I used this text for a architecture class I was enrolled in. The writing isnt exactly a brilliant discovery into architecture, but it is a great starter book to figure out how architects think and what building design means. The figure/ground drawings are useful.
This book establishes a systematic method in analyzing architecture. It explains how architectural elements are combined together to form designs that could relate an appropriate sense of place specific to the programme as well as the environment surrounding it. The book is well illustrated with diagrams and examples. An extremely useful introductory guide for those who want to learn more about the basics of architecture.
Beginning with the root definition of architecture as its "conceptual organization, its intellectual structures"., the author makes clear its function as "identification of place", goes on to identify the basic elements and concepts, examines the use of natural features of the landscape, analyzes primitive place types, geometry in architecture, space and structure, and other key concepts. From the campsites of primitive man to the sophisticated structures of the late twentieth century, architecture as an essential function of human activity is explained clearly, and illustrated with the authors own excellent drawings. Highly recommended as a well-organized and readable introduction. (The "score" rating is an unfortunately ineradicable feature of the page. This reviewer does not "score" books.)
