The idea that architecture can be portable is one that grabs the imagination of both designers and the people who use it, perhaps because it so often forecasts a dynamic and creative solution to the complex problems of our contemporary mobile society, while at the same time dealing with issues of practicality, economy and sustainability. Architecture in Motion examines the development of portable, transportable, demountable and temporary architecture from prehistory to the present day. From familiar vernacular models such as the tent, mobile home and houseboat, to ambitious developments in military and construction engineering, all aspects of portable building are considered. Building on his earlier works Portable Architecture and Houses in Motion, Robert Kronenburg compares traditional forms of building, current commercial products and the work of innovative designers, and examines key contemporary portable buildings to reveal surprising, exciting and imaginative examples. He explores the philosophical and technological issues raised by these experimental and futuristic prototypes. By understanding the nature of transitory architecture, a new ecologically aware design strategy can be developed to prioritise buildings that 'tread lightly on the earth' and still convey the sense of identity and community necessary for an established responsible society. This book provides a unique insight into this pivotal field of design.

Although a few among us are intrepid architectural tourists, visiting buildings and landscapes our cameras at the ready, most of us experience architecture through the windshield of a moving vehicle, the architectural experience reduced to a blurry and momentary drive-by. And the rest of our architectural "tourism" is through the images of cameras, movies, and television programs -- that is, through the lens of another's eye. Architectural hisotrian Mitchell Schwarzer calls this new mediated architectural experience the "zoomscape." In this thought-provoking book, he argues that the perception of architecture has been fundamentally altered by the technologies of transportation and the camera -- we now look at buildings, neighborhoods, cities, and even entire continents as we ride in trains, cars, and planes, and/or as we view photographs, movies, and television. Zoomscape shows how we now perceive buildings and places at high speeds, across great distances, through edited and multiple reproductions. Nowadays, our views of the architectural landscape are modulated by the accelerator pedal and the remote control, by studio production techniques and airplane flight paths. Using examples from high art and popular culture -- from the novels of Don Delillo to the opening credits of The Sopranos -- Mitchell Schwarzer shows that the zoomscape has brought about unprecedented and often marvelous new ways of perceiving the built environment.

Innovation in architecture: a step ahead with movement.

The idea that architecture can be portable is one that grabs the imagination of both designers and the people who use it, perhaps because it so often forecasts a dynamic and creative solution to the complex problems of our contemporary mobile society, while at the same time dealing with issues of practicality, economy and sustainability. Architecture in Motion examines the development of portable, transportable, demountable and temporary architecture from prehistory to the present day. From familiar vernacular models such as the tent, mobile home and houseboat, to ambitious developments in military and construction engineering, all aspects of portable building are considered. Building on his earlier works Portable Architecture and Houses in Motion, Robert Kronenburg compares traditional forms of building, current commercial products and the work of innovative designers, and examines key contemporary portable buildings to reveal surprising, exciting and imaginative examples. He explores the philosophical and technological issues raised by these experimental and futuristic prototypes. By understanding the nature of transitory architecture, a new ecologically aware design strategy can be developed to prioritise buildings that 'tread lightly on the earth' and still convey the sense of identity and community necessary for an established responsible society. This book provides a unique insight into this pivotal field of design.

Dynamic components and adaptive elements are becoming increasingly important in contemporary architecture, and not just because of their visual effect. If architects and engineers are engaging more and more with the issue of movement – whether in the form of sun-tracking solar cells, lowerable walls, or intelligently programmed elevators – it’s because they are busy exploring responses to three challenges: How can we control and reduce the energy requirement of buildings? How can we expand the range of possible uses? And how can we represent, illustrate, accommodate, and control dynamic movements in buildings? Designers and builders who seek to use kinetic components face technical and design challenges that aren’t covered by traditional structural theory. For these users, this book presents the technical tools and constructional solutions that will allow them to implement these movements concretely and deploy them functionally within the domains of of "Energy," "Change of Use," and "Interaction." First it lays out the fundamentals and design principles of kinetics in architecture, technology, art, and nature in a structured manner. In a third section, forty movable elements are shown in action, each on a double page – with specially prepared phase drawings and organized by type of movement, including rotation, sliding, folding, and transformation. The international examples from noted architects range from window mechanisms to solar protection and light redirection systems, movable walls and roofs, and movable civil engineering structures.

This interdisciplinary account of the different types of flexible living presents work by Modernist and contemporary architects and designers, contrasting them with the flexible houses and installations featured in non-European cultures.

This book discusses the forerunners, present context, and technology of portable architecture. It documents numerous international examples, organized by areas of application, and offers a broad array of suggestions for practical design.