Archispeak: An Illustrated Guide to Architectural Terms, Paperback

Widely used in architectural circles in the heat of discussion, the recurrent use of particular words and terms has evolved into a language of design jargon. Commonly found in architectural literature and journalism, in critical design debate and especially in student project reviews, Archispeak can seem insular and perplexing to others and -- particularly to the new architectural student -- often incomprehensible.

There is a need to translate architectural design concepts into spoken and written commentary -- each word in use embodying a precise and universally accepted architectural meaning. If we explore the vocabulary of this language we gain insight into good design practice and into collective understanding of what constitutes a refined architecture. This unique illustrated guide will help students understand the nuances of this specialized language and help them in communicating their own design ideas.

Tom Porter was senior lecturer at the Oxford School of Architecture, Oxford Brookes University. Over a twenty-five year period he made annual visits to Florida A&M University in Tallahassee where he taught architectural design. He is author of eighteen books on architectural drawing and environmental colour, including the best selling four volume series Manual of Graphic Techniques. His research into the psychology of colour became the basis of a six-part BBC TV documentary series and the book The Colour Eye.