Architecture of the Well-Tempered Environment:2nd (Second) edition

by Banham

This book is offered as a contribution to the history of architecture as normally understood and was produced by fairly conventional modes of architectural history writing. When the research for the present study was first put in hand, the intention was to write a purely architectual history; to consider what architects had taken to be the proper use and exploitation of mechanical environmental controls, and to show how this had manifested itself in the design of their buildings.

Genres: Architecture, Nonfiction, History, Design, Theory, Environment, Science

Paperback

First published December 31, 1964

Reviews

[Delroy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of those great books that makes people instantly regret having asked what you are reading. The onerous 70s era cover design, the blandly mechanical title, the mention of architecture. . . all of these serve to stop conversation short. Thankfully, without undue explanation, you can get back to reading with minimal effort what is a truly brilliant work on the history of HVAC systems that is more kindly and engagingly written than any book-of-the-month romantasy, and more lucidly technologized than a Tom Clancy potluck at the Apple store.

[Douglas Murphy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mostly very good, one of Banham's less celebrated works I think. It's interesting that it comes from the period immediately before he decided to become 'hip', and thus the tone is much more academic than his later writings, although in the conclusion, when he brings in Archigram and all that lot, you can see signs of where he was about to go.

This early edition marred by a couple of examples of lazy prejudiced language that you wouldn't see now, btw.

[Waqar Ahmad · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reyner Banham was a pioneer in arguing that technology, human needs, and environmental concerns must be considered an integral part of architecture. No historian before him had so systematically explored the impact of environmental engineering on the design of buildings and on the minds of architects. In this revision of his classic work, Banham has added considerable new material on the use of energy, particularly solar energy, in human environments. Included in the new material are discussions of Indian pueblos and solar architecture, the Centre Pompidou and other high-tech buildings, and the environmental wisdom of many current architectural vernaculars.

[Renato D'Alençon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reyner Banham's “The Architecture of the Well-Tempered Environment” (London: Architectural Press, 1969) is a fundamental text that he develops with the depth and sharpness typical of his author a lucid look at the relevance of environmental conditioning conditions as the core of architectural thought and practice. In 12 chapters, Banham goes through architectural conditioning strategies that various works collect substantively as project strategies, from the “well-tempered” home to the exhibition and control of energy.

[Found Object · Rating 5 out of 5]

Groundbreaking work. Banham is not a technological determinist, as many have accused him. He seeks technological realism, namely the participation of architectural form in the production of indoor environments. Written at a time when the modernist movement reached its last stretch, and machine aesthetics were waning rapidly, this book did not turn away from modernism. The issue with modernism is not so much that it is over but that the modernists are not modern enough.

[Stuart · Rating 5 out of 5]

A little dense, assuming a great deal of familiarity with the rush and sweep of architectural reputation over the 20th century, still a very level headed account of architecture’s struggle to engage with the freedoms and simultaneous restrictions of the advances in environmental technology. Great case studies and photos.

A book that could stand an update, 30-40 years on.

[Sharon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reyner Banham remains one of my favorite architectural writers -- his gift for making subjects (such as a history of air conditioning and ventilation systems) that ought be dreadfully boring -- both engaging and easy to follow is truly remarkable.

[Timmytoothless · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read on the details of comfortable architecture.