ARQUITECTURA Y DISEÑO

Casi todo lo que usamos y leemos desde que nos levantamos hasta que nos acostamos ha sido diseñado. En nuestro mundo industrializado y digital, prácticamente todo aquello artificial ha sido proyectado previamente y, por lo tanto, diseñado. ¿Pero sabemos exactamente qué es el diseño? Este libro arroja luz sobre una de las actividades más omnipresentes y al mismo tiempo ignoradas de nuestra sociedad. Isabel Campi, una de las mayores expertas en teoría e historia del diseño, nos introduce de forma divulgativa a todo lo que rodea al universo del diseño: desde su significado y ámbitos de actuación hasta su historia, sus diferencias geográficas y culturales, la realidad de la profesión de diseñador y las cuestiones más candentes en la actualidad. El resultado es un texto ameno, sencillo y clarificador que interesará a periodistas culturales, a amantes de la cultura visual y, por supuesto, a todos aquellos jóvenes que estén pensando en hacer de la creatividad su profesión.

This beautifully produced book celebrates the work of Robert Adam, the great eighteenth-century architect who influenced generations by stamping his distinctive neoclassical aesthetic vision on the English country house interior. Lavish new photography provides a deeply visual exploration of Adam s most important surviving country houses, to which the author and photographer gained unparalleled access. Included are magnificent country houses such as Syon House and Harewood House styled and inspired by the ideal of the neoclassical as well as Adam s castle-style Mellerstain and town houses such as Home House all captured in splendid detail. Original Adam design drawings, from Sir John Soane s Museum, illustrate the boldness of planning, color, and creative interpretation of Adam s domestic interiors. A biographical and contextual account of Adam s life and work describes his unique design process, his patrons, and the legacy of his design achievement. This richly illustrated volume will appeal to designers and homeowners as well as traditional architecture enthusiasts, promising to become an important addition to any architecture and interior design library.

Known for his meticulously researched, European-inspired style, Marshall Watson creates interiors that are rich in texture, detail, and simple luxuries. In his first book, Watson shares his finest work, demonstrating that while each of these homes is as unique as its owner, they all adhere to principles that transform a mere series of spaces into a genuine, coherent home: warmth; light; peace; comfort; balance; proportion; liveability; and last but not least, appropriateness. Whether in an Italianate villa in Los Cabos or a family idyll on a Swedish island, a Gramercy Park apartment that blends shimmer and restraint, or a Newport Beach cottage warmed by walls finished in egg-yolk yellow, Watson explains how he translated each family s lifestyle and aspirations, the house s history, and the surrounding environment into a highly original form of elegance and how anyone can discover his or her own. Beautifully photographed with lavish images of Watson s work, this inspiring book is a must-have for interior design lovers.

The inimitable style of renowned French interior designer Madeleine Castaing, chronicled in-depth for the first time. While many were drumming to the beat of modernism in the early- and mid-twentieth century, French antiquaire and decorator Madeleine Castaing created her own look that was a unique blend of neoclassicism, Proustian romanticism, and pure wit. Her distinctive aesthetic vision has inspired tastemakers on both sides of the Atlantic, and her devotees--both then and now--are legion. Ocelot carpeting, opaline blue, "coolie" lampshades, and an eclectic mix of neoclassical furnishings ranging from English Regency to Napoleon III all formed part of the vocabulary of "le style Castaing." This lavishly illustrated volume--the first on her work--explores in-depth the elements of her style, and examines how she crafted interiors so emotive that visitors felt that they had stepped into a Balzac novel or a Proustian recollection. Her entire life and career are chronicled, from her early years in Montparnasse, the epicenter of artistic activity in Paris, to her incomparable country house Leves and her legendary shop on rue Jacob in Paris.

This monograph details thirty-four major architectural works from Valode and Pistre, including commercial, retail, industrial, and cultural projects. Founded in 1980 by its current directors Denis Valode and Jean Pistre, Valode and Pistre Architects is a highly sought-after architecture and design firm based in Paris. Their predominantly large-scale projects are distinguished by their high degree of diversity from the Contemporary Art Museum of Bordeaux to the L Oreal factory and more recently the T1 Tower La Defense in Paris. Their innovative designs for the Beaugrenelle Center on the Front of the Seine won the Global Award for Excellence in 2015 for its approach to urban development. The book features works such as the Renault Technocentre near Paris, Las Mercedes business park in Madrid, and a group of hotel towers in Beijing. The book also looks at future projects that were recently awarded to Valode and Pistre a new Shenzhen Convention and Exhibition Center and three stations of the Grand Paris Express transit line.