- Hardcover: 216 pages
- Publisher: Princeton Architectural Press; 1 edition (Nov 1 2003)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 1568984138
- ISBN-13: 978-1568984131
- Product Dimensions: 27.7 x 23.1 x 3 cm
- Shipping Weight: 1.4 Kg
- Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
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Amazon Bestsellers Rank:
#1,287,580 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #6 in Books > Arts & Photography > Architecture > International > African
- #6 in Books > Professional & Technical > Architecture > International > African
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Product Details |
Product Description
Book Description
Many think that sub-Saharan African architecture is little more than mud huts. Mud, yes--but certainly not huts. Instead, these adobe buildings, many of them enormous, show sublime sculptural beauty, variety, ingenuity, and originality. In the Sahal region of western Africa--Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Togo, Benin, Ghana, and Burkina Faso--people have been constructing earthen buildings for centuries. But they remain unknown to most of the Western world. Their plastic forms--from simple stairways, to ornamented domes, to complex arches--are highlighted by subtle painting and intricate grillwork.
James Morris spent four months photographing these hidden jewels, from the great mosque at Djenne--the largest mud building in the world--to small houses in remote animist communities. "Butabu" shows these works as both aesthetic treasures and as architecture with contemporary relevance. These are no museum pieces, but rather buildings that continue to be maintained and built, even as they are threatened by the uncertainties of weather and the encroachment of Western technology.
Text by Suzanne Preston Blier covers the history of earthen architecture, the technology that creates it, and the symbolism of its form.
James Morris spent four months photographing these hidden jewels, from the great mosque at Djenne--the largest mud building in the world--to small houses in remote animist communities. "Butabu" shows these works as both aesthetic treasures and as architecture with contemporary relevance. These are no museum pieces, but rather buildings that continue to be maintained and built, even as they are threatened by the uncertainties of weather and the encroachment of Western technology.
Text by Suzanne Preston Blier covers the history of earthen architecture, the technology that creates it, and the symbolism of its form.
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Most helpful customer reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Reality-warping done humbly and well. Thank you Mr. Morris.,
By
This review is from: Butabu: Adobe Architecture Of West Africa (Hardcover)
Stunning. After picture book after picture book on 20th century architecture, this book rocketed me out of the modern Western world and deposited me gently within the expressive caress of this timeless adobe architecture of africa. This is a sort of architecture I have NEVER seen in books before. A genuine addition to the vernacular of modern architecture and possibly, a firefly of inspiration for those of us living in empty hard, static and meaningless shells. How to bring the heart and handiwork back into the technological universe?
5.0 out of 5 stars
Butabu: Adobe Architecture of West Africa,
By Michael Webb (London, England > Los Angeles, USA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Butabu: Adobe Architecture Of West Africa (Hardcover)
The soft folds and highly textured surfaces of Mali mosques, Niger chiefs' houses and other examples of the African adobe vernacular have lured a succession of hippies with a wobbly sense of focus. So it's a delight to see a photographer who has chronicled the sharp-edged structures of Norman Foster and Richard Rogers bring clarity to such a picturesque subject, and to read such an illuminating essay on its cultural roots. (Michael Webb is the book reviewer for LA Architect magazine.)
Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta) Amazon.com:
4.8 out of 5 stars (5 customer reviews) 4 of 5 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Butabu: Adobe Architecture of West Africa,
By Michael Webb - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Butabu: Adobe Architecture Of West Africa (Hardcover)
The soft folds and highly textured surfaces of Mali mosques, Niger chiefs' houses and other examples of the African adobe vernacular have lured a succession of hippies with a wobbly sense of focus. So it's a delight to see a photographer who has chronicled the sharp-edged structures of Norman Foster and Richard Rogers bring clarity to such a picturesque subject, and to read such an illuminating essay on its cultural roots. (Michael Webb is the book reviewer for LA Architect magazine.)
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
beautiful pictures to have around,
By Jedidja Freudenthal - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Butabu: Adobe Architecture Of West Africa (Hardcover)
Butabu is a beautifully designed book. It mainly consists of wonderful photographs of delicate buildings and their details. This book is not only a very attractive picture art book but also a study book on West African culture. The clear text in the second part of the book is followed by an extended list of references. Ineke Freudenthal, The Netherlands.
3 of 4 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Reality-warping done humbly and well. Thank you Mr. Morris.,
By Segue Fischlin III - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Butabu: Adobe Architecture Of West Africa (Hardcover)
Stunning. After picture book after picture book on 20th century architecture, this book rocketed me out of the modern Western world and deposited me gently within the expressive caress of this timeless adobe architecture of africa. This is a sort of architecture I have NEVER seen in books before. A genuine addition to the vernacular of modern architecture and possibly, a firefly of inspiration for those of us living in empty hard, static and meaningless shells. How to bring the heart and handiwork back into the technological universe?
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