Simple Rules: What the Oldtime Builders Knew

Simple Rules is a new kind of builder handbook Designed for both layman and professional, this 120 page, fully illustrated book includes 25 key design principles that apply to architecture, art and buildings. Inspired by long forgotten sources, this builder handbook includes timeless composition gui [...]
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Simple Rules is a new kind of builder handbook Designed for both layman and professional, this 120 page, fully illustrated book includes 25 key design principles that apply to architecture, art and buildings. Inspired by long forgotten sources, this builder handbook includes timeless composition guidelines, elegant proportional systems, building techniques and formulas for making buildings more beautiful. It is intended as a design guide for the architect or modern builder who cares about aesthetics and meaning, as much or more than the bottom line. A few select concepts and techniques, salvaged mostly from 18th, 19th and early 20th century builder pocket references and architectural guides, have been resurrected and abridged, or interpreted for practical use by the 21st century architect and homebuilder. Simple building principles and conventions included were used in the past to make places familiar and meaningful, sensible and beautiful. The design concepts are equally applicable to modern design. In fact, they are intended to serve as archetypes for a new modern architecture, to free builders from the need to simply replicate old styles. simple RULE 1 STRENGTH, UTILITY, AND BEAUTY "All architecture should possess strength, utility, and beauty." Marcus Vitruvius Pollio Strength arises from carrying down the foundations to a good solid bottom, and from making a proper choice of materials without parsimony. Utility arises from a judicious distribution of the parts, so that their purposes be duly answered, and that each have its proper situation. Beauty is produced by the pleasing appearance and good taste of the whole, and by the dimensions of all the parts being duly proportioned to each other. parsimony: economy of means, cost-cutting Marcus Vitruvius Pollio De Architectura, Book STRENGTH, UTILITY, AND BEAUTY "As one principal figure should always stand out as the foremost, ...to which all subordinate purposes should contribute and lend their aid. " simple RULE 5 THREE DIMENSIONALITY "Always keep in mind the perspective appearance when designing the exterior of a detached building, and not merely the front elevation." Richard Brown, Architect "From every possible view a really good building must have balance..." Talbot Hamlin equal distribution of detail and composition front and side, same roof form repeated, smaller side porch compliments front porch ..".imagine the building as it appears to a person walking all around it... From every possible view a really good building must have balance, and this accounts for the comparative failure of some of our informal American country houses. They seem manifestly to be designed with one view point, or two, in mind; from these points they are good, perfect in balance and composition, but from other points the same buildings are a mere hodge-podge, and they lack that little accent on the centre of balance given by a chimney or flower box, or some little point of interest, that would have made the whole seem balanced and in repose." Talbot Hamlin The Enjoyment of Architecture simple RULES is a design guide book intended to assist builders, architects and homeowners in creating better house plans, improving residential design, especially exterior elevations, assist in bringing character back to home design and in educating people in general as to traditional design principles as they were used in the past.