Design With The Desert

The modern southwestern cities of Phoenix, Tucson, Las Vegas, Albuquerque, and El Paso occupy lands that once supported rich desert ecosystems. Typical development activities often resulted in scraping these desert lands of an ancient living landscape, to be replaced with one that is human-made and dependent on a large consumption of energy and natural resources. Design with the Desert: Conservation and Sustainable Development explores the natural and built environment of the American Southwest and introduces development tools for shaping the future of the region in a more sustainable way. Explore the Desert Landscape and Ecology This transdisciplinary collaboration draws on insights from leading authorities in their fields, spanning science, ecology, planning, landscape development, architecture, and urban design. Organized into five parts, the book begins by introducing the physical aspects of the desert realm: the land, geology, water, and climate. The second part deals with the "living" and ecological aspects, from plants and animals to ecosystems. The third part, on planning in the desert, covers the ecological and social issues surrounding water, natural resource planning, and community development. Bring the Desert into the City The fourth part looks at how to bring nature into the built environment through the use of native plants, the creation of habitats for nature in urban settings, and the design of buildings, communities, and projects that create life. The final part of the book focuses on urban sustainability and how to design urban systems that provide a secure future for community development. Topics include water security, sustainable building practices, and bold architecture and community designs. Design Solutions That Work with the Local Environment This book will inspire discussion and contemplation for anyone interested in desert development, from developers and environmentalists to planners, community leaders, and those who live in desert regions. Throughout this volume, the contributors present solutions to help promote ecological balance between nature and the built environment in the American Southwest—and offer valuable insights for other ecologically fragile regions around the world.

A study of the interior and the exterior of the Southwestern architecture with over 250 colored photographs.

Finally, the information presented by Philippe de Vosjoli in his many lectures on naturalistic vivarium design is now available in book form. This is the first book that deals specifically with the design and maintenance of naturalistic desert vivaria for the keeping of reptiles.

Arthur Elrod was the most successful interior designer working in Palm Springs from 1954 to 1974. His forward-thinking midcentury design appeared in primary homes, second houses, spec houses, country clubs, and experimental houses—in the desert and across the US. He was charming, handsome, and worked tirelessly for his A-list clientele.

In 2006 Abu Dhabi launched an ambitious project to construct the world’s first zero-carbon city: Masdar City. In Spaceship in the Desert Gökçe Günel examines the development and construction of Masdar City's renewable energy and clean technology infrastructures, providing an illuminating portrait of an international group of engineers, designers, and students who attempted to build a post-oil future in Abu Dhabi. While many of Masdar's initiatives—such as developing a new energy currency and a driverless rapid transit network—have stalled or not met expectations, Günel analyzes how these initiatives contributed to rendering the future a thinly disguised version of the fossil-fueled present. Spaceship in the Desert tells the story of Masdar, at once a “utopia” sponsored by the Emirati government, and a well-resourced company involving different actors who participated in the project, each with their own agendas and desires.

First survey of modernist and contemporary architecture and interiors in the richly layered architectural history of Santa Fe Santa Fe Modern reveals the high desert landscape as an ideal setting for bold, abstracted forms of modernist houses. Wide swaths of glass, deep-set portals, long porches, and courtyards allow vistas, color, and light to become integral parts of the very being of a house, emboldening a way to experience a personal connection to the desert landscape. The architects featured draw from the New Mexican architectural heritage--they use ancient materials such as adobe in combination with steel and glass, and they apply this language to the proportions and demands exacted by today's world. The houses they have designed are confident examples of architecture that is particular to the New Mexico landscape and climate, and yet simultaneously evoke the rigorous expressions of modernism. The vigor and the allure of modern art and architecture hearten each other in a way that is visible and exciting, and this book demonstrates the synergistic relationship between art, architecture, and the land.

An inspiring and witty guide to landscape design in dry climates.