Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

This book defines over 5,000 terms relating to architectural design, history, and technology. It is the only dictionary that provides concise, accurate definitions illustrated with finely detailed, hand-rendered drawings, each executed in Mr. Ching's signature style.

Reviews provided by Syndetics

CHOICE Review

In this volume by Ching (emer., Univ. of Washington), one picture is worth 1,000 words. The book is organized thematically around the basic aspects of architecture, art history, design, and the mechanics of construction, including foundations, roofing, lighting, heating, cooling, plumbing, and accessibility. With its detailed drawings, this dictionary will definitely appeal to visual learners. This second edition (1st ed., CH, Nov'95, 33-1251) adds entries titled "Computer Graphics" and "Sustainability"; amends the entries titled "Construction," "Heat," "History," "Light," and "Structure"; and deletes the "Solar Energy" entry. Therefore, libraries serving architecture students may want to invest in the second edition even if they own the first. Users who need definitions of known terms may start with the index. To find information on broader, more general concepts, users could start with the table of contents. This is not a only a valuable book for the reference shelf and for art historians and architects but will also be fun browsing for anyone interested in art, design, and do-it-yourself home repair or construction. Summing Up: Recommended. Lower-level undergraduates and above; general readers. N. Mactague Aurora University

Author notes provided by Syndetics

Francis D.K. Ching graduated cum laude with a five-year professional degree from the University of Notre Dame in 1966. His accomplishments included instructing at Ohio University and Cornish College of the Arts, teaching as an assistant professor at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, and lecturing at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. He was a visiting scholar at the Tokyo Institute of Technology. He has been a professor of architecture at the University of Washington since 1992.

Ching's published works including Architecture: Form, Space, & Order, A Visual Dictionary of Architecture, and Interior Design Illustrated, focus on clarifying and communicating architectural element, principles, and relationships. Ching earned a Citation for Excellence in International Book Publishing in 1992, and two years later he was honored with the Graham Foundation Grant to develop a two-volume reader for Design Drawing.

(Bowker Author Biography)