The Glass State. The Technology of the Spectacle, Paris 1981-1998.

Cambridge (Mass.) & London; The MIT Press, 2003. 23,5x18,5 cm. xvii, (1), 320 pp. Illustrated. Publisher's clothbacked, printed boards. Lower corners are slightly bumped. Name on front paste-down (Karl Steinick). A fine copy. "From the Gothic to the contemporary, glass has transformed the structural, formal, and philosophical principles of architecture. In 'The Glass State', Annette Fierro views the many meanings of transparency in architecture. Specifically, she analyzes the transparent monumental buildings that were built in Paris between 1981 and 1998 as part of Francois Mitterrand's program of Grands Projets. The Grands Projets provide a rare opportunity to study a finite set of buildings constructed of similar materials, in the same time period, in a specific urban landscape, and with related ideological missions." (rear board).