Writing Architecture : Fantomas Fragments Fictions - An Architectural Journey through the 20th Century

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Summary: Discovering the world of Reima Pietila
Review: The title of this book is misleading, for in fact this very large book is about the architecture of Finnish architect Reima Pietila, a maverick "organic" modernist architect among the purist straight-lined Finnish modernist architects. Connah shows how Pietila is closer in spirit to Finland's most famous architecture genius, Alvar Aalto, than all those who claim to continue the Aalto legacy through a white functionalistic aesthetic. Connah's book is divided into 3 parts: superb reproductions of Pietilä's drawings together with crisp photographs; a simple outline of Pietila's work and world, drawing parallels when necessary to other worlds, including Pietila's favourite thinkers such as Heidegger and Wittgenstein; and, most thought-provokingly, very controversial footnotes, which tell the hidden story behind the difficulties Pietila faced from his compatriots. An excellent book.