#books #architecture | Historic cities : issues in urban conservation

Historic cities : issues in urban conservation / edited by Jeff Cody and Francesco Siravo.
Los Angeles : The Getty Conservation Institute, 2019.
XXI, 610 p. : il.
Serie: Readings in Conservation.
ISBN 9781606065938
/ EN / Libros / Arquitectura – Construcción y restauración / Ciudades – Renovación / Ordenación del territorio / Urbanismo
ehuBiblioteka BCG A-711.4 HIS
https://ehu.on.worldcat.org/oclc/1122548400

This book, the eighth in the Getty Conservation Institute's Readings in Conservation series, fills a significant gap in the published literature on urban conservation. This topic is distinct from both heritage conservation and urban planning, and despite the recent growth of urbanism worldwide, no single volume has presented a comprehensive selection of these important writings until now. This anthology, profusely illustrated throughout, is organised into eight parts, covering such subjects as geographic diversity, reactions to the transformation of traditional cities, reading the historic city, the search for contextual continuities, the search for values and the challenges of sustainability. With more than sixty-five texts, ranging from early polemics by Victor Hugo and John Ruskin to a generous selection of recent scholarship, this book thoroughly addresses regions around the globe. Each reading is introduced by short prefatory remarks explaining the rationale for its selection and the principal matters covered. The book will serve as an easy reference for administrators, professionals, teachers and students faced with the day-to-day challenges confronting the historic city under siege by rampant development.

#books #architecture | Pierre Koenig : a view from the archive

Pierre Koenig : a view from the archive / Neil Jackson.
Los Angeles : Getty Research Institute, 2019.
vii, 295 p. : il.
ISBN 9781606065778
/ EN / Libros / Arquitectura – Siglo XX – Estados Unidos / Arquitectura doméstica – Dibujos y planos / Pierre Koening
ehuBiblioteka BCG A-72KOENIG PIE
https://ehu.on.worldcat.org/oclc/1101966236

[.en] In this book, Neil Jackson presents a vibrant profile of Los Angeles architect Pierre Koenig, who ‘Time’ magazine said lived long enough to become “cool twice.” From the influences of Koenig’s youth in San Francisco and his military service during World War II to the Case Study Houses and his later award-laden years, Jackson’s study plots the evolution of Koenig’s oeuvre against the backdrop of Los Angeles.

The book is anchored by Jackson’s exciting discoveries in Koenig’s archive at the Getty Research Institute. Drawings, photographs, diaries, building contracts and more—many of which are being published for the first time—provide an expanded understanding of Koenig and additional context for his architectural achievements. An examination of Koenig’s Case Study Houses shows how he presciently embraced sustainable, ecologically responsible design. A new account of the Chemehuevi housing project in Havasu Lake, California, demonstrates the special role that teaching played in the development of his architecture. Over his fifty-year career, Koenig not only designed iconic houses but also directed their restoration, ensuring that his work could be seen and appreciated by future admirers of midcentury Los Angeles.

Neil Jackson holds the Charles Reilly Chair of Architecture at the University of Liverpool and is president of the Society of Architectural Historians of Great Britain. This present book, building on his earlier writings on Pierre Koenig, developed from a Guest Scholar residency at the Getty Conservation Institute in 2013.

#books #architecture | Concrete : case studies in conservation practice

Concrete : case studies in conservation practice / edited by Catherine Croft and Susan Macdonald with Gail Ostergren.
Los Angeles : Getty Conservation Institute, 2018.
207 p.
Serie: Conserving Modern Heritage.
ISBN 9781606065761
/ EN / Libros / Arquitectura – Conservación y restauración / Construcción de hormigón
ehuBiblioteka BCG A-691.32 CON
https://ehu.on.worldcat.org/oclc/1089396098

[.en] Fourteen case studies address the challenges of conserving the twentieth century's most ubiquitous building material—concrete. Following a meeting of international heritage conservation professionals in 2013, the need for recent, thorough, and well-vetted case studies on conserving twentieth century heritage became clear. This book answers that need and kicks off a new series, Conserving Modern Heritage, aimed at sharing best practices. 

The projects selected represent a range of building typologies, uses, and sizes, from the high-rise housing blocks of Le Corbusier's Unité d'Habitation and public buildings such as London's National Theatre to small monuments like the structures at Dudley Zoological Gardens and a sculpture by Donald Judd. They also represent a range of environmental and economic contexts. 

Some projects benefit from high levels of heritage protection and access to funding, while others have had to negotiate conservation with stringent cost limitations. All follow a rigorous conservation approach, beginning with a process of investigation and diagnosis to identify causes and target repairs, balanced with conservation requirements to preserve significance.