PETER BUCHANAN

Renzo Piano is an architect whose work seems increasingly relevant to our times. Winner of the Pritzker Prize in 1998, Piano is certainly one of the most interesting and acclaimed contemporary architects. Since his first building, the Centre Pompidou in Paris produced in collaboration with architect Sir Richard Rogers, he has realised a great number of attractive buildings all over the world, always creating new languages that combine a deep concern of the topography of the site, a clear comprehension of the brief and an amazing interest in the experimentation of new technologies. In Volume Five, Peter Buchanan shows, as he has in the previous four volumes, that Piano follows no fashions of form or theory, nor is he limited to a personal idiom. Instead he concerns himself with the specifics and potential of a particular situation and moment, meeting the challenges of the programme, often pushing technology beyond its present limits, and always responding sensitively to the urban fabric of the building's site. The first four volumes of the Complete Works have traced Piano's career from his early collaborations with Rogers and Peter Rice, and the formation of the Building Workshop in 1981, to the completion of Kansai Airport in 1995. This fifth volume will include Piano's latest buildings, which illustrate the continuing complexity of his work. Chief amongst these are the Nasher Collection in Dallas, the Woodruff Arts Centre Expansion in Atlanta, USA, Maison Hermes in Tokyo, Japan, and the Aurora Place Office and Apartment Towers in Sydney, Australia. As before, the book will also include 'work in progress', to demonstrate the full diversity of the Building Workshop's activities. This includes the London Bridge Tower, UK.

Renzo Piano Building Workshop: Complete Works Volume 1 Volume 1 of the complete works of Renzo Piano.Peter Buchanan The first volume of the complete works of Renzo Piano (b.1937), one of the most acclaimed architects of his generation Clear and comprehensive presentation of key early works, including the Pompidou Centre (with Richard Rogers) in Paris, Piano's studio in Genoa, the Bari Sports Stadium in Italy and the early stages of the Kansai Airport International Terminal in Japan Widely acclaimed on publication and by Piano himself, the book includes an authoritative introductory essay New photographs and specially prepared drawings and plans give fresh insight into well-known buildings Renzo Piano (b.1937) is one of the world's greatest living architects. He has made his name over the last 20 years as a provocative and inventive designer, first as co-creator of the Pompidou in Paris, with Richard Rogers, and then gradually with projects as diverse as the gallery for the De Menil Collection in the United States, the Bari Sports Stadium in Italy and the Kansai Airport International Terminal in Japan. The practice of Building Workshop practice is characterized by its sensitivity to site and local tradition as well as by its combination of traditional materials and techniques with those from the cutting edge of technology. This first volume shows key buildings and projects from Piano's earlier career, as well as from the Building Workshop, to examine closely the evolution of his work. Renzo Piano Building Workshop: Complete Works, Volume 1 provides an illuminating study of Piano's working method, his early mentors and his architectural development, followed by an in-depth presentation of a selection of his most significant buildings and projects.

Renzo Piano Building Workshop: Complete Works Volume 2 Volume 2 of the complete works of Renzo Piano.Peter Buchanan The second volume of the complete works of Renzo Piano (b.1937), one of the most acclaimed architects of his generation A detailed presentation of all buildings and projects from 1987 to 1993, many of them located in and around Piano's home town of Genoa Includes an interview with Piano discussing the development of his practice, his attitude towards technology and the continuing evolution of what Buchanan has called 'a natural architecture' This is the second of five authoritative and stylish volumes on one of the world's greatest contemporary architects, written by one of today's most important critics. This tome on Renzo Piano (b.1937) provides an enlightening study of his underlying approach to architecture and how this influences his technique, followed by a detailed presentation of the range of his buildings and projects from the period 1987 to 1993. In an interview recorded especially for this book, Piano talks about his early career as a designer, his attitude towards technology and his continuing evolution of what Peter Buchanan has called a natural architecture. Many of the completed buildings featured in this volume are located in and around Piano's home town of Genoa: from the soaring structures associated with the 1992 Expo in the old docks, to the ground-hugging form of his own laboratory-workshop in Vesima.

Renzo Piano Building Workshop: Complete Works Volume 4 Volume 4 of the complete works of Renzo Piano.Peter Buchanan The fourth volume of the complete works of Renzo Piano (b.1937), one of the most acclaimed architects of his generation A detailed presentation of projects of the late 1990s, including the Potsdamer Platz masterplan in Berlin, a science museum in Amsterdam, high-rise towers in Rotterdam and Sydney, the acclaimed Beyeler Foundation and the Jean-Marie Tjibaou Cultural Centre in New Caledonia Technical drawings and descriptive analysis explain innovative solutions to structural problems As Peter Buchanan has shown in the first three volumes of Renzo Piano Building Workshop, the architect follows no fashions of form or theory, nor is he confined to a personal idiom. Instead he concerns himself with the specifics and potential of a particular situation and moment, meeting the challenges of the programme, pushing the limits of technology, and yet always responding sensitively to the topography or urban fabric of the building's site. This fourth volume provides an illuminating study of Piano's working method, with particular focus on his regard for context, followed by a detailed presentation of his projects from 1989 to 2000. These range from urban works such as the Potsdamer Platz masterplan in Berlin, a science museum in Amsterdam and high-rise towers in Rotterdam and Sydney, to the acclaimed Beyeler Foundation, and the Jean-Marie Tjibaou Cultural Centre in New Caledonia. Technical drawings and descriptive analysis explain innovative solutions to structural problems. A strong sense is given of Piano's acute sensitivity to site and local tradition, combining traditional materials and techniques with those from the cutting edge of technology.