How to Read Modern Buildings

Book excerpt: How to Read Modern Buildings is an indispensable pocket-sized guide to understanding the architecture of the modern era. It takes the reader on a guided tour of modern architecture through its most iconic and significant buildings, showing how to read the hallmarks of each architectural style and how to recognize them in the buildings all around. From Art Deco and Arts and Crafts, through the International Style and Modernism to today's environmental architecture and the rise and fall of the icon, all the major architectural movements from the 1900s to the present day are traced through their classic buildings. Examining the key architectural elements and hidden details of each style, we learn what to look out for and where to look for it. Packed with detailed drawings, plans, and photographs, this is both a fascinating architectural history and an effective I-spy guide - a must-read for anyone with an interest in modern design and architecture.