Details
Why Some Doors Open into the Room
Why some doors open into the room becomes easier to read when you trace the hinge and swing arc, revealing how the…
The archive
Articles
Browse explanations of the buildings, materials and design details that shape familiar places.
Materials
Brick or Stone: Reading Two Kinds of Facade
Brick or stone facades create different visual rhythms. Learn to read their joints, unit shapes and surface patterns…
Architecture
The Picture Window and the Changing View
Picture window design frames a changing scene. Learn how glass, sill, frame and setting shape the view, and what to…
Urban Form
The Myth of the Perfectly Straight Street
The perfectly straight street is not always easiest to read. Learn how bends, landmarks and successive views can make…
Construction
Reading Water on a Rainy-Day Facade Walk
A rainy-day facade walk helps you trace visible water paths across brick, stone and ledges, so you can notice how a…
Our point of view
A building is an argument in materials
Its doors, windows and surfaces make choices visible. We explain what those choices do without pretending every design works equally well.