The publication of this anthology marks the first survey that collects, substantiates, and demonstrates the importance of the religious and spiritual imagination within Western Modern and
contemporary architecture. Going beyond the ideas of "sacredness" and "sacred place making" that are a common theme for symposia, conferences, and architectural periodicals, the essays,
interviews, and meditations offered here take a critical look at the relationship between religion and architecture in the twentieth century.
The anthology includes original and reprinted writings culled from the last one hundred years including texts by Luis Barragan, K. Michael Hays, John Hejduk, Mark C. Taylor, Juhani Pallasmaa,
Colin Rowe, Joseph Rykwert, and Quinlan Terry. An introduction by the editors and a glossary of terms also help the reader to locate and navigate this wealth of material. In addition to the
written texts, an integral part of the anthology is a rich collection of images and projects that addresses the question of architecture, space, the spiritual, and religion, or provides a point
of contemplation for the reader to assess against the essays included in the book.
This is an important introduction to ideas that helped shape the history of architecture in the twentieth century, as well as to the interdisciplinary discourse that examines how different
fields express abstract concepts such as faith, spirit, God, and knowledge. It makes essential reading for any architect, aspiring or practising, delving deeper into the meaning of
architectural practice, as well as providing an in-depth introduction to the topic for readers interested in religion, architecture, the ephemeral, and the sacred.
