{"product_id":"the-great-builders-9780500294789","title":"The Great Builders","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Great Builders\u003c\/i\u003e surveys the careers of forty great architects whose engineering skills were crucial to their success. Sixteen nationalities and seven centuries of architectural innovation make for a survey of spectacular scope and depth: from churches and fortresses to bridges and high-tech skyscrapers, it includes masterpieces from all over the world and covers 700 years of architectural history.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eHere is Brunelleschi, who built the 'unbuildable' dome of Florence Cathedral; Sinan, a Christian engineer who became chief architect to the Ottoman court; Joseph Paxton, scribbling down a design for the Crystal Palace, London, on a piece of blotting paper; and James Bogardus, an early American evangelist of the opportunities offered by cast-iron architecture.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eRapid advances in industrial production inspired experiments with new materials and techniques, gradually allowing a whole new architecture to emerge: reinforced concrete, plate glass and steel were central to the creations of Le Corbusier, Auguste Perret and Mies van der Rohe, for instance; and, in the High-Tech architecture of the present day—represented by Norman Foster, Frank Gehry and Santiago Calatrava, among others—computer-aided design has seemingly tested the boundaries of the possible.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eWith 26 illustrations, 19 in colour.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Thames and Hudson (Australia) Pty Ltd","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47428262265068,"sku":"9780500294789","price":27.99,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/9780500294789.jpg?v=1774497333","url":"https:\/\/bookhero.co.nz\/products\/the-great-builders-9780500294789","provider":"Book Hero","version":"1.0","type":"link"}