The Timeless Way of Building
Encyclopedia
The Timeless Way of Building is a 1979 book by Christopher Alexander
that proposes a new theory of architecture (and design in general) that relies on the understanding and configuration of design patterns
. It is essentially the introduction to A Pattern Language
and The Oregon Experiment
, providing the philosophical background to the Center for Environmental Structure series.
It has had a huge influence on creative thinking, especially in the areas of architecture and software design.
In the book, Alexander introduces the concept of the "quality without a name", and argues that we should seek to include this nameless quality in our buildings. Alexander attempts to define the idea by surrounding it with existing concepts that reflect a part of the quality with no name but are not sufficient to define it individually.
The book's format is somewhat unusual. It is written as a long series of italicized headlines followed by short sections providing more detail; as Alexander suggests in the foreword, the 552-page book can be read in an hour by only reading the headlines, which frame the book's argument. There are also numerous full-page photo illustrations throughout the book, some of which are referenced by the text and some of which are simply an additional visual argument to complement the words.
The style used in The Timeless Way of Building is also unusual for an architectural text, at times resembling prose poetry or religious scripture. Indeed, some consider it not primarily an architectural work at all but "a book on philosophy with architectural examples."
Other books in the same series are:
Christopher Alexander
Christopher Wolfgang Alexander is a registered architect noted for his theories about design, and for more than 200 building projects in California, Japan, Mexico and around the world...
that proposes a new theory of architecture (and design in general) that relies on the understanding and configuration of design patterns
Design Patterns
Design Patterns: Elements of Reusable Object-Oriented Software is a software engineering book describing recurring solutions to common problems in software design. The book's authors are Erich Gamma, Richard Helm, Ralph Johnson and John Vlissides with a foreword by Grady Booch. The authors are...
. It is essentially the introduction to A Pattern Language
A Pattern Language
A Pattern Language: Towns, Buildings, Construction is a 1977 book on architecture, urban design, and community livability. It was authored by Christopher Alexander, Sara Ishikawa and Murray Silverstein of the Center for Environmental Structure of Berkeley, California, with writing credits also to...
and The Oregon Experiment
The Oregon Experiment
The Oregon Experiment is a 1975 book by Christopher Alexander and collaborators Murray Silverstein, Shlomo Angel, Sara Ishikawa, and Denny Abrams...
, providing the philosophical background to the Center for Environmental Structure series.
It has had a huge influence on creative thinking, especially in the areas of architecture and software design.
In the book, Alexander introduces the concept of the "quality without a name", and argues that we should seek to include this nameless quality in our buildings. Alexander attempts to define the idea by surrounding it with existing concepts that reflect a part of the quality with no name but are not sufficient to define it individually.
The book's format is somewhat unusual. It is written as a long series of italicized headlines followed by short sections providing more detail; as Alexander suggests in the foreword, the 552-page book can be read in an hour by only reading the headlines, which frame the book's argument. There are also numerous full-page photo illustrations throughout the book, some of which are referenced by the text and some of which are simply an additional visual argument to complement the words.
The style used in The Timeless Way of Building is also unusual for an architectural text, at times resembling prose poetry or religious scripture. Indeed, some consider it not primarily an architectural work at all but "a book on philosophy with architectural examples."
Other books in the same series are:
- A Pattern LanguageA Pattern LanguageA Pattern Language: Towns, Buildings, Construction is a 1977 book on architecture, urban design, and community livability. It was authored by Christopher Alexander, Sara Ishikawa and Murray Silverstein of the Center for Environmental Structure of Berkeley, California, with writing credits also to...
(volume 2) - The Oregon ExperimentThe Oregon ExperimentThe Oregon Experiment is a 1975 book by Christopher Alexander and collaborators Murray Silverstein, Shlomo Angel, Sara Ishikawa, and Denny Abrams...
(volume 3)