book report: imagine buildings floating like clouds by vladimir belogolovsky

belogolovsky surveys 101 visions of architecture in new book

american curator and critic vladimir belogolovsky has compiled nearly 20 years of interviews with leading artists, architects and designers in a new book titled ‘imagine buildings floating like clouds’. published by the images publishing group, the 264-page hardback features insights and anecdotes from a wide range of creatives across the globe whose focus is on art, photography, architecture, design and critical theory. names include paul andreu, aaron betsky, tatiana bilbao, christo and jeanne-claude, norman foster, zaha hadid, toyo ito, glenn murcutt, renzo piano, moshe safdie, elizabeth diller and ricardo scofidio, richard serra, frank stella, michael sorkin, stanley tigerman, bernard tschumi, lin utzon, massimo vignelli and madelon vriesendorp.

‘I detest writing theories, I prefer writing fables’ — emilio ambasz

emilio ambasz, casa de retiro espiritual, seville, spain, 2004 (image © michele alassio)

what makes a buildiing architecture?

throughout the conversations featured in the book, belogolovsky asks questions such as what makes a building architecture? and how would a futurist solve problems vs those whose focus is on nostalgia? with responses from over 100 well-known figures, the publication offers readers a diverse range of opinions and ideas from past to present, and from some who are no longer with us.

each profile is accompanied by a thought provoking quote and stunning full color illustrations of important projects, which the author has carefully selected to perfectly match the stories told. available from may 22, 2022, ‘imagine buildings floating like clouds’ promises to be a great coffee table book for architects and architecture lovers alike.

‘why are historical towns more beautiful than modern cities?’ — ricardo bofill

taller de arquitectura (RBTA), la muralla roja, calpe, alicante, spain, 1973 (image © gregori civera)

‘you can’t plan a good picture, but you must be ready to take it’ — iwan baan

HHF architects, baby dragon pavilion, jinhua architecture park,jinhua, zhejiang province, china, 2006 (image © iwan baan)

‘we create works of art, joy, and beauty’ — christo and jeanne-claude

christo and jeanne-claude, wrapped reichstag, berlin, germany, 1971-95

‘when you layer things over each other—some things come up’ — zaha hadid

zaha hadid architects, MAXXI national museum of xxi century arts, rome, italy, 2009 (image © roland halbe)

‘for everyone a garden’ — moshe safdie

habitat ’67, montreal, quebec, canada, 1967 (image © jade doskow, lost utopias project, 2012)

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burning man, an annual nine-day gathering in the nevada desert for more than 70,000 people, installation by BIG, august 2018 (image © laurian ghinițoiu)

peter eisenman, wexner center for the visual arts and fine arts library, columbus, ohio, usa, 1989 (image courtesy eisenman architects)

massimo vignelli, heller stackables, 1972 (image courtesy vignelli associates)

helmut jahn, james r. thompson center, chicago, illinois, USA, 1985 (drawings courtesy helmut jahn)

maki and associates, spiral building, tokyo, japan, 1985 (image © toshiharu kitajima)

renzo piano building workshop, the menil collection, houston, texas, USA, 1981–87 (image by hickey & robertson photography © piano & fitzgerald, architects, courtesy fondazione renzo piano)