The Office - Hardcover

Pelegrin-Genel, Elisabeth

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 2080135899 ISBN 13: 9782080135896

Publisher: Flammarion, 1996

Synopsis

Most of us spend the greater part of our lives at the office, but of all the human environments it is perhaps the least well-explored. In a lively text with abundant illustrations, Elisabeth Pelegrin-Genel provides an authoritative and thought-provoking study of the history, architecture and design of the office and the effect of our professional surroundings on the ways we live and work.
Featuring magnificent interiors designed by such renowned architects as Frank Lloyd Wright, Walter Gropius, and Francis Jourdain, as well as historical and contemporary photography, paintings, and film stills, The Office is essential reading for interior designers, architects, psychologists, and management professionals.

About this title

Reviews

A French architect, who is also a psychologist and management consultant, draws on her trio of specialties to present a particularly informative, oversize book on the history of office design. The author begins in ancient times, tracking the development of office usage and decoration to the present day. One important milestone was the arrival during the Industrial Revolution of buildings made up solely of--yes, offices! Her discussion of the evolution of office furnishings documents the progressive engineering of desks, desk chairs, lighting, bookcases, word-processing equipment (from quill on papyrus to typewriters to computers), and even such accessories as blotters, pen holders, and wastepaper bins. Pelegrin-Genel analyzes the offices of important individuals past and present, from statesmen to industrialists to writers, as examples of what office space says about not only one's business but also one's personality. A visual and educational feast. Brad Hooper

Offices...evolution or extinction? This well-researched guide to the function and design of work spaces from ancient times to the present is both informative and thought-provoking. The author, an architect, psychologist, and management consultant, begins with a brief overview of workspaces and furnishings throughout history, then focuses on different aspects of office life, ranging from the organization of space to corporate hierarchy of space as it relates to power, the personal office environment, the offices of politicians and corporate moguls, and the offices of various professionals. The closing chapter explores the office of the future, with new inventions and equipment. The entire book is sumptuously illustrated with historic and contemporary photographs, paintings, artifacts, and movie stills. Highly recommended for libraries emphasizing architecture and decorative arts, as well as public libraries.?Stephen Allan Patrick, East Tennessee State Univ. Lib., Johnson City
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: Flammarion
• Publication date: 1996
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 2080135899
• ISBN 13: 9782080135896
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 240