Architecture Materials: Wood

"Wood is universally beautiful to man. Man loves his association with it; likes to feel it under his hand, sympathetic to his touch and to his eye."

Frank Lloyd Wright's appreciation of mankind's oldest building material is still shared by most architects, interior designers, owner-occupiers and tenants. Wood is organic, it is regarded as warm, as making human surroundings cosy. In addition, it can compete with any hi-tech material: wood has an extraordinarily good weight-to-strength ratio, has outstanding acoustic and insulation properties, and when properly deployed and looked after, it is also durable. Particularly in recent years, wood's climate-friendly and energy-saving effects have helped bring about a renaissance: timber buildings have always achieved low-energy standards, they are climate-neutral to erect, and environmentally friendly to demolish. Those who recognize and exploit the natural qualities of wood have a wonderfully versatile material which can be brought to life in the hands of a creative designer and builder.

With the help of more than 300 illustrations and architectural drawings, this book presents 25 projects from all over the world which exemplify a whole variety of forms and applications of wood both for interiors and for exteriors.