In Form Follows Nature, edited by Rudolf Finsterwalder, you are treated to “an outline of the history of the human examination of nature and presents a perspective for further possible lessons from nature.” Wilfried Wang, for examples, gives a particularly scathing review of the Enlightenment and it contributions. From these critiques and histories a base is built to demonstrate how the forms and process of nature can be used to generate form. The book stresses that copying nature is charlatanism and misses the point. Architects must understand the underlying principles and not the end product to achieve success.
Have a look inside after the break.
008-012 Preface 013-032 (Introduction) Form Follows Nature 033-042 Matters of Form. Music, nature and memory 079-112 The Inverse route. Interview with Frei Otto, March 28 and October 28, 2008 113-130 Nature – a test lab. Developing and constructing according to biological archetypes 131-150 Form Follows Nature? 151-166 Organic Architecture: 5 Projects by Finsterwalder Architekten
167-186 Funken 187-216 Nature’s Patterns 217-236 Crustaceans and Sea Urchins 237-272 Seifenblasen 273-288 The Japanese dwelling and nature 289-302 Domestic architecture of the primitive people 303-314 Building methods of living Nature 315-324 Animal structures. Between specialisation adaption 325-332 Constructions of non-living nature 333-348 Growing and dividing Pneus 349-362 Sandwich structures in the skull capsules of various birds. The principle of lightweight structures in organisms 363-380 Formative art of nature 381-394 Frank Lloyd Wright and his organic architecture 395-414 Star Show and Gridshell Construction. The Zeiss Planetarium Jena 415-422 Hermann Finsterlin. A fantastic architect 423-436 On spicules and spicular skeletons 437-464 Art Forms from nature 465-480 Strena. About the hexagonal snow 481-494 Perspectiva corporum regularium 495-512 Anhang
Hardcover: 512 pages Publisher: Springer Vienna Architecture; 1st Edition. edition (November 1, 2011) Language: German, English ISBN-10: 3709108551 ISBN-13: 978-3709108550