Singular Objects of Architecture

Every student of architecture is in some ways an auto-didact. I was doing research on a screen design and stumbled upon this tiny, easily dismissible work. I had read some of Baudrillard's previous work, which I found to be nihilistic and thick, like a stew with bits and pieces all the same size. I was never sure what to make of the man. I had known Nouvel from his works--the Cartier Foundation, the Guthrie, and Torre Agbar--but I had never gotten a taste of his philosophy. After reading this text for the second time recently, it only makes sense to add this book to the top-ten-lists of every architecture student in the world. It is very important. The issues that are discussed between the two include aesthetics of culture and of architecture, the disappearance of culture, the architecture of nothingness, censorship, structuralism, and general pontifications on current design trends breeding new perversions. Once the two get going, it really becomes interesting. I read pages 17 to 63 while drinking my morning coffee. Given the scope of ideas presented in this book, exhaustion is left as a task entirely for the reader. For 100 or so pages, depending on the edition of the book, there is room for many a discourse, and ultimately leaves the reader (me) wanting more and more. Consider it a very well composed appetizer cum entree. It should definitely be a required text for all NAAB accredited universities.