Books Received
Marti Rae Louw and Victor Margolin
Anthonly Alofsin. The Struggle for Modernism:
Architecture, Landscape Architecture, and City
Planning at Harvard. New York, New York: Norton
Architecture Books, 2002. ISBN 0-393-73048-4 (hard-
cover) 311 pages; color + black & white photographs.
An historical account of the Harvard experi-
ence of modernism beginning in the 1930s. A modern-
ist agenda for collaborative design took shape under
the deanship of Joseph Hudnut, and crystallized into a
movement with the appointment of Walter Gropius in
1937. Filled with archival photographs, archival draw-
ings and renderings, this is an excellent research tool
for students and professionals in art, architecture, atterrir-
M.R.L.
scape design and city planning.
Ciriaco Morón Arroyo. The Humanities in the Age
of Technology. Washington D.C., 2002: The Catholic
University of America Press. ISBN 0-8132-1074-7
(paperback) 263 pages.
A scholarly exposition of the role and value
that knowledge from humanities brings to a modern
world beset by technology. Arroyo draws on Spanish
intellectual thought and traditions as evidence for the
argument that the humanities are the “sciences” which
examine human values, identité, communication,
creativity and ultimately truth.
M.R.L.
The Art of Persuasion: Political Communication in
Italy from 1945 vers les années 1990. Edited by Luciano Cheles
and Lucio Sponza. Manchester, ROYAUME-UNI: Manchester
Presse universitaire, 2001. ISBN 0-7190-4170-8 (paperback)
384 pages; black & white illustrations.
An international team of scholars from vari-
ous disciplines traces the evolution of Italian political
communication from the postwar period to the present.
This volume chronicles the use of different forms of
media for the dissemination of political information by
both official party-led groups and informal grassroots
and subversive movements outside the system. Those
interested in Italian sociopolitical history or the rhetoric
and semiotics of political propaganda will find this to
be a useful text.
M.R.L.
Gordon S. Barrass. The Art of Calligraphy in Modern
Chine. Berkley, Californie: The University of California Press,
2002. ISBN 0-520-23451-0 (hardcover) 288 pages; color
+ black & white illustrations.
A survey of twenty-five masters of Chinese
calligraphy. Lavishly illustrated, this book profiles
trends in modern calligraphy from followers in the
grand tradition to practitioners in the avant-garde. Ce
revered form of art and communication reflects the
tumultuous political and social changes the people of
modern China have experienced in the last century.
M.R.L.
Jean Baudrillard. Screened Out. Translated by Chris
Tourneur. Londres, ROYAUME-UNI: Verso, 2002. ISBN 1-85984-385-9
(paperback) 208 pages.
A collection of articles originally published
in the Parisian newspaper Libération, by France’s most
controversial critic of contemporary culture. One by
one Baudrillard lucidly deconstructs Disneyland,
Formula One racing, mad cow disease, transsexual-
ville, and a whole host of other far-reaching topics.
Engagingly written and accessible to even the neophyte
of postmodern criticism, Screened Out tackles serious
political and cultural issues with views sure to incite
strong reactions.
M.R.L.
Hilary Balloon. New York’s Pennsylvania Stations.
New York, New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2002. ISBN
0-393-73078-6 (hardcover) 256 pages; color + black &
white photographs.
A richly illustrated visual essay on the birth,
death and rebirth of New York’s most-loved train
station. Told in three parts, the first section details with
historic photographs the conception of Pennsylvania
Station in 1910. Norman McGrath captures in photo-
graphs the demolition of the aging engineering marvel
and architectural masterpiece. Computer renderings in
the final section show the Skidmore, Owings & Merrill
design for a new station in the landmark Farley Post
Office building. This book is treat for Penn Station
aficionados and those interested in the preservation of
historic landmarks, architecture, urban planning and
transportation issues.
Problèmes de conception: Volume 20, Nombre 3 Été 2004
91
je
D
o
w
n
o
un
d
e
d
F
r
o
m
h
t
t
p
:
/
/
d
je
r
e
c
t
.
m
je
t
.
