one of the earliest pioneers of modern architecture and design. While he never received major recognition in his hometown of Glasgow, his bold new blend of simplicity and poetic details inspired modernists across Europe . Mackintosh?s avant-garde approach embraced a variety of media as well as fresh stylistic devices. His multi-faceted oeuvre incorporated architecture, furniture, graphic design, landscapes, and flower studies . He embraced strong lines, elegant proportions, and natural motifs, combining a healthy dose of japonisme with a modernist sensibility for function. He preferred bold black typography , restrained shapes, and tall, generous windows suffusing rooms with light. Mackintosh?s projects in Glasgow include the famous Willow Tearooms , the private residences Windyhill and The Hill House, and the Mackintosh Buildi

Founded in Weimar in 1919, the Bauhaus school developed a revolutionary approach that fused fine art with craftsmanship and engineering in everything from architecture to furniture, typography, and even theater. Originally headed by Walter Gropius, the Bauhaus counted among its members artists and architects such as Paul Klee, Lyonel Feininger, Wassily Kandinsky, Laszlo Moholy-Nagy, and Marcel Breuer. In 1930, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe took over as the leader, but soon after, in 1933, the Nazi government shut down the school. During its fourteen years of existence, Bauhaus managed to change the faces of art, architecture, and industrial design forever and is still hugely influential today.,

show up to 2 reviews by default Widely thought to be the greatest American architect, Frank Lloyd Wright (1867-1959) was a true pioneer, both artistically and technically. At a time when reinforced concrete and steel were considered industrial building materials, Wright boldly made use of them to build private homes. His prairie house concept - that of a low, sprawling home based upon a simple L or T figure - was the driving force behind some of his most famous houses and became a model for rural architecture across America. Wright's designs for office and public buildings were equally groundbreaking and unique. From Fallingwater to New York's Guggenheim Museum, his works are among the most famous in the history of architecture.

Successful interior design requires the resolution of a multitude of problems, from views and connections to lighting and furnishing. In this book interior designer Anthony Sully provides a conceptual approach to analysing structure, function, space and light, and styling forms. Each topic is divided into graspable elements, making this an accessible text for students and a useful handbook for experienced practitioners wishing to recharge their batteries. ,

show up to 2 reviews by default Born Charles-Edouard Jeanneret, Le Corbusier (1887-1965) adopted his famous pseudonym after publishing his ideas in the review L'Esprit Nouveau in 1920. The few buildings he was able to design during the 1920s, when he also spent much of his time painting and writing, brought him to the forefront of modern architecture. But it was not until after World War II that his epoch-making buildings were constructed, such as the Unite d'Habitation apartment complex in Marseilles, and the chapel of Notre Dame du Haut in Ronchamp.

Architect Albert Frey (1903-1998) saw modernist utopia in the desert. Born in Zurich, he studied in Europe with Le Corbusier before moving to the United States in 1930, convinced it was the land of architectural opportunity. On a visit to Palm Springs, he fell under the desert spell. It was here, amid the arid and empty landscape, that he could truly envisage a perfect modern future.Like fellow Californian luminary, John Lautner, Frey would spend the rest of his career nurturing the consonance of architecture and nature: studying the fall of sunlight and rain, merging aluminium, steel, and glass with the boulders and sands of the West Coast wilds. His vision centered in particular on Palm Springs, capitalizing on the city's post-war population boom to create a bastion of the sleek, leisurely modernism that defines mid-century California.,

Saving space: Big ideas for small buildings Over the years, talented architects have occasionally indulged themselves with the challenge of designing small but perfectly formed buildings . Today, with reduced budgets, many architects have turned in a more focused way to creating works that may be diminutive in their dimensions, but are definitely big when it comes to trendsetting ideas. Whether in Japanese cities, where large sites are hard to come by, or at the frontier between art and architecture, small buildings present many advantages, and push their designers to do more with less . A dollhouse for Calvin Klein in New York, a playhouse for children in Trondheim, pop-up stores for fashion stars, vacation cabins, and housing for victims of natural disasters are all part of the new rush to develop the great small architecture of the moment. The 2013 Pritzker Prize winner Toyo Ito is here, but so are emergent architects from Portugal, Chile, England, and New Zealand. Alvaro Siza and Kazuyo Sejima (SAN

As the designs in this book show, Asia's most successful decorators have worked wonders with bathrooms. Here you'll find artfully arranged tubs and basins, shower curtains adjusted just so for perfect coloring, and glass panels placed at intriguing geometric angles. These brilliant strategies prove that astute decorators consider the bathroom as important as any other room. Shot entirely on location, Contemporary Asian Bathrooms presents the newest trends emerging in Asian home design. Gorgeous full-color photographs showcase the sexy new look and fantasy appeal of today's bathrooms. The book includes page after page of one-of-a-kind indoor and outdoor bathroom designs in 50 luxury homes and hotels across Southeast Asia, ranging from the minimalist to the exotic, and exclusive city penthouses to rural country homes. This book offers homeowners new ideas for showers, tubs, fixtures, tiles and lighting that will inspire a new approach to modern bathing. ,