The Thumbnail Book Reviews
by John Q McDonald --- 4 March 1998
by Steen Eiler Rasmussen
Rasmussen states in the introduction that he wants this book to be understandable to a wide readership. Indeed, the text is clearly and simply written, free of the turgid and lofty descriptions common in architectural writing. The book, however, has a fairly lofty goal. Rasmussen describes very basic elements of architecture. He outlines form, space, mass, color, balance and even sound. These elements go into every building and are deeply considered by conscientious architects. Rasmussen wants the reader to go out and enjoy architecture and understand it in a non-judgemental way. The book is interesting in that this topic is rarely discussed in this light. It is uneven at times, perhaps as it is translated from Danish. It is also very slightly dated, having first been published in 1959. In this 1991 MIT Press edition, though, this reader found its topics still relevant. It is easy to criticize buildings that we consider ugly, out-of-context, too big, or too impersonal. But there is often a lot more that underlies a structure and how it works. Architecture evolves both with our aspirations and expectations, as well as our comfort level with change and tradition. Rasmussen leans a little heavily, perhaps, on European (particularly Danish) examples, but once again, the lessons are broadly applicable. A good book for beginners, but also refreshing for more advanced architecture afficionados.