/
e
d
toi
d
e
s
je
/
je
un
r
t
je
c
e
–
p
d
F
/
/
/
/
/
2
0
3
9
1
1
7
1
3
9
1
0
0
7
4
7
9
3
6
0
4
1
4
2
3
2
3
5
p
d
.
F
b
oui
g
toi
e
s
t
t
o
n
0
7
S
e
p
e
m
b
e
r
2
0
2
3
Cynthia L. Breazeal. Designing Sociable Robots.
Cambridge, MA: La presse du MIT, 2002. ISBN: 0-262-
02510-8 (hardcover) 281 pages; black & white photo-
graphs and illustrations; CD-rom.
An approach to infusing robot-like machines
with the appearance of social intelligence. From the
system level up, Breazeal shows how science, engineer-
ing and art were combined to endow Kismet, a test
platform of a robotic head, with lifelike qualities that
encourage users to treat Kismet as a creature rather
than a machine. For designers, this book uncovers
the myriad challenges associated with creating the
impression of social intelligence in anthropomorphized
M.R.L.
machines.
Central European Avant-Gardes. Edited by Timothy
Ô. Benson. Cambridge, MA: La presse du MIT, 2002. ISBN
0-262-02522-1 (hardcover) 447 pages; color + black &
white photographs and illustrations.
Creating Spaces of Freedom: Culture in Defiance.
Edited by Els van der Plas, Malu Halasa, Marlous
Willemsen. Londres, ROYAUME-UNI: Saqi Books, 2002. ISBN 0-
86356-736-3 (paperback) 196 pages; color + black &
white illustrations.
Fourteen essays illustrate works of creative
expression that transcend conditions hostile to artistic
freedom. This rich visual anthology includes contribu-
tions from Noble writer Wole Soyinka, anti-apartheid
activist Albie Sachs, and the Vietnamese novelist
Duong Thu Huong. The challenging work of these
writers and artists show dissention and the pursuit of
truth can exist in spite of oppressive regimes. M.R.L.
CTRL[SPACE] Rhetorics of Surveillance from Bentham
to Big Brother. Edited by Thomas Levin, Ursula
Frohne, and Peter Weibel. Cambridge, MA: The MIT
Presse, 2002. ISBN 0-262-62165-7 (hardcover) 655 pages,
color + black & white illustrations.
An extensive look at the interconnected work
An impressive survey of the rise of “panopti-
produced by the artists and thinkers of early twenti-
eth-century Central Europe. The book, published in
conjunction with an exhibition organized by the Los
Angeles County Museum of Art, juxtaposes critical
discussions of movements, key figures and publica-
tions with chapters devoted to the cities of Central
Europe that cultivated progress in the avant-garde.
Beautifully designed and filled with innumerable color
plates and illustrations, this work offers a comprehen-
sive look at art and intellect in a time of revolution.
cism” in painting, photography, cinema, television,
digital media, architecture, installation art, robotics and
satellite imaging. Beginning in the 18th century with
Jeremy Bentham’s architectural vision for a prison with
omnipresent surveillance, this book traces the role of
the all-seeing-eye in art and culture to our postmod-
ern media saturated society. The authors identify an
Orwellian cultural trend in which the infringement of
security and civil liberties are increasingly and surrep-
titiously present.
M.R.L.
M.R.L.
Confronting Consumerism. Edited by Thomas Princen,
Michael Maniates and Ken Conca. Cambridge, MA:
La presse du MIT, 2002. ISBN 0-262-66128-4 (paperback)
381 pages; black & white illustrations.
A direct attack on unsustainable consump-
tion trends and the narrowly defined representation
of environmental issues in public policy and academic
circles. Framed as a series of stand-alone chapters, chaque
explores the ecological, social and political implications
of over-consumption. This provocative call to action
encourages readers to check the growth of society’s
structures inutiles.
M.R.L.
