US publisher, DIY architect and legendary counter culture figure Lloyd Kahn came to attention in the 1970s with his publications on craftsmanship and self-building. An editor for Stewart Brand's Whole Earth Catalog, Kahn began creating geodesic domes in the late 60s that featured in Life magazine before pursuing other ways to build, resulting in his classic 1973 book Shelter. As an ‘eclectic meta-manual’, Shelter Cookbook explores the content of Kahn’s now iconic publications and relates their ways of thinking and working to the contemporary practices of Swiss architect Leopold Banchini and curator Lukas Feireiss.
For them, Shelter Cookbook records a personal search for unexpected relationships and networks tied in with historical documents and contemporary architectural projects. The large-format volume includes interviews, photospreads and archival material on self-building, and also includes a mycological investigation. It will inspire architects, designers, artists and counterculture cognoscenti alike with its positive vision of the possibilities and legacy of the self-build movement.
Swiss architect Leopold Banchini explores the limits of spatial design using local materials and traditional building methods. Berlin curator Lukas Feireiss is an educator working internationally across disciplinary boundaries in the fields of art, culture, and contemporary reflexivity.
Spector Books, 112pp, 28cm x 36cm, illustrated paperback
