Solarchitect's book recommendations I.
“If you have a garden and a library, you have everything you need.” - Cicero
If you follow me on twitter you may have seen my thread of book recommendations for solar architecture. I am now publishing this list here on substack too.
I'll start with the most impactful books of my library that I open up at least once a week ever since I got to read them:
Drawing for architecture - by Leon Krier
The Timeless Way To Build - by Christopher Alexander
A Pattern Language - by Christopher Alexander
The Passive Solar Energy Book - by Edward Mazria
The Not So Big House - by Sarah Susanka
The Four Books of Architecture - by Andrea Palladio
Hand Hewn - by Jack Sabon
Wood and Wood Joints - by Klaus Zwerger
The Bitcoin Standard - by Saifedean Ammous
Down below you can read about why each of these books had a positive, practical impact on my thinking.
1. Drawing for architecture - by Leon Krier
This is a small book packed tight with illuminating sketches (and with very few words). From these drawings the most intuitive way emerges of how we can view our built environment.
Krier magnificently grasps in a few lines what timeless town building and crafting should be.
This book really helped me cleanse my mind that was clogged by an impractical academic education. All these ideas led me to view the built world in a simple, effective way that also helps discover the timeless beauty within.
2. The Timeless Way To Build - by Christopher Alexander
This is the first book in the series of works written by Christoper Alexander about the defining language of architecture. He’s been the most influential figure in my transformation from a modernist architect to the one I became today.
In The timeless way to build he describes the act, elements and product of building process as elements of a living language that has its (un)written universal rules. These rules are slightly different based on context, climate and culture but have one thing in common:
The healthier the architecture, the more organic the relationship between the rules, culture and everyday life of people is. And vice versa. This creates the quality without a name, which is in my reading - Architecture that is alive.
3. A Pattern Language - by Christopher Alexander
The timeless way to build lays out the theoretical framework. A Pattern Language is a compendium of over 250+ patterns and rules.
This book has such a scope that literally presents why humanity should be made up of 2000 regions... .. through how to position windows for Function, Beauty & Light, to the minute detail of your chair's armrest.
Christopher Alexander's ideas changed completely how I think about children's rooms to why a bathroom should be a wholesome experience for the most modest of homes, not a utilitarian hole, where we get rid of dirt.
"The fact is, a person is so formed by his surroundings, that his state of harmony depends entirely on his harmony with his surroundings." - Ch. Alexander
4. The Passive Solar Energy Book - by Edward Mazria
This book is a good primer on understanding the passive solar principles in depth but without an engineering-level detailing of them that discourage the reader from finishing it.
Solar gain, orientation, shading, thermal mass principles could all be understood easily by reading this.
“So lately I am attempting something bold, a holistic synthesis of the old principles, localist building styles with the new methods of Passivhaus energy calculations. This is the holistic approach that underpins the Solarchitecture practice.”
from my article: 7 key principles of solar passive design - part 2.
5. The Not So Big House - by Sarah Susanka
Sarah Susanka’s work goes in tandem with Ch. Alexander and as the subtitle says it, it contains a lot of practical examples of well-designed smallish spaces that contribute to well-being.
6. The Four Books of Architecture - by Andrea Palladio
I can not write a book list without my favorite Renaissance architect’s manual to building classical architecture. There’s just so much wisdom embedded - I regard classical architecture as a guide for any kind of contemporary architecture, even if that is not “classical“ at a first glance.
7. Hand Hewn - by Jack Sabon
This is a beautiful album of vernacular, classic timber framed buildings. Loosely organised, it is more of an inspirational book about the allure, design of timber framed homes but the content is nothing short of magical examples, like this one below.
8. Wood and Wood Joints - by Klaus Zwerger
This one is slightly more technical and goes into the specific building details of different cultures that emerged over the centuries in Europe and Asia. It is beautifully illustrated with 3d joint details and building solutions, complete with historic photographs.
It is for someone who wants to delve into the details of historic timber structure to get inspired for a future project that might be just as durable as the inspiration for it.
9. The Bitcoin standard - by Saifdean Ammous
Even if you are not a fan of bitcoin you can learn a lot about the fundamentals of economics, advantages of hard money, why our (fiat) world is as it is and why decentralisation just might be the answer for a lot of problems today.
That’s it so far, I’ll update these with more in the future,
Until next time,
Solar