Gen Doy. Drapery: Classicism and Barbarism in Visual
Culture. Londres, ROYAUME-UNI: I.B. Tauris & Co. Ltd., 2002. ISBN
1-86064-539-9 (paperback) 288 pages; black & blanc
photographs.
A revealing examination of the overlooked
role of draped fabrics in the display and concealment
of women in art. Doy covers everything from chiseled
robes in classical statuary to images of death shrouds
in contemporary television news reports. This book
makes the case for the significance of drapery as an
overlooked but continually present aspect of our collec-
M.R.L.
tive visual culture.
92
Problèmes de conception: Volume 20, Nombre 3 Été 2004
je
D
o
w
n
o
un
d
e
d
F
r
o
m
h
t
t
p
:
/
/
d
je
r
e
c
t
.
m
je
t
.
/
e
d
toi
d
e
s
je
/
je
un
r
t
je
c
e
–
p
d
F
/
/
/
/
/
2
0
3
9
1
1
7
1
3
9
1
0
0
7
4
7
9
3
6
0
4
1
4
2
3
2
3
5
p
d
.
F
b
oui
g
toi
e
s
t
t
o
n
0
7
S
e
p
e
m
b
e
r
2
0
2
3
Education of a Design Entrepreneur. Edited by Steve
Heller. New York, New York: Allworth Press, 2002. ISBN
1-58115-221-3 (paperback) 288 pages; black & blanc
illustrations.
Simon Garfield. Mauve: How One Man Invented
a Color that Changed the World. W. W. Norton &
Company Inc., 2000. ISBN 0-393-32313 (paperback) 224
pages; color + black & white photographs.
Current luminaries in the design profession
Part social history, part scientific biography
address the pursuit of monetary and creative freedom.
Contributors to this collection of fifty essays on design
entrepreneurship include David Kelly, Clement Mok,
Maira Kalman, Saul Wurman, Forrest Richardson, John
Maeda and others who reveal how they confront the
dual challenges of creativity and constraint that bracket
design projects. Individuals intent on striking out on
their own will find in this book sources of inspiration
and cautionary tales.
M.R.L.
Hal Foster. Design and Crime (And Other Diatribes).
New York, New York: Verso, 2002. ISBN 1-85984-668-8 (hard-
cover) 176 pages; color + black & white illustrations.
A deliberately polemic collection of essays on
the tyrannical aspects of an overly designed contempo-
rary culture. Foster surveys the new political economy
of a design that markets culture, brands identity and
advances spectacle in information and architecture.
He then shifts focus from the rise of “total design” to
the concurrent fall of art and cultural criticism. Depuis
its stark black cover to its provocative text, this book
is designed to raise critical questions about the role of
design in contemporary life.
M.R.L.
Penny Fowler. Frank Lloyd Wright: Graphic Artist.
Rohnert Park, Californie: Pomegranate Communications Inc.,
2002. ISBN 0-7649-2017-0 (hardcover) 133 pages; color
+ black & white photographs and illustrations.
A beautifully illustrated retrospective of Frank
Lloyd Wright’s prodigious output in the graphic arts.
This collection catalogues a range of work from early
school drawings to a personal Christmas card greetings
and unpublished illustrations done for the cover of
Liberty magazine. Fowler places the architect’s wide-
ranging designs in typography, livres, posters, murals
and magazines within the context of contemporary
aesthetic movements. Though graphic work, one can
see the underlying design fundamentals that infuse
every application of his genius.
of a forgotten Victorian chemist and his discovery
of a new color. Searching for an anti-malaria drug,
the 18-year old English chemist William Perkin
stumbled upon the process to make the first synthetic
dye—mauve. Lively prose details William’s success-
fully commercialized of his discovery and the fads it
sparked in fashion and the fledgling field of applied
chemistry. This book is a fascinating addition to the
now familiar genre of scientific accident turned good.
M.R.L.
Ron Goldman. Pyramid Algorithms: A Dynamic
Programming Approach to Curves and Surfaces for
Geometric Modeling. San Francisco, Californie: Morgan
Kaufmann Publishers, 2002. ISBN 1-55860-534-9 (hard-
cover) 530 pages; color + black & white illustrations.
