Author(s): Patrick Bingham-Hall

Architecture

The New Asia Pacific House features the most spectacular and imaginative recent house designs in Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia and Australia. The first decade of the 21st century has seen the emergence of a vibrant architectural culture in this Asia Pacific region, displayed most conspicuously in the new houses of these countries. The architecture reflects both an overriding concern with sustainability and responsible building practice, and a desire to create the most beautiful or innovative houses in a variety of contexts. The future of domestic architecture in the 21st century may well be determined by the designs of architects who are already facing the realities of global warming and over-population. The architects have recently gained much international recognition, as the world's financial and cultural focus turns to the Asia Pacific, and the houses featured in this book reflect a growing sense of self-awareness and global significance. The New Asia Pacific House is introduced by an essay that examines the histories, the realities, and the possibilities, of designing houses in a region defined by an 'Arc of Architecture', which curves from Chiang Mai in the northwest to Melbourne in the southeast. This broad swathe includes the cities of Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, Jakarta, Sydney, and Melbourne, the tourist destinations of Phuket, Koh Samui, Pulau Langkawi, and Bali, as well as rural retreats. The essay reflects upon the now necessary implementation of sustainable architecture, the delights of designing in fabulous tropical locations, the requirements for contextual sensibility, and the virtues of reutilizing existing and historic architecture. The New Asia Pacific House comprises the most comprehensive survey of recent architecture in a part of the world that encapsulates so many of the issues and possibilities of the 21st century, thus documenting an architecture that will have great influence beyond the Asia Pacific region. It constitutes an invaluable reference for students and professionals, as well as providing the perfect resource for prospective homeowners. Each house is illustrated with a large selection of colour photographs, descriptive text, and formal drawings.