Coastal Villas: Luxury Living on the Gulf Coast showcases 13 stunning villas designed by Geoff Chick & Associates in the timber-framed vernacular style of Florida’s 19th- and 20th-century architecture. From minimalist retreats poised on the edge of the surf to sprawling family homes nestled among pine forests, these houses reflect respect for the land and water that surround them. They draw inspiration from the Gulf Coast vernacular—the inviting porches, tall ceilings, and raised pier footings—while updating these elements for a contemporary audience.

This monograph of Geoff Chick & Associates is a celebration of architectural innovation tailored to the Gulf Coast’s complex interplay of relentless sun, occasional hurricanes, and delicate ecosystems. These homes transform natural challenges into opportunities for creative expression, integrating gracefully with their surroundings, encapsulating the idea of design and nature as complementary.

Food is more than just nutrition – it is culture, identity and history. The new Nordic cuisine movement has challenged our ideas about Nordic food culture and forged a new understanding of what it means to eat in harmony with nature. With its ideals of sustainability, seasonal ingredients and modern culinary innovation, the movement has had a deep impact on both the restaurant sector and the world of everyday food. This book has been compiled on the occasion of the exhibition New Nordic. Cuisine, Aesthetics and Place at The National Museum of Art, Architecture and Design, which explores the interaction between the evolution of new Nordic cuisine and trends in other forms of contemporary culture. Architecture, contemporary art, design and studio crafts are woven together to provide a broader understanding of the movement’s aesthetic characteristics. How did materials, people and landscape interact to produce a distinctly Nordic culinary identity?

Text in English and Norwegian.

Sir Edwin Lutyens is widely regarded as one of Britain’s greatest architects. In a career of over 50 years, spanning the Victorian, Edwardian and modern eras of architecture, Lutyens was prolific. His work ranged from great country houses, city commercial office buildings, his famous World War I memorials across Europe and Britain, and his magnum opus designs for New Delhi built during the 1920s and 1930s. Despite such diversity of building types across his long career, Lutyens’s most celebrated works remain his country houses, which first established his reputation during the 1890s. As Lutyens’s practice flourished his work became widely promoted in publications such as Country Life magazine, and his houses, particularly those designed in the vernacular manner, would subsequently give rise to an entire genre of the English country house that became known, as it is to this day, as a ‘Lutyens-style’ house. Sir Edwin Lutyens: The Arts and Crafts Houses brings together in new, wide-format, full-colour photography a definitive collection of 45 of Lutyens’s great Arts and Crafts houses, in which he ingeniously blended the style of the Arts and Crafts movement with his own inventive interpretation of the Classical language of architecture. The book features 575 all-new current photographs of the houses, inside and outside, together with a selection of floor plans of the houses, and a fresh interpretation of Lutyens’s enduring architectural genius.

Forty international projects in six categories present the most innovative and forward-looking solutions, whose contribution to building culture development is clearly evident. The focus is on all the relevant themes of transformation development: use of resources, circular processes, biodiversity etc. The editors take a comprehensive look at current developments in the building sector and inspire novelty. With InteriorPark, they have been driving sustainable developments in the building sector forwards since 2010.

Text in English and German.

I.M. Pei, one of the giants of modern architecture, is featured in the first of a new series that will deliver a new perspective on 20th-century architecture through interviews in which prominent architects look back on their careers.

He talks with Fumihiko Maki about memorable people and projects from a career that has spanned more than half a century. Included are descriptions of his encounters with Walter Gropius and Alvar Aalto, which convey the high esteem he held of these eminent architects as teachers and friends. Tracing his career in 3 parts, a chronological list of his works from 1950-2008 is also included.

Evident throughout is Pei’s warmly human approach to architecture, which transcends the framework of academic or professional relationships and values above all the satisfaction of working with valued associates toward common goals.

Text in English and Japanese.

a+u’s May issue features Manthey Kula. Based in Norway, the firm was founded in 2004 by Beate Hølmebakk and Per Tamsen. This issue includes 13 built works and five paper-architecture projects. Manthey Kula’s buildings result from the encounter between the given program, sensitivity to the site, and methods of construction, while their paper architecture explores the relationship between storytelling and form through varied inspirations – dreams seen by others, women depicted in literature, an imaginary tribunal, and narratives woven by self and others. Manthey Kula’s architecture is based on story, making, and how things are made. They use words, drawings, and materials to construct a new and potent reality. In a world where architectural approaches and values have diversified, Manthey Kula targets another public realm – fiction – prompting the viewer’s intuition and imagination to “reaffirm our presence in the world.”

Text in English and Japanese.

a+u’s January issue features Caruso St John Architects, led by Adam Caruso and Peter St John. Practicing for more than 30 years, the firm is completing a series of major buildings, such as ZSC Lions Ice Hockey Arena, a competition-winning project 10 years in the making, and Royale Belge, an ambitious renovation of a landmark corporate building. Founded in London in 1990, Caruso St John carefully analyzes the existing situation – be it the sociocultural context or an old building – to create a unique architecture that informs both materiality and detail. The scale of the projects vary but the architecture is always their own, as their design approach, while consistent, responds sensitively to the variations. Caruso St John Architects have approached the 19 works in this issue with the same passion and sensitivity as in Tate Britain’s Millbank Project and Brick House, projects introduced in a+u’s March 2015 issue. Whether the subject is an existing building or a new construction, Caruso St John always questions norms and standards, and by extracting ideas and materials from the existing built environment, the firm embraces “the challenge to reframe the way we see the world around us and change how we define architecture.” (a+u)

Text in English and Japanese.

Lam Partners has blazed the trail in architectural lighting design for more than 60 years. The visionary team of designers, architectural imaginers, and technical gurus have illuminated prominent and prestigious buildings, landmarks, and spaces across the United States and around the world.

William Lam founded his eponymous studio in 1961, pioneering the field of modern lighting design and establishing the core philosophies and principles that continue to lay the foundation for Lam Partners and the lighting industry today. Now led by its third generation of principals, Lam Partners collaborates closely with architects to develop custom lighting designs that bring their vision to life. Their passion for architecture and lighting is evident in the energy and enthusiasm injected into the design process, and the technical and creative strategies that enrich architecture and space, and elevate the human experience.

This beautifully presented monograph showcases 25 architectural lighting projects by Lam Partners, including the United States Institute of Peace, Guggenheim Museum Bilbao, Yad Vashem Memorial Museum, The TOWER at PNC Plaza, Salt Lake City Public Library, and SoFi Stadium. It also features a selection of legacy projects, such as the Washington D.C. Metro and Union Station, and the Atlanta Marriott Marquis, considered to be some of Lam’s greatest contributions to architectural lighting.