A textbook approach to understanding,
analyzing and computing common polynomial and
spline curves, and surfaces schemes in computer-aided
geometric modeling and design. Goldman employs
a dynamic programming method based on recursive
pyramids for revealing the structure and relationship
of algorithms. The jacket cover claims all you need is
basic background knowledge in calculus, linear algebra
and simple programming skills. This is a book written
for the courageous in CADG geometric modeling.
M.R.L.
Graphic Design Iran 1: The First Selected Works of
Iranian Graphic Designers. Tehran: Iranian Graphic
Designers Society, 2001. ISBN 964 93478 1 X. 270 pages.
Many color illustrations.
An excellent introduction to the work of
Iran’s graphic designers. A brief introductory of visual
communication and graphic design in Iran, written in
English and Farsi, introduces the book. The work is
divided into categories including illustration, interac-
tive, packaging, advertising, logos, and posters. V.M.
Problèmes de conception: Volume 20, Nombre 3 Été 2004
93
je
D
o
w
n
o
un
d
e
d
F
r
o
m
h
t
t
p
:
/
/
d
je
r
e
c
t
.
m
je
t
.
/
e
d
toi
d
e
s
je
/
je
un
r
t
je
c
e
–
p
d
F
/
/
/
/
/
2
0
3
9
1
1
7
1
3
9
1
0
0
7
4
7
9
3
6
0
4
1
4
2
3
2
3
5
p
d
.
F
b
oui
g
toi
e
s
t
t
o
n
0
7
S
e
p
e
m
b
e
r
2
0
2
3
Robin Hardy. The Crisis of Desire: AIDS and the Fate
of the Gay Brotherhood. Minneapolis, MN: University
of Minnesota Press, 2002. ISBN: 0-8166-3911-6 (papier-
back) 240 pages.
Kenneth Kolson. Big Plans: The Allure and Folly of Urban
Design Baltimore, MARYLAND: The John Hopkins University
Presse, 2001. ISBN 0-8018-6679-0 (hardcover) 236 pages;
black & white photographs and illustrations
A moving combination of social commentary
A scholarly work that takes a historical user’s
and personal narrative about the struggle to rescue
sexuality and its partner, erotic desire, from the
shadows of a devastating epidemic. Hardy makes a
passionate call to liberate gay men from the prolifera-
tion of myths about HIV and the resultant squelching
of passion, kinship, and the erotics of everyday life.
Stinging prose lays blame for more than two decades
of death on antigay governmental policies and a rapa-
cious medical industry.
M.R.L.
Steven Heller. Merz to Émigré and Beyond: Avant-
Garde Magazine Design of the Twentieth Century.
New York and London: Phaidon Press, 2003, ISBN 0
7148 3927 2. 240 pages. Color illustrations.
A richly-illustrated history of small political
and cultural magazines. Heller describes their icono-
clastic or artistic content and devotes considerable
attention to their design. Examples range from humor
magazines like Punch and Simplicissimus to avant-garde
periodicals like De Stijl and Der Dada to more contem-
porary publications like The Realist and Rat. Many of
the publications covered are little known.
V.M.
A Heranca de Olhar: O Design de Aloiso Magalhães
(The Heritage of Looking: The Design of Aloiso
Magalhães). Art direction by Felipe Taborda. Editorial
organization by João de Souza Leite. Rio de Janeiro:
ARTVIVA Produção Cultural Ltda, 2003. ISBN 85-
88778-02-5. Color and black and white illustrations.
A richly illustrated collection of essays on the
life and work of Aloiso Magalhães considered by many
to be Brazil’s first and foremost graphic designer. Many
documentary photographs as well as a near complete
documentation of Magalhães projects. The essays cover
all aspects of his career and include some of his own
writings.
