Santiago Calatrava (Architecture & Design) (2007)

A good selection of his work, but there's an updated edition. ( )

Inspired by sculpture and (outdated) physics, the Spanish architect Santiago Caltrava designs impressive, poetic white buildings and bridges. They remind one a bit of the Sydney's Opera House with its round forms.

This little coffee table book is a showcase of his work, but pays little or no attention to the construction techniques that make this style possible. Neither does the reader get any idea of how the inhabitants and workers in these buildings appreciate them. ( )

Calatrava is an architect en vogue. It is nearly impossible to visit any major city without a recent bridge or building in Calatrava's memorable style. I've seen quite a few, from the early, very subdued Stadelhofen train station in Zürich, the communications tower in Barcelona, the Lyon airport, the Athens Olympic structures to the splendid Turning Torso in Malmö and the BCE Plaza in Toronto. The buildings are beautiful, I only wish he would integrate the environment and the buildings more closely, to get away from the landed spaceship effect. A fine title about a current architect. ( )