The culture of building

Book

The culture of building / Howard Davis.

Davis, Howard, 1948- (Author).

Summary:

"The Culture of Building describes how the built world, including the vast number of buildings that are the settings for people's everyday lives, is the product of building cultures - complex systems of people, relationships, building types, techniques, and habits in which design and building are anchored. These cultures include builders, bankers, architects, developers, clients, contractors, craftspeople, building inspectors, planners, and many others. The product of these cultures, which operate building after building, is the built world of cities and settlements."--Jacket.

"In this book of thirteen chapters, Howard Davis uses historical, contemporary, and cross-cultural examples to describe the nature and influence of these cultures. He shows how building cultures reflect the general cultures in which they exist, how they have changed over history, how they affect the form of buildings and cities, and how present building cultures, which are responsible for the contemporary everyday environments, may be improved."--Jacket.

Record details

ISBN: 0195112946
ISBN: 9780195112948
ISBN: 9780195305937
ISBN: 0195305930
Physical Description: x, 385 pages : illustrations (some color) ; 26 cm
Publisher: New York : Oxford University, 2006.

Content descriptions

Bibliography, etc. Note:: Includes bibliographical references (pages 327-368) and index.
Formatted Contents Note:: Introduction: Two Billion Buildings -- pt. I. Buildings as Cultural Products. 1. Building as a Unified Social Process. 2. Four Building Cultures in History. 3. Building Cultures of the Contemporary City -- pt. II. Rules and Knowledge About Building. 4. Connections to the Larger Culture. 5. Builders, Architects, and Their Institutions. 6. Shared Architectural Knowledge. 7. Value and the Flow of Money. 8. Agreements, Contracts, and Control. 9. Regulation. 10. Shaping Buildings and Cities -- pt. III. Transforming Modern Building Cultures. 11. Postindustrial Craftsmanship. 12. Culturally Appropriate Buildings. 13. Human-Based Institutions. Conclusion: Cracks in the Concrete Pavement.