James W P Campbell

Timber and Construction contains 40 papers on timber and its use in the history of construction and a series of papers on other aspects of construction history delivered to the ninth annual conference of the Construction History Society from 1-3 April 2022.

The definitive worldwide architectural history of the library, with spectacular original photography by one of the finest architectural photographers at work today.

An approachable history of one of London�s most famous landmarks.

This totally original architecture book – the first ever comprehensive study of brick – follows the story of brick from 5,000 bc to its use in building today, via the vast baths and basilicas of ancient Rome, through the wonders of Gothic brick in Germany, the majestic temples of Pagan and Mughal mosques in Iran, to its modern revival. Marvellously illustrated with spectacular, specially-taken photographs, Brick is at once an historical account of how bricks have been employed by architects of every period, a technical survey of brickmaking and bricklaying, and an essay in architectural and cultural history. The authors have applied their expert visual and technical knowledge to more than one hundred themes, from bricks in ancient Egypt to their distinctive use by such modern masters as Louis Kahn, Alvar Aalto and Renzo Piano. Great works of engineering – viaducts, tunnels and bridges – are given prominence alongside great cathedrals and country houses, temples and mosques, testifying to the incredible versatility and importance of bricks and brickwork.

A library is not just a collection of books, but also the buildings that house them. As varied and inventive as the volumes they hold, such buildings can be much more than the dusty, dark wooden shelves found in mystery stories or the catacombs of stacks in the basements of academia. From the great dome of the Library of Congress, to the white facade of the Seinajoki Library in Finland, to the ancient ruins of the library of Pergamum in modern Turkey, the architecture of a library is a symbol of its time as well as of its builders wealth, culture, and learning. Architectural historian James Campbell and photographer Will Pryce traveled the globe together, visiting and documenting over eighty libraries that exemplify the many different approaches to thinking about and designing libraries. The result of their travels, The Library: A World History is one of the first books to tell the story of library architecture around the world and through time in a single volume, from ancient Mesopotamia to modern China and from the beginnings of writing to the present day. As these beautiful and striking photos reveal, each age and culture has reinvented the library, molding it to reflect their priorities and preoccupations and in turn mirroring the history of civilization itself. Campbell s authoritative yet readable text recounts the history of these libraries, while Pryce s stunning photographs vividly capture each building s structure and atmosphere. Together, Campbell and Pryce have produced a landmark book the definitive photographic history of the library and one that will be essential for the home libraries of book lovers and architecture devotees alike."