The American House Styles of Architecture

by A.G. Smith

Here is the grand sweep of American domestic architecture . . . from mud pueblos to solar-heated contemporaries, from log cabins to town houses, from sod huts to Greek Revival mansions. Spanning roughly 500 years, the dwellings reveal a remarkable variety of styles and approaches.
Noted illustrator A. G. Smith has rendered over forty extant structures in crisp, detailed drawings. Ranging from the Taos Pueblo (New Mexico, pre-sixteenth century) to a striking contemporary design by John Milnes Baker, the houses represent a host of native and European-inspired Spanish Colonial Revival, Georgian, High-Victorian Gothic, Italianate, Second Empire, Stick Style, Richardson Romanesque, Beaux-Arts Classical, Prairie, and many others.
Rich, informative captions date and identify each house as well as describing important architectural features, methods, and materials of construction and historical background, and showing how Old World architectural styles were adapted and modified in America.
In addition to many hours of coloring fun, this book offers students, cultural historians, and Americana enthusiasts a step-by-step overview of the evolution of American architecture — from its primitive origins to the technologically sophisticated homes of today.

Genres: Architecture, Art

48 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 1988

Reviews

[Monica · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great educational activity book. I'm a designer who has collected A.G. Smith's books for decades. Now that I'm retired and have had high resolution lenses implanted in cataract surgery, my hand-eye coordination is greatly improved and I'm enjoying coloring his drawings. It's a great way to travel in my imagination.