Description

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Virtually every revolution in architecture has been preceded by a revolution in materials: think iron, glass, steel, concrete, plastics, or composites. What is the next revolutionary material that will reshape the very nature of architecture? A solid that's lighter than air, metal latticework so delicate it rests on a dandelion, building insulation made from processed seaweed, self-generating microbial glue that repairs cracks in concrete, or transparent solar panels?

Materials expert Blaine Brownell, author of our bestselling Transmaterial series, reveals emerging trends and applications that are transforming the technological capacity, environmental performance, and design potential of architecture in Transmaterial Next. This book is an essential compendium for thinking architects, designers, and other creative professionals passionate about materials and looking for their bleeding edge and practical implementation.

About the Author

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Blaine Brownell is an architect, author, educator, and one of the preeminent scholars of advanced materials for architecture and design. Brownell's previous books with Princeton Architectural Press include Matter in the Floating World: Conversations with Leading Japanese Architects and Designers and Material Strategies: Innovative Applications in Architecture, and the Transmaterial series.

Praise For…

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"While we have all experienced the effects of the information technology revolution now underway, we may be less aware of the impact of the new "materials revolution," argues University of Minnesota professor Blaine Brownell in his excellent new book Transmaterial Next: A Catalog of Materials That Define Our Future..Transmaterial Next is rich with interesting details and well-organized, with sections on concrete, mineral, metal, woods and biomaterials, plastic and rubber, glass, paint and coatings, fabric, light, and digital materials. More than 100 brief case studies on materials offer brief summaries, images, the state of commercial readiness, and future possible impacts. He also defines the materials in terms of the trends they represent." - The Dirt (American Society of Landcape Architects)

Materials science is serious business these days. Advanced materials underpin the world's booming technology industries, and might well determine the sustainable future of the planet. So labs these days operate under high pressure to find the next big thing..Transmaterial Next, the latest in Brownell's successful series on materials of the future, catalogues these innovations under ten categories: concrete, mineral, metal, wood and biomaterials, plastic and rubber, glass, paint and coatings, fabric, light, and digital.

"Transmaterial Next is an encyclopedia of material innovations and applications, broken down into 10 key categories: concrete, mineral, metal, wood and biomaterials, plastic and rubber, glass, paint and coatings, fabric, light, and digital. Within each section, [Blaine] Brownell highlights roughly a dozen projects that, he argues, 'have significant potential to transform future products, buildings, and cities.' While the 100-plus materials do not all have pragmatic futures in prolific applications (Brownell highlights a chair made of an artichoke thistle fiber-reinforced polymer), the author is transparent in his reasoning for including such examples. 'In many instances, the material entries represent broader trends that are significant,' Brownell writes. 'I have taken an intentionally broad view of what constitutes "material."" - Architect Magazine

"While we have all experienced the effects of the information technology revolution now underway, we may be less aware of the impact of the new "materials revolution," argues University of Minnesota professor Blaine Brownell in his new book. Building materials are being transformed to respond to our planetary environmental crisis, lower costs and boost efficiency, and provide new media for creative expression. Given the serious problems facing the Earth, the scale of the ambition is heartening."
- The Dirt (American Society of Landscape)

"Sustainable materials must satisfy multiple cross-cutting criteria, from low or no environmental impact to design applicability and high performance. Those that made the cut in architect Blaine Brownell's eye-popping catalogue possess that magical mix of green credibility and sleek aesthetic: BlingCrete (light-reflecting concrete), pollution-filtering bricks, energy-harvesting walls, foamed-wood insulation, touch-responsive surfaces. A foretaste of how near-future science could transform engineering and design." - Nature

"You may look to Transmaterial Next as a sourcebook of new professional opportunities. I was simply struck by the breathtaking variety of the materials that now surround us and the boundless ingenuity and inventiveness of those whose work is to create and exploit them." - Times Higher Ed