Talk about contemporary architecture by gilles de bure - Book Report/Review Example

(YOUR (THE A Book Review on Gilles de Bure’s Talk About Contemporary Architecture The book created by Gilles de Bure entitled Talk About Contemporary Architecture talks about a deeper appreciation and understanding for contemporary architecture from the 20th up to the 21st centuries. Mainly, the book focuses itself on the rise and domination of contemporary architecture. It revolves on the purpose and the distinct features of the contemporary movement. To add to this, the book takes the reader into the minds of several architects and showcases their pieces which exhibit the contemporary nature of the mentioned architectural movement.

Before delving into content analysis, the physical aspects of the book should be worth mentioning. Gilles de Bure’s work is fashioned into a magazine-style book which includes important texts, giving its readers primary knowledge about the topic at hand. The book is a relatively short work containing 256 pages. It was published by Flammarion Publications on March 30, 2010 and was released in American English, thus catering an international audience. To add to this, the book features a detailed chronology and a glossary of the significant vocabulary which helps its readers understand specific terminologies.

On a technical note, Talk About Contemporary Architecture is a good source for easy reading because the author arranged the contents based on a historicized manner. This means that the 10 chapters of the book kicks-off with the beginnings of the contemporary movement in 1977, then progresses into recent movements such as minimalism, modernism and post-modernism. Such feature is one of the book’s strengths because it allows the readers to follow a historical progression, hence avoiding anachronism that accompanies the context of architectural styles.

It also allows its audience to see the differences in techniques as time develops and opens to utmost modernity. Generally, the book functions as a guide for those who are experts and those who are simply interested in architecture. The content of the book is one of the its most anticipated features. The author provides its readers with a variety of architects and a multitude of pictures of their respective works. The book presents renowned architects such as Renzo Piano with his Maison Hermes Building, completed in 2001.

The structure shows what minimalism and modernity does as basis of design and construction. It also features architects consistent in Deconstructivism and post-modernism such as Massimiliano Fuksas through his Paliano Gymnasium, completed in Italy in 1985, and his most recent work - the Sun Tower, completed in Seoul, South Korea in 2008. De Bure creates the impression of collating a functionary case study amongst each of the selected architects he had included in his book. The only weakness that the book has is contained in its last chapter.

This part creates a debate about the author’s judgment and choice of individuals included in his list of architectural geniuses. Any expert or reader familiar with architecture might ask: why has he included Hadid, Foster, Gehry, Nouvel, Bouchain and Ricciotti whilst he excluded the likes of Steven Holl and Paulo Mendes da Rocha? Nevertheless, Talk About Contemporary Architecture is a good source for further research and inspiration pertaining to contemporary architecture. I would recommend this book to any reader who is interested in the field of architecture.

Architectural experts may also use this book as sources of information concerning the recent feats in the mentioned field. Also, researchers of contemporary history and art can benefit from the discussion of architectural styles and techniques featured in the book.