V.M.
perspective on urban design and exposes the futility
of the social engineering upon which it rests. Far-rang-
ing examples in time and place illustrate the folly of
utopian plans visualized in the neat maps and predic-
tive models of master planners that overstate the role
of rationality in public life. Kolson makes a case for the
rule of serendipity and randomness in urban dynam-
ics; an irrational causality that renders the planned
unplanned. Despite its academic origin, this is a fasci-
nating read about the utopian goal of Big Plans and the
M.R.L.
dystopian reality of lived experience.
Level of Detail for 3D Graphics. Edited by David
Luebke, Martin Reddy, Jonathan D. Cohen, Amitabh
Varshney, Benjamin Watson, Robert Huebner. San
Francisco, Californie: Morgan Kaufmann Publishers, 2003.
ISBN 1-55860-838-9 (hardcover) 432 pages; color +
black & white illustrations.
A textbook treatment of the concepts, theories,
algorithms and data structures essential for model-
ing detailed three-dimensional graphic worlds. Le
authors provide a conceptual framework for striking
the tricky balance between increasing levels of detail
(LOD) and the need for smooth, flowing animation.
This technical reference will be of use to professionals
in game development, computer animation, informa-
tion visualization, and virtual reality fields.
M.R.L.
Marjetica Potrc. Naslednja postaja Kiosk (Next Stop
Kiosk). Ljubljana: Moderna Galerija Ljubljana, 2003.
ISBN 961-206-038-X; 159 pages; black & blanc, color
illustrations. In English with Slovenian translation.
The catalog of an exhibition curated by the
Slovenian art historian Marjetica Potrc. The focus is on
the unofficial structures that people construct and the
architectural adaptions they make in the urban envi-
ronment. Exhibition installation photographs as well as
V.M.
informative interviews and essays.
Polski Plkat Filmowy: 100-lecie kina w Polsce,
1896–1966 (Polish Film Poster: 100th Anniversary of
the Cinema in Poland). Cracow: Poster Gallery & le
Association of International Cultural Exchange in
Cracow, 1996. ISBN 83-905899-0-7; 295 pages; color
illustrations. In Polish and English
The catalog of a large retrospective exhibition
of Polish film posters. The volume provides an excel-
lent written survey of the subject with ample illustra-
tion.
V.M.
94
Problèmes de conception: Volume 20, Nombre 3 Été 2004
je
D
o
w
n
o
un
d
e
d
F
r
o
m
h
t
t
p
:
/
/
d
je
r
e
c
t
.
m
je
t
.
/
e
d
toi
d
e
s
je
/
je
un
r
t
je
c
e
–
p
d
F
/
/
/
/
/
2
0
3
9
1
1
7
1
3
9
1
0
0
7
4
7
9
3
6
0
4
1
4
2
3
2
3
5
p
d
.
F
b
oui
g
toi
e
s
t
t
o
n
0
7
S
e
p
e
m
b
e
r
2
0
2
3
John R. Schermerhorn, Jr., James G. Hunt and Richard
N. Osborn. Organizational Behavior. Edison, New Jersey: John
Wiley & Sons Inc., 2003. ISBN 0-471-20367-X (hard-
cover) 422 pages; color photographs and illustrations;
CD-rom.
A textbook offering up the latest wisdom
in the constantly evolving world of organizational
behavior. The eighth edition of this handbook features
new entries on increasingly relevant subjects such
as cultural relativism, virtual teams and innovation
processes for the global economy. Also included are a
workbook, an assessment CD, several contemporary
case studies, and many links to interactive online
ressources. Well designed and engagingly written, ce
text would be an appropriate choice for any beginning
M.R.L.
course in organizational behavior.
Mark C. Taylor. The Moment of Complexity: Emerging
Network Culture. Chicago, IL: The University of
Chicago Press, 2001. ISBN 0-226-79117-3 (hardcover)
340 pages.
A formidable work of cultural analysis
and theory building which draws on the science of
complexity to explain the chaos and order that define
our emerging network culture. Taylor’s synthesis
points to a future dominated by irreducibly complex
systems that requires the union of the humanities and
sciences to maintain cultural literacy. An important
book for those interested in a philosophical prescrip-
tive for an age of complexity and rapid change. M.R.L.
