For nearly fifty years “the building” has primarily been viewed as a means rather than an end within architectural history and theory. This volume presents an alternative to that trend by reconceiving it as a central discursive category in its own right.

Different contributors, including architects and thinkers from world-renowned institutions, offer poignant explorations of key architectural structures conceived across Asia and the West from the late 1980s to the present. In doing so, they propel the importance of architectural thinking as a domain of knowledge.

Furthermore, in exploring those structures through a number of questions both intra- and meta-disciplinary, the book suggests ways in which buildings can trigger conceptual frameworks whose influence extends well beyond the boundaries of architecture. A balanced text-to-image ratio caters to readers in both practice and academia.


José Aragüez is a practicing architect, writer, and educator. He holds a Ph.D. in the History and Theory of Architecture from Princeton University, and lives and works between New York City and Paris.

For nearly fifty years “the building” has primarily been viewed as a means rather than an end within architectural history and theory. This volume presents an alternative to that trend by reconceiving it as a central discursive category in its own right.

Different contributors, including architects and thinkers from world-renowned institutions, offer poignant explorations of key architectural structures conceived across Asia and the West from the late 1980s to the present. In doing so, they propel the importance of architectural thinking as a domain of knowledge.

Furthermore, in exploring those structures through a number of questions both intra- and meta-disciplinary, the book suggests ways in which buildings can trigger conceptual frameworks whose influence extends well beyond the boundaries of architecture. A balanced text-to-image ratio caters to readers in both practice and academia.


José Aragüez is a practicing architect, writer, and educator. He holds a Ph.D. in the History and Theory of Architecture from Princeton University, and lives and works between New York City and Paris.