ARQUITECTURA Y DISEÑO

apan's contemporary architecture has long been among the most inventive in the world, recognized for sustainability and infinite creativity. No fewer than eight Japanese architects have won the Pritzker Prize. Since Osaka World Expo ’70 highlighted contemporary forms, Japan has been a key player in global architecture. Tadao Ando's geometry put Japanese building on the map, bridging East and West. After his concrete buildings, figures like Kengo Kuma, Shigeru Ban, and Kazuyo Sejima pioneered a more sustainable approach. Younger generations have taken new directions, in harmony with nature, traditional building, and an endless search for forms.

McClean’s second Rizzoli book explores fifteen ultra-modern residences completed over the past five years. Rigorous, elegant, and impeccably detailed, McClean’s houses are the embodiment of livable modernism and set the stage for every aspect of California living. The residences range from a remodeled classical mansion in San Francisco, to waterfront houses and serene oases that seem to float above the flats of Los Angeles, with vistas extending from mountains to the ocean.

Following her success with Nora Murphy’s Country House Style, Murphy celebrates a selection of homes and their homeowners, each exemplifying a different style. For Nora Murphy, a country house isn’t so much a place as it is a state of mind. A country house is warm, welcoming—at once down to earth, yet elegant. A country house has genuine character, tells a story, and is truly, wonderfully lived in. Here Murphy explores the tenets of country house style, as illustrated by her own “new” country house, and the many other striking homes she has curated for the book. Each one of these homeowners has embraced country house style—but each implements it in their own unique way. There is a pastoral 1732 center-chimney colonial in Connecticut nestled in spectacular gardens, a cozy cottage on the coast of Maine rich with local details, and an 1840s Greek Revival in the Hudson Valley filled with romantic Victorian ephemera. Common threads weave through the stories: the thrill of the antiques hunt, the role of history, and the priority of comfort.

Cuaik’s interior designs are characterized by clean lines, neutral palettes, and abundant natural light. Their spaces often incorporate custom-made furniture and artworks, textured materials, and vibrant, strategically placed accents. Emphasizing functionality and aesthetic harmony, Cuaik blends contemporary design with local cultural elements, creating environments that are both elegant and inviting. Superbly photographed for the first time, this volume features a fine combination of residential and commercial spaces located across Mexico, Spain, and the US. Each project encompasses the architectural design of the space and the production of customized in-house furniture and art.

Ceaseless in its pursuit to create “an alchemy of old and new,” the highly esteemed firm of Cullman & Kravis is renowned for its ability to fashion modern, cohesive, richly layered homes rooted in tradition and the respect for function and decoration. Utilizing their decades of experience, they build out rooms from the finest classical foundations, then infuse bold, stylish, and modish elements, mixing exquisite antiques with contemporary art to create truly dynamic spaces conceived to stand the test of time.

“Las cuestiones de la conciencia de la forma, la belleza y la armonía no me interesan tanto a nivel abstracto como en la medida que afectan a la vida cotidiana y en relación con el arte de vivir. La vida cotidiana, si nos fijamos en las teorías orientales del arte, es un aspecto central del camino del artista.” Como en el arte o en el diseño, carecer de forma implica dispersión y pérdida de referencias, quedar expuesto a los fenómenos externos sin ritmo ni control. Dar forma a lo cotidiano es una invitación a poner en valor nuestra realidad tangible y manejable, a trabajar la atención plena sobre las cuestiones básicas que rigen nuestra cotidianidad ―la alimentación, el amor, los medios de comunicación, la vestimenta y nuestras posesiones― y conectar con ellas de forma consciente, limitando sus contornos y encontrando su lugar en la red que conforma nuestro fundamento vital.