Thinking Architecture

In order to design buildings with a sensuous connection to life, one must think in a way that goes far beyond form and construction.
-Peter Zumthor, Thinking Architecture

Winner of the Pritzker Prize for Architecture 2009, Swiss architect Peter Zumthor is considered to be one of the most extraordinary and controversial architects working today.

Thinking Architecture allows readers a direct glimpse into his mind through a series of essays, titles such as “The Light in the Landscape,” reflecting his minimalist . Peter Zumthor articulates what motivates him to design his buildings, which appeal to visitors’ hearts and minds and possess a compelling and unmistakable presence and aura.

Now in its third edition, Thinking Architecture has been expanded to include two new essays: "Architecture and Landscape" and "The Leis Houses.” "Architecture and Landscape" deals with the relationship between the structure and its surroundings, with the secret of the successful placement and topographical integration of architecture. In "The Leis Houses" Peter Zumthor describes the genesis of two wooden houses in the town of Leis in the Swiss canton of Graubunden, thus thematizing the special challenge of integrating contemporary architecture into a traditional architectural context.

Thinking Architecture is a must read for any architect, student, or individual interested in stepping into the mind of one of the greatest architects of this century.