Northern Exposure: Works of Carol A. Wilson Architect

Description

This intimate portrait of eight houses by the Maine architect Carol A. Wilson illustrates how "local" is an idea as close to architecture as it is to food. Focusing on climate, seasons, views, local materials, the ecological history of building sites, and collaborations with local artisans, Wilson crafts exquisitely designed and built houses that celebrate the beauty of New England, and the power of architecture to combine modern forms with a traditional built landscape. Following introductory texts by Enrico Pinna and Juhani Pallasmaa, and a conversation between Wilson and John Leroux, each project opens with a foldout of plans transitioning from hand-drawn to computer-aided and info on the house, before culminating in brilliant exterior, interior, and detail shots. The book closes with an interview in twenty questions that elaborates on Wilson's working principles and the history of her studio for the past thirty years.

Carol A. Wilson, FAIA, is principal of Carol A. Wilson Architect, located in Falmouth, Maine. Her office is known for its modern and environmentally responsive buildings, which have been honored with numerous design awards and published extensively. She has been a visiting professor of architecture at the University of New Mexico and Montana State University, scholar-in-residence at Bowdoin College's Coastal Studies Center, visiting critic at Virginia Commonwealth University in Qatar, and an instructor in the Executive Education Program at Harvard University's Graduate School of Design. Wilson was a cofounder of Storefront for Architecture Maine, curator of Haystack's Architecture: Vision and Legacy, and cocurator of Maine Modern: 50 Years of Modern Architecture in Maine. She established the Maine Prize for Architecture in 2010. Wilson has been working in Maine since 1981. Enrico Pinna is an architect, writer, and lecturer whose books include Impronte Tracks, Idee allo stato nascente, and Talking Architectures. His office with Mariri Viardo, Pinna Viardo Architecture and Research, is located in Genoa, Italy. In 2003 they founded the cultural association AMS (Architecture, Modernity, and Science), which deals with the relationship between space and psyche. Juhani Pallasmaa is a Finnish architect and former professor of architecture and dean at the Helsinki University of Technology. Along with many academic and civic positions, he acted as director of the Museum of Finnish Architecture (1978-1983), and head of the Institute of Industrial Arts, Helsinki. He established his own architectural practice-Arkkitehtitoimisto Juhani Pallasmaa KY- in Helsinki in 1983. His book The Eyes of the Skin is recommended reading for students in countries the world over.

"Part discussion, part photo spread, part portfolio, Northern Exposure is a beautiful book that features eight New England houses designed by Carol A. Wilson....Her elegant sketches and project notes illustrate how architectural theory is ultimately turned into homes people can inhabit comfortably for a lifetime." - Coastal Design