Mondo Materalis: Materials and Ideas for the Future

At the invitation of the Steelcase Design Partnership--a group of leading contract furnishing, lighting, and textile companies--more than 120 prestigious firms in the various fields of design were asked to share their ideas on the world of materials. Now

The object of this project was to record each architect or designer's ideas for the material at hand--be it recycled, found, or specially developed by industrial designers--and to demonstrate the possibilities it presented. Each created a 30-inch-square collage panel, and the resulting images provide a stunning glimpse into the ways and means by which some of the most useful and beautiful aspects of our daily lives have been--and will continue to be--created. Also included in Mondo Materialis are statements from such famous firms as Richard Meier & Partners, Pei Cobb, Freed & Partners, Cesar Pelli & Associates, Dakota Jackson, Inc., Venturi, Rauch, Scott-Brown, and Andre Putman's Ecart describing their specific panels or simply outlining their design philosophies. Mondo Materialis is an invaluable idea and design source book for every architect and materials designer and for anyone interested in design. It is a compelling, thoughtful, and altogether dazzling foray into the possibilities for our man-made environment.