Dung Ngo Books

World House Now is the sequel to America House Now and European House Now in Universe's popular and affordable architecture series, books that are the leading surveys of their field. This volume showcases international talent, including such well-recognized architects as Tadao Ando (Japan), Glenn Murcutt (Australia), Samuel Mockbee (US), and rising stars like Shigeru Ban (Japan), TEN Arquitectos (Mexico), and Edge/Gary Chang (Hong Kong).Domestic architecture is constantly changing; World House Now showcases over twenty houses all built in the last three years to illuminate current trends in domestic architecture and house styles. Part of the perennial appeal of modernism is its adaptability to local climates, geographies, and construction methods. These houses illustrate how contemporary design is successfully translated across international borders.

At the beginning of the 20th century, a new vision of architectural space was born; free-flowing floor plans were made possible by new construction methods that eliminated the need for interior partitions. This first half of this book explores the evolution of the open plan house in the work of well-known European and American architects. From Frank Lloyd Wright's 'destruction of the box' at the turn of the century, the free plan of the modernist house enabled the demolition of traditional social and familial constraints. In the 1950s, residential architecture began to blur the distinction between inside and outside, offering casual, free-flowing space and seamless integration of exterior and interior spaces. The open house had arrived. Today, the free plan, and in turn the open house, has taken yet another turn as a new generation ofarchitects takes up the reins of modernism. As can be seen in Shigeru Ban's minimalist retreat perched in the hills of Japan, or LOT/EK's industrial vernacular duplex in New York, the modern open plan house is alive and well. Twelve projects by some of today's leading international architects, including Ben van Berkel and Caroline Bos, Patkau Architect