Architects and their Books
Some time ago, Magda gave me a copy of Architects and Their Books.
As the title implies, it's a book about the libraries of notable architects.
The architects are all contemporary and include the likes of Liz Diller/Ric Scofidio, Steven Holl, Tod Williams/Billie Tsien, and Toshiko Mori.
There is an entry for each architect, structured like this:
Name of architect
Picture of bookshelf, annotated with section labels
List of 10 titles they selected as influential to their work, with thumbnails of covers
A short interview with to unpack selections
Technical specs of the bookshelf itself (measurements, materials, manufacturer)
Pictured above is the first page of the entry for Toshiko Mori's library. In the interview, Mori explained why she selected one of John Hejduk’s books first on her list. As her teacher at Cooper Union he influenced her early thinking on atmosphere, context, materials. Also on her list is Arata Isozaki's Japan-ness and Architecture, one of my favorites as well.
Which brings us to the Rittenhouse Flatiron-NOMAD bookshelf. Right now it has never been more diverse, interesting, or piled high.
It is packed with excellent books in many directions, reflecting who we are and what we care about. >> Photography. Art Museums. Design. Japan.
As a foreword to Architects and Their Books, an essay by Walter Benjamin called "A Talk About Book Collecting" offers his ruminations on the idea that books find their destiny based on the capabilities of their readers.
It's a nice way to think about it. In this way, we are not only surrounded by books, but luminary people and their ideas. We find the books and the books find us.
