“TASCHEN: wonderful publisher of sumptuous tomes.”

PIANO
The mechanics
of lightness
The wide-ranging career of the Italian virtuoso
Renzo Piano signing his book
at TASCHEN Store, Paris, 2005
RENZO PIANO
BUILDING WORKSHOP 1966 TO TODAY
Philip Jodidio / Hardcover, format: 22.8 x 28.9 cm
(9 x 11.4 in.), 528 pp.
ONLY € 29.99 / $ 39.99
£ 24.99 / ¥ 5,900
“The array of buildings by Renzo Piano is staggering in
scope and comprehensive in the diversity of scale, material,
and form. He is truly an architect whose sensibilities
represent the widest range of this and earlier centuries.”
Such was the description of Renzo Piano given by the
Pritzker Prize jury citation as they bestowed the prestigious
award on him in 1998. Whereas some architects
have a signature style, what sets Piano apart is that he
seeks simply to apply a coherent set of ideas to new projects
in extraordinarily different ways.“One of the great
beauties of architecture is that each time, it is like life
starting all over again,” Piano says.“Like a movie director
doing a love story, a Western, or a murder mystery, a new
world confronts an architect with each project.” This
“The book does justice to its subject, fully illustrating
the breadth of Piano’s vision. Beautifully shot and
presented, it gives the reader an insight into the development
of an architect’s work. A great addition to the bookshelves.”
—INTERIOR DESIGN MAGAZINE, London
explains why it takes more than a superficial glance
to recognize Piano’s fingerprints on such varied projects
as the Pompidou Center in Paris (1971–77), the Kansai
airport in Osaka, Japan (1990–94), and the Tjibaou
Cultural Center in Nouméa, New Caledonia (1993–98).
This stunning monograph, illustrated by photographs,
sketches, and plans, covers Piano’s career to date.
The updated publication includes new photographs of
projects completed since the previous edition, such as
his The New York Times Building in New York, the
Zentrum Paul Klee in Bern, Switzerland, The Morgan
Library in New York, as well as some sneak peeks at his
current projects, including the 66-story London Bridge
Tower, which is set to be Europe’s tallest building.
| 74 | “Cette épatante monographie grand format, riche en photographies, croquis et plans, retrace toute la carrière de Renzo Piano à ce jour.”—PARIS SUR LA TERRE, Paris
New Size
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The author: Philip Jodidio studied art history and economics
at Harvard University, and was editor-in-chief of
the leading French art journal Connaissance des Arts for
over two decades. He has published numerous articles
and books on contemporary architecture, including
TASCHEN’s Architecture Now! series, Building a New
Millennium, and monographs on Tadao Ando, Santiago
Calatrava, Norman Foster, Richard Meier, Jean Nouvel,
and Álvaro Siza.
Opposite: The Aurora Place High-Rise Offices and
Apartment Blocks, Sydney, Australia. Photo © RPBW,
John Gollings