Spanish colonial missionary settlements established San Antonio as a junction between Mexico and the developing United States in the early 1700s. Because of its remote location amid both countries and its great distance from other cities, San Antonio became a crossroads for commerce, industry, and strategic military position on the wild frontier. Texas independence and the admission of Texas into the United States in the 19th century established a diverse cultural population and distinctiv...

The Art of Japanese Architecture presents a complete overview of Japanese architecture in its historical and cultural context. The book begins with a discussion of early prehistoric dwellings and concludes with a description of works by important modern Japanese architects. Along the way it discusses the iconic buildings and architectural styles for which Japan is so justly famous—from elegant Shinden and Sukiya aristocratic villas like the Kinkakuji "Golden Pavilion" in Kyoto, to...

With over 180 color photographs and extensive commentary, this book showcases the beauty of Japanese inn, or ryokan.Featured are both old and new-from inns with a history dating back a thousand years to modern inns with the latest facilities that nonetheless capture the spirit of old Japan. Each of the properties has been handpicked by the authors for their strong design aesthetic, commitment to service and purity of their spring waters. The photographs sh...

Gain insight into both modern and Japanese styles with this stunning Japanese interior design book.Japan Living presents thirty exceptional houses that transcend function and resonate with spirit. These new Japanese homes, chosen for their inspiring and innovative designs, are special places to dream in. The owners and architects, working as collaborative teams, have created homes that are quintessentially Japanese.Crisp, sharp, transparent and lig...

Bridges, the least known and understood of China's many wonders, are one of its most striking and resilient feats of architectural prowess.Chinese Bridges brings together a thorough look at the marvels of Chinese bridge design from one of the world's leading experts on Chinese culture and historical geography, Ronald G. Knapp. While many consider bridges to be merely utilitarian civil engineering, the bridges of China move beyond that stereotype, as many a...

This comprehensive interior design book showcases the best in Balinese architecture with over 280 photographs and insightful commentary.Bali Living showcases 21 cutting-edge tropical designs from a creative new generation of architects and interior designers working in Bali. Their work is changing the face of contemporary design worldwide—part of Bali's "new wave" tropical architecture which has spread across Asia and further afield to Japan, Europe and th...

This Asian interior design and architecture book showcases the best luxury homes and interior spaces of the Pacific region.Asia has emerged in the last couple of decades as the global leader in tropical villa design. With innovative indoor/outdoor architecture engineered to facilitate relaxed, al fresco lifestyles, there are myriad solutions to suit every taste and pocket. Featuring hundreds of homes, garden estates, hotels, restaurants and more from India to Indoc...

The state of Oregon has had not one, not two, but three state capitol buildings. Two of them met a sudden and unexpected end�destruction by fire. William Willson, a pioneer of Salem, donated some acres from his Donation Land Claim for a state capitol. The first, built in 1855, may have been torched in a desperate fight to move the capitol to Corvallis. A second capitol, built in 1873, was patterned after the US Capitol in Washington, DC. This capitol, adorned with a beautiful copper-clad d...

San Luis Obispo was founded in 1772 as a mission in the foothills of the Santa Lucia Mountains on California's Central Coast. The city that grew from a rustic pueblo, with its scattering of adobe buildings, today has a wealth of architectural styles. From the simple barns of the outlying farm community, to the grand hotels and lively saloons kept busy by the Southern Pacific Railroad depot, and back full circle to the Mission Revival style edifices of California Polytechnic State Universit...

Congress created Perrysburg in 1816 to secure control of its strategic trading location on the largest river flowing into Lake Erie, the Maumee River, an integral waterway for shipping and also an important passageway for western migration. As a busy port and shipbuilding center, Perrysburg attracted entrepreneurial pioneers from the East, who, as they prospered, built remarkable homes, buildings, and other structures. During the World War I era, wealthy Toledo industrialists also arrived,...

Touring south to north, from San Diego through Santa Barbara County, this unique compendium takes the reader through the Southern California Mission System as portrayed on vintage postcards. The book elaborates on the missions' myriad functions along the coastal El Camino Real through several centuries as not only isolated centers of civilization in thewilderness and altars of Catholic faith, but also as incursions of empire and politics and the means to convert Native American tribespeopl...

Featuring over 250 photographs and insightful commentary, this topical interior design book will add a uniquely Asian-Pacific element to your home.The Philippines is home to a new generation of craftsmen, including furniture makers, artists, sculptors, and weavers. They specialize in taking the indigenous materials of the country—pina, abaca, capiz shell, bamboo, rattan, to name a few—and producing contemporary items that would be as at home in a New York loft as o...