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Recommended Reading

Every great designer recognizes the work of great designers that have gone before them.  Below, you’ll find some of our top picks for reference, biography, style, and trends. 

Link to a bookstore

See something you like?  Make an addition to your own personal library – order it through your favorite bookstore! (Hopefully, you will soon be able to do that from this website!)

In bookstores now

New titles that look great on your coffee table or bookshelf.

  1. Houses of the Founding Fathers by Hugh Howard (Artisan Press)
  2. Style by Saladino by John Saladino (Frances Lincoln Limited)
  3. Greene & Greene Masterworks by Bruce Smith & Alexander Vertikoff (Chronicle Books)

LDA’s personal design library

Here are some of our well-loved references are at your disposal – you’ll find everything from theory and history to children’s books and recommended design magazines.  Some are out of print but most can be found through Amazon or ordered from your favorite local bookstore. Our favorite is www.parkroadbooks.com    You can link to them from here to purchase your books!

Style

  1. Great Georgian Houses of America, Vol. I & II
  2. The Elements of Style: An Encyclopedia of Architectural Detail; Powers and S. Calloway
  3. A Field Guide to American Houses- V. McAlester
  4. The Splendor of France: Great Chateaus, Mansions and Country Houses – Murat, Vignelli, Bernier and Schezen
  5. American Art Deco – Alastair Duncan
  6. The English House – Hermann Muthesius
  7. Paris 1900 – Franco Borsi and Ezio Godoli
  8. Craftsman Style – Winter & Vertikoff
  9. Prairie Style: House and Gardens of Frank Lloyd Wright and the Prairie School; Legler and Korab, 1999 and 2006.
  10. Bungalows: Connolly & Wasserman
  11. The Perfect English Country House:  Candida Green
  12. Palm Beach Houses:  Johnston, Schezen and Stern
  13. Wine Country:  Whitesides

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 Details

  1. Architectural Details: Knobloch
  2. Duo Dickinson books:  House on a Budget: Making Smart Choices to Build the Home You Want, 2007. and The House you Build: Making Real-World Choices to get the Home You Want.
  3. Kemp/Perron books – Architectural Ornamentation: Detailing the Craft Tradition, 1987 and Architectural Detail: Wood, Glass, Metal, Tile, Fiber, 2001

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Theory

  1. The Four Books of Architecture: Palladio
  2. The Ten Books of Architecture: Vitruvius
  3. Gothic Ornament: Pugins
  4. The Architecture of the Italian Renaissance: Murray
  5. Architecture in the Age of Reason, Kaufmann
  6. Classical Architecture – Tzonis & Lafaivre
  7. Basic Design: The Dynamics of Visual Form: Maurice  deSausmares
  8. The Dynamics of Architectural Form, Arnheim
  9. Notes on the Synthesis of Form, Alexander
  10. Signs and Symbols in Christian Art:  Ferguson
  11. Body, Memory & Architecture, Bloomer & Moore
  12. Design of Cities, E. Bacon
  13. The Theory of Good City Form, Lynch
  14. The Death and Life of Great American Cities, J. Jacobs
  15. The Nature of Ornament, Bloomer
  16. The Grammar of Ornament: Owen Jones
  17. The Grammar of Chinese Ornament: Owen Jones
  18. The Encyclopedia of Furniture: Aronson
  19. American Furniture – The Federal Period 1788-1825, C. Montgomery
  20. Classical Architecture (Rule & Invention): Thomas G. Smith

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History

  1. Bungalows, Camps and Mountain Houses: Comstock & Schermerhorn
  2. Great Architecture of the World, Norwick
  3. Amazing Buildings, P. Wilkinson

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Children's Books

  1. The Art of Construction: Salvadori
  2. This Old New House: Graham Learns About Renovating: Sheila McGraw
  3. Make It Work – Building: Haslam
  4. I. M. Pei: Designer of Dreams: Pamela Dell
  5. The American House Coloring Book: A. G. Smith
  6. House Building for Children: Lester Walker
  7. Old House/ New House: Gaughanbaugh & Camburn
  8. Fun with Architecture: Eisen
  9. Architecture Coloring book – A. G. Smith
  10. Folding the Universe: P. Engel
  11. 3-D Geometrial Shapes, A. G. Smith

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Architects and Designers

  1. Style by Saladino – Interior Design: Saladino
  2. Nancy Lancaster – M. Wood
  3. Michael Graves 1966-81: Wheeler, Arnell & Bickford
  4. Michael Graves 1982-89: Nichols, Burke and Hancock
  5. Louis Sullivan: The Function of Ornament: Van Zantan, Jordy, Wit, Elstein
  6. Robert A. M. Stern: Luis Rueda
  7. C.F.A Voysey, W. Hitchmough
  8. Mizner’s Florida: Curl
  9. Houses and Gardens by E. L. Lutyens: Lawrence Weaver
  10. Edward Vason Jones: Mitchell
  11. Green and Green, I & II, Makison
  12. Green & Green Masterworks: Smith and Vertikoff
  13. Recardo BoFill: C. Norberg, Schulz and Y. Futagawa
  14. The Architecture of Luis Barragan: Emilio Ambasz
  15. Henry Hobson Richardson: Van Rensselaer
  16. McKim, Mead & White: S. C. White
  17. Bernard Maybeck: Woodbridge

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Dictionaries

  1. The Penguin Dictionary of Architecture: Fleming, Honour and Pevsner
  2. Dictionary of Architecture: H. Saylor
  3. The Encyclopedia of Architecture

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Magazines

  1. Domino
  2. Veranda
  3. Metropolitan Home
  4. Architectural Digest
  5. House and Garden
  6. Traditional Building
  7. residential architect
  8. Trends
  9. Southern Accents
  10. House Beautiful

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Going Green

  1. Healthy House Building – Design & Construction Guide, John Bower
  2. The Passive Solar Energy Book, Edward Mazria
  3. What Every Home Owner Needs to Know About Mold – Vicki Lankarge
  4. Your Energy Efficient House, Anthony Adams
  5. The Passive Solar House, James Kachadorian

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Lindsay Daniel provides residential architecture services to Charlotte, North Carolina and the surrounding communities.