Synopses & Reviews
Architects, building officials, contractors and other practitioners in fields related to the built environment often engage in their particular tasks as if they existed in splendid isolation from larger contexts. Seemingly discrete tasks, such as the design and construction of a shopping centre, are easy to deal with there is a beginning and an end, there are codes and guidelines to follow and when the task is over they can move on to the next one. However it is increasingly evident that every aspect of the built environment is indeed part of a larger context. No action or element exists in isolation from a larger web of activity. The challenge for educators in this field is to nurture in students an awareness of the range and interconnectedness of elements and processes that contribute to the built environment. This book aims to order the issues involved. Within the context of this general study, there are two issues whose importance deserves to be given special emphasis. The first of these is information technology the effects of which on the operations of business, government and society have yet to be properly understood. The second issue is that of the protection of our natural heritage. The impact of the world's six billion inhabitants on the environment is clearly critical but by and large does not inform the actions of most design professionals. This textbook is a tool for better work in the built environment. It points to the experiences of others from which we can learn. Its objective is to introduce the range of issues involved in the analysis, design and production of the built environment, emphasizing the interaction between these issues.
Review
"It provides a fully international account." (Architectural Design, January 2001)
"a very useful compilation of texts" (www.arplus.com October 2001)
"…an enjoyable collection of papers…easily digested…" (Centre for Education in the Built Environment, 15 October 2002)
Synopsis
Brings together many of the world's leading names from the UK, USA, Europe, and Asia. this is the first book to fully reflect the move towards a more synthetic approach in professional and student courses.
About the Author
Paul Knox is University Distinguished Professor and Dean of the College of Architecture and Urban Studies at Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University, where he teaches courses on Urbanization and Urban Theory. He is the author of several successful textbooks, including Places & Regions in Global Context (with Sallie Marston, Prentice Hall, 2000), Urban Social Geography (with Steven Pinch, 4th edition, Prentice Hall, 2000). The Geography of the World Economy (with John Agnew, 3rd edition, Arnold 1998), World Cities in a World-System (co-edited with Peter Taylor, Cambridge University Press, 1995) Urbanization (Prentice Hall, 1994) and The Restless Urban Landscape (Prentice Hall, 1992). He is also co-editor for the World Cities series (Wiley).
Peter Ozolins is a practising architect in Blacksburg, Virginia. He is also a PhD candidate in Environmental Design & Planning at Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University, where he has taught an introductory course on the factors that influence the design and production of architecture. Professional activities include consulting for UNESCO and USAID on architectural and ecological issues in the Middle East, as well as in Madagascar and Tanzania, where he practised for nine years prior to the commencement of his doctoral studies.
Table of Contents
List of Contributors.
Preface.
OVERVIEW AND BACKGROUND.
The Built Environment (P. Knox, P. Ozolins).
The Political Economy of the Built Environment (Olpadwala).
Political Economic Theory and the Built Environment (R. King).
The Design Profession (D. Cuff).
A Conceptual Framework for Understanding the Designer's Role: Technician, Artist and Cultivator? (L. Groat).
Challenge and Response: Architecture and Urban Change (P. Knox P. Ozolins).
ANALYSIS.
Information Technology (W. Mitchell).
Building Ecology: Place, People, and Pulse (S. Van der Ryn).
Case Study: Real Goods (S. Van der Ryn).
Ethics and the Built Environment (G. Rockcastle).
The Postmodern Built Environment (N. Ellin).
Utopia versus Dystopia: Contradictory Images of the City (J. Goss).
Public Space in the City (A. Madanipour).
Case Study: Old San Juan, Puerto Rico (T. L?pez-Pumarejo).
Urbanization and Society (S. Musterd, M. Langemeijer).
Third World Urban Development (N. Teymur).
The Cinematic City (J. Goss).
People and the Built Environment (S. Mazumdar).
DESIGN AND PLANNING.
The Nature of Design and Planning (D. Grant).
Utopias (R. Freestone).
Design and Planning at the Intersection of Politics and the Environment (R. Dyck).
Aesthetics and the Built Environment (B. Cold).
The Design Professional in Service to the Community (S. Piedmont-Palladino).
Exploration and Expression (R. Dorgan).
Modernism and the Problem of Continuity (D. Rattner).
Case Study: The Jewish Museum (D. Rattner).
The Challenge of Affordable Housing and Sustainability (R. Burnham).
Case Study: The Architect and Self-help Housing in Community-based Settlements (R. Burnham).
Security by Design (D. Zahm).
The Architecture of Empowerment (I. Serageldin).
Public and Environmental Art (M. Miles).
PRODUCTION.
The Building Industry and the Building Process (S. Gruneberg).
Regulation and Control (J. Punter).
The Design Professions and the Law (R. Greenstreet).
Technology and Process (C. Abel).
Environmental Management in Project Design (C. Pilvang).
The Impact of Global Business Issues on Design and Construction (R. Flanagan).
Index.