Sinopsis

Glass in its many magical forms is a material appreciated by all those who value a sense of space, airiness and light. Since the mid-nineteenth century, the notion of transparency has exerted a seductive hold on architectural and popular imagination, and glass has proved a revolutionary material in both the structure and interiors of homes. Today, the increasing sophistication of glass and its attendant technologies has presented architects with new and enriched possibilities, particular in the design of contemporary homes. In Glass Houses award-winning writer Catherine Slessor explores daring and dynamic glass homes from all over the world, plus examples of glass as an exciting new element of interior design. The first part of the book, Pioneers, discusses the work of the architects of the last century who embraced the potential of glass, including Mies van Der Rohe, Phillip Johnson, Richard Neutra, John Lautner and Richard Rogers. Glass Structures looks at a range of highly innovative contemporary homes where glass plays a significant role in the construction of a building, from the sweeping glass walls of Ken Shuttleworth's house set in the English countryside to a glass box house built into the rock near New York. Landscape Houses explores homes where glass has been used to marry the interior and the rural exterior through a dramatic use of windows and walls of glass. In contrast, Urban Houses celebrates the use of glass in cityscape settings. Each section features case studies that take an in-depth look at homes where glass has been used in a particularly striking way. Finally, Glass Features considers the increasingly popular employment of glass as an element of interior design.