Elemental: the Visionary Architecture Firm – A spectacular, visually rich monograph on one of the most visionary architecture firms of the twenty-first century led by 2016 Pritzker Prize-winner Alejandro Aravena. Elemental, based in Santiago, Chile, epitomizes a new generation of pioneering, socially engaged architects. The firm specializes in innovative, powerful, and humane public-interest projects, working on both large and small scales across Chile, the United States, Mexico, Switzerland, and China. Featuring stunning images by renowned architectural photographers together with sketches and drawings from Aravena’s personal notebooks, this book beautifully, often irreverently, displays Elemental’s unique working methods and philosophy. Each project – from iconic structures like the Anacleto Angelini UC Innovation Centre to seaside residences and pioneering reconstruction plans – is accompanied by Aravena’s engaging texts, bringing to life his understanding of civil society and the built environment. From the publisher of Snarkitecture, Grafton Architects and Concrete. Chilean-based Alejandro Aravena established his own practice in 1994. From 2000 until 2005, he taught at Harvard University, where he founded Elemental with Andrés Iacobelli. In 2010 he was granted membership as an International Fellow of RIBA. He curated the 2016 Venice Biennale, and in the same year received the Pritzker Prize. Source: Taschen  …

Inspiring Architectural Drawings from Antiquity to the Present – An elegant presentation of stunning and inspiring architectural drawings from antiquity to the present day. Throughout history, architects have relied on drawings both to develop their ideas and communicate their vision to the world. This gorgeous collection brings together more than 250 of the finest architectural drawings of all time, revealing each architect’s process and personality as never before. Creatively paired to stimulate the imagination, the illustrations span the centuries and range from sketches to renderings, simple to intricate, built projects to a utopian ideal, famous to rarely seen – a true celebration of the art of architecture. Visually paired images draw connections and contrasts between architecture from different times, styles, and places. From Michelangelo to Frank Gehry, Louise Bourgeois to Tadao Ando, B.V. Doshi to Zaha Hadid, and Grafton to Luis Barragán, the book shows the incredible variety and beauty of architectural drawings. Drawing Architecture is ideal for art and architecture lovers alike, as well as anyone interested in the intersection of creativity and history. From the publisher of Exhibit A: Exhibitions that Transformed Architecture, 1948-2000. Trained and registered as an architect, Helen Thomas spent 10 years as a senior…

50 Architect-Designed Houses that Reflects Contemporary Life Desert – A carefully curated and beautifully photographed selection of 50 architect-designed houses that reflects contemporary concerns about the unique challenges presented by life in the desert’s sensitive environment. The desert provides a sense of mystery and rugged beauty that attracts architects, home owners, vacationers, and anyone looking for an escape within its arid climate. This book showcases 50 works of residential architecture from across the last few decades, each with a unique connection to the desert in which it’s situated from the US, Europe, Asia, Australia and beyond. Each building, designed by established and well-known contemporary stars as well as emerging architects, includes a short text and several exterior and interior images of its structure and surroundings. “A stunning selection of houses and resorts (each sleeker and more inventive than the next).”—Vogue Online Source: Taschen   Best Design Books brings a genuine and inspirational thinking about the best design books in the world.From diverse disciplines and points of view, it gathers people like you – creative professionals, style arbiters, industry leaders – design enthusiasts across the world with one common idea: discovering great design books. The blog brings the most forward-thinking projects in…

Mid-Century Modern Architecture Travel Guide: East Coast USA – A curated list of more than 250 must-see destinations organized geographically from Maine to Florida. Featuring architecture by some of the biggest Mid-Century names, including Mies van der Rohe, Marcel Breuer, Eero Saarinen, and Philip Johnson, each of the more than 250 buildings is located on a regional map. The book includes all the additional information needed to find and visit each building. Its cool and functional design makes this book a coveted Modernist-style object in itself. Including icons from The Met Breuer to the fabulous beach houses of Fire Island, private homes in Connecticut, Manhattan skyscrapers, and the Tropical Modern residences of Sarasota, Florida, it is a must-have guide to one of the most fertile and lesser-known regions for the development of Mid-Century Modern architecture. From the publisher of Mid-Century Modern Architecture Travel Guide: West Coast USA. Sam Lubell is a contributing editor at the Architect’s Newspaper, a staff writer for Wired, and a regular contributor to the New York Times and Travel+Leisure, among others. He has written four books about architecture, including California Captured and Mid-Century Modern Architecture Travel Guide: West Coast USA, both from Phaidon. Darren Bradley is a Southern California-based architectural photographer, active in…