Architecture Visionaries by Richard Weston
Laurence King Publishing, 2015
Paperback, 312 pages

Why on Earth Would Anyone Build That: Modern Architecture Explained by John Zukowsky
Prestel, 2015
Paperback, 224 pages

As much as I spend my time reading books by and for architects, I have a soft spot for books that attempt to bring the subject to a broader, general audience. These two recent books, both by respected authors (Weston has written books on Aalto and Utzon, among others, and Zukowsky is a former curator of architecture at the Art Institute of Chicago), fall into that category and I review them here accordingly.

Architecture Visionaries portrays 75 of the most well-known and influential architects of the last century and a half. They are arranged chronologically by date of birth, from Antoni Gaudí (b. 1852) to Shigeru Ban (b. 1957). Each "visionary" is given four pages ? no more, no less ? with a portrait, a page of text by Weston, a short yet indicative quote, photos of important buildings, and a timeline highlighting birth, death (if applicable), graduation, practice, award and other important dates. Oddly, the important buildings are not situated on the timeline.
With 75 names, it's hard to find omissions in Weston's book, though it's a bit easier in recent years. For instance, Tadao Ando (b. 1941), Toyo Ito (b. 1941) and Ban are a few of the younger Japanese architects included, but SANAA, the duo of Kazuyo Sejima and Ryue Nishizawa, is a glaring...