Architecture: the Critic's Choice: 150 Masterpieces of Western Architecture Selected and Defined by the Experts

by Dan Cruickshank

An engrossing guided tour of some of the world's greatest buldings awaits readers of this unique tribute to excellence and innovation in architecture. The book is divided into ten chapters, ranging from antiquity to modernism and beyond, each written by by an eminent specialist. Following an introductory overview of the period are commentaries on the critic's fifteen personal favorites from that era. Each absorbing, self-contained essay covers who built the featured structure and why, technical and design details, and the broader social context in which it was created. The contributors' choices give the reader an enormously varied selection that includes world-famous masterpieces such as the Parthenon and Frank Lloyd Wright's Fallingwater alongside lesser-known architectural treasures that have, until now, been the private pleasures of the experts.

Genres: Architecture

Hardcover

First published September 1, 2000

About the author

Dan Cruickshank (1949 - ) is a British art historian and BBC television presenter, with a special interest in the history of architecture.

He holds a BA in Art, Design and Architecture and was formerly a Visiting Professor in the Department of Architecture at the University of Sheffield and a member of the London faculty of the University of Delaware. He is an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Institute of British Architects, a member of the Executive Committee of the Georgian Group and on the Architectural Panel of the National Trust.

Reviews

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a bit like something you'd find on a Barnes and Noble clearance shelf, but nice photos and decent brief text descriptions.