Author(s): Philip Jodidio

architecture

This book describes the war in the asphalt jungle. These days, green is the name of the game. There has never been so much interest in the ecological impact of buildings as there is today. This is not a negligible fact in the struggle to control pollution and in the search for responsible 'sustainable' methods of construction. Buildings are among the heaviest consumers of natural resources and account for a significant portion of the greenhouse gas emissions that affect climate change. With global warming now a significant international political issue, architecture itself is on the brink of significant changes, where style and matters of aesthetics are placed in a secondary position behind issues of sustainability. At a certain time, 'green' buildings were ugly and complicated affairs, usually multicolored as though an entire rainbow in one building might be sufficient to prove a concern for ecology. This is surely no longer the case - as buildings published in this current volume demonstrate. However, it may be that green architecture is not so much about architecture as it is about survival; the aesthetics of the architecture are secondary considerations when it comes to finally stopping the war with nature that has resulted in the creation of 'the asphalt jungle'. Well-known architects from Tadao Ando to Thom Mayne figure in this book, but so too do many others that are far less famous today, but perhaps the stars of tomorrow. Find out who is making today's architecture go green in a big way.