Practice: Architecture, Technique and Presentation

Allen (architecture, Princeton U.) has revised the second edition of this collection of his essays on architecture to reflect his growing interest in cities and landscapes as well as his associations with colleagues such as James Corner, Hal Foster, Sarah Whiting and others. Written for both students and practitioners, these pieces avoid formal theory and practice and relay themes the author has uncovered through personal experience, such as a renewed focus on material techniques and innovations in architectural representations such as drawings, models, calculations and computer simulations. An afterword by noted colleague Jeffrey Kipnis discusses the impact this volume had on the world of architectural design upon its original publication in 1998. Annotation c2009 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Stan Allen is a practicing architect and Dean at the School of Architecture, Princeton University. Responding to the complexity of the modern city in creative ways, Stan Allen has developed an extensive catalogue of urbanistic strategies, in particular looking at field theory, landscape architecture and ecology as models to revitalize the practices of urban design. In addition to design awards and competition prizes, he has been awarded Fellowships in Architecture from the New York Foundation for the Arts, The New York State Council on the Arts, a Design Arts Grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, a Graham Foundation Grant, and a President's Citation from The Cooper Union.