Living with Architecture as Art is a stunning two-volume publication introducing readers to one of the largest private collections of architectural drawings in the world. Showcasing drawings and related models and artifacts dating from 1691 to the mid 20th century, this lavish tome includes both a catalogue and new texts by leading authorities and provides a fascinating look at these often very beautiful by-products of architectural training and practice.
The collection, assembled over a thirty-year period by investor and philanthropist Peter May, comprises more than six hundred architectural sheets, all carefully preserved and handsomely framed. Arranged by category, the sheets are primarily nineteenth and early twentieth-century competition or certification drawings by design students, as well as presentation drawings for public commissions, reconstruction studies, and interior designs. An introduction by the collector Peter May, afterwords by Mark Ferguson and Bunny Williams, and essays by leading authorities in the field—including Maureen Cassidy-Geiger, Charles Hind, Basile Baudez, Matthew Wells, and more—provide historical context for the drawings.
