Materials, Form, and Architecture

by Richard Weston

After a century largely dominated by discussions of space and form, there is now renewed interest in the material and tectonic aspects of architecture. This richly illustrated and handsomely designed book takes a detailed and timely look at the importance of materials in architecture, focusing particularly on modern and contemporary buildings. Noted architecture expert Richard Weston begins with a brief cultural history of major building materials-such as timber, earth, stone, steel, and glass-exploring how they have been produced, considered, worked, and used in a variety of buildings and cultures. He then explores the ways that architects, theorists, and critics have articulated the relationship between materials and architectural forms and spaces throughout modern history. Other featured topics include the importance of place, time, junctions, finish, and meaning; the proposition that in an increasingly global and virtual world, many architects emphasize the material qualities of buildings to ensure a heightened sense of reality; and a comprehensive survey of current and prospective developments in materials, from refinements of such familiar materials as fiber-reinforced concrete and "intelligent" glass to new synthetic compounds and working methods. Together, these varied perspectives on the material art of building offer fascinating insights into the impact that the type and treatment of materials has on how buildings can be constructed and designed, how they function, and how they fare over time.

Genres: Architecture

240 pages, Hardcover

First published August 11, 2003

About the author

Professor Richard Weston (born 1953) is an architect, landscape architect, author[1] and is also the Chair of Architecture at Cardiff University. He is Director of Richard Weston Studio Ltd and Earth Images Ltd.

Weston was born in Leicester in 1953. He attended Wyggeston Boys Grammar School. He went on to study architecture at Manchester University, gaining a BA in 1975 and BArch in 1977. Supported by the Thouron Award, he attended the University of Pennsylvania (USA) to study landscape architecture, gaining an MLA (Penn) in 1979. From 1979–1982 he worked in practice and was appointed as a lecturer at the Welsh School of Architecture (WSA) in Cardiff. He subsequently taught at the Leicester and Portsmouth schools of architecture before returning to Cardiff in 1999 as a professorial research fellow. In 2003 he was appointed to the Chair of Architecture, a position he holds today.