Karel Teige. The Minimum Dwelling. Translated by Eric
Dluhosh. Cambridge, MA: La presse du MIT, 2002. ISBN
0-262-20136-4 (hardcover) 412 pages; black & blanc
photographs and illustrations.
A long-overdue English translation of Karel
Teige’s 1932 design classic for a simplified dwelling
space dedicated to the needs of the working class.
Teige, an influential contributor to almost every area of
art, design and urban thinking, was a sometimes-radi-
cal Marxist who lived and worked in Czechoslovakia
during the avant-garde modernism movement. Le
scope of his plan for minimal living reaches far beyond
architecture, rethinking not only traditional spaces,
but also the accepted norms of family-centered living
arrangements.
M.R.L.
Polski Plakat Teatralny 1899–1999 (Polish Theater
poster, 1899-1999). ISBN 83-905899-6-6; 334 pages; color
illustrations. In Polish and English
An excellent introduction to the topic. Many
illustrations in color complement a useful historical
text.
V.M.
Olivier Razac. Barbed Wire: A Political History.
Translated by Jonathan Kneight. ISBN 1-56584-735-0.
New York, New York,: The New Press, 2002 (hardcover) 132
pages: black & white photographs.
An argument to include barbed wire in the list
of important technological inventions. Razac reveals
the hidden history of barbed wire and its role in the
demarcation and control of vast amounts of land.
Cheap and mass produced as an agricultural tool,
barbed wire became a tool of political violence linked
to the ethnocide of American Indians, the brutal treat-
ment of WWI prisoners and extermination in Nazi
death camps. This is a fascinating look at the potential
misuse of a seemingly harmless technology. M.R.L.
Reimagining Textuality: Textual Studies in the
Late Age of Print. Edited by Elizabeth Bergmann
Loizeaux, Neil Fraistat. Madison, WI: The University of
Wisconsin Press, 2002. ISBN 0-299-17380-1 (paperback)
262 pages; black & white photographs and illustrations.
A collection of academically-oriented essays
on textual scholarship. Interdisciplinary contributions
map out the terrain where postmodernism and textual
criticism intersect revealing issues in production,
distribution, reproduction, consommation, reception,
archiving, editing and the sociology of texts. This book
is most compelling in its cultural analysis of the effects
of electronic media on textual practices, a transition
analogous to that from manuscript to print.
M.R.L.
Ed Ruscha. Leave Any Information at the Signal.
Edited by Alexandra Schwartz. Cambridge, MA: Le
AVEC Presse, 2002. ISBN 0-262-18220-3 (hardcover) 472
pages; black & white photographs and illustrations.
An anthology of writings, interviews and
images by the noted art provocateur, Pop and
Conceptual artist Ed Ruscha. Divided into three parts,
the first section “Writings” includes personal docu-
ments, letters, and work statements. The second section
“Interviews” contains the transcriptions of more than
50 interviews and conversations with the artist. In the
final section “Bits and Pages,” Ruscha has compiled
a collage of sketchbook pages, semantic explorations,
and personal notes that provide a window into his
artistic process and creative musings. Despite its enig-
matic title, this book attempts to capture the artist’s
journey into the elusive and nonsensical.
M.R.L.
Problèmes de conception: Volume 20, Nombre 3 Été 2004
95
je
D
o
w
n
o
un
d
e
d
F
r
o
m
h
t
t
p
:
/
/
d
je
r
e
c
t
.
m
je
t
.
/
e
d
toi
d
e
s
je
/
je
un
r
t
je
c
e
–
p
d
F
/
/
/
/
/
2
0
3
9
1
1
7
1
3
9
1
0
0
7
4
7
9
3
6
0
4
1
4
2
3
2
3
5
p
d
.
F
b
oui
g
toi
e
s
t
t
o
n
0
7
S
e
p
e
m
b
e
r
2
0
2
3
Télécharger le PDF