The American House (Themes)

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"The American House" covers houses and domestic dwellings in the United States from 1000 to the present day. This illustrated, broad reference book features examples throughout history, ranging from the Blackfoot Indians iconic Tipi dwelling to contemporary builds which mark the latest developments in American design and construction. Accessible and easy-to-use like Phaidon's bestselling "The House Book", "The American House" presents a balanced selection of the best and most important 100 houses in the United States. Each house has been selected for its architectural merit, innovative design and contribution to the history of American domestic architecture.The selection spans history and covers all key house styles - ranging from nineteenth-century Stick Style and Federal houses, to New Urbanist houses of the 1980s and 90s, and contemporary builds by today's leading architects, including Steven Holl, Rural Studio and Rick Joy. Other examples include early twentieth-century Prairie style houses of midwestern America and International Style icons of the great modernism era, for example, Philip Johnson's Glass House (1949). The selection also covers regional styles, such as the Palm Beach houses of Florida and 'Painted Ladies' of San Francisco, as well as lesser known national treasures like Biltmore (1889-95), the largest private house ever constructed in the United States. Many national favourites feature, e.g. The White House (1814-29) and the home of Mark Twain (1874), and all house types are represented - from the farmstead, log cabin and plantation house, to the saltbox, brownstone and mobile home.Each entry consists of a full-page image with an accompanying text, detailing its historical and architectural significance. Organised chronologically, readers can trace the development of the house from traditional styles to the visionary ideas of today's architects, by way of quintessential American examples like the Airstream Trailer (1947). The chronological sequence positions each house within the architectural canon, but it also offers surprising juxtapositions.The traditional log cabin of John Davis' Pioneer Farmstead (c1830s) sits next to the Federal grandeur of Roosevelt's New York Home, Springwood (1826-1915), while Michael Reynolds' 1996 Earthship in New Mexico appears alongside Tod Williams and Billie Tsien's breath taking, post-modern New York townhouse. The book also features a glossary of terms and movements, a directory of houses open to the public and an index. "The American House" is a practical resource and an easy-to-use guide, unique in its appeal to both the general reader and the practicing architect.