Prefab. . - When the Future? - book review

Architectural Review, The, Feb, 2003 by John Winter

By Allison Arieff and Bryan Burkhart. Utah: Gibbs Smith. Publisher. 2002. $39.95

For decades we have been told that the future of housing lies with prefabrication. But the future never comes.

However, to a certain extent, almost all buildings are prefabricated in that they are made from components manufactured off-site. Many of the houses in this book are assembled from such components, so the line between a prefabricated house and a traditional one is blurred. Wisely, the authors do not attempt to define what a 'Prefab' is, they are content with the common sense position that accepts as a prefab any building where large parts of the enclosure are assembled off-site.

This is an attractive book and starts with a history of the prefabricated house, told from a US West Coast viewpoint. It is an excellent history, the authors being keen that 'prefab' should shed its image of the temporary and the makeshift. The history is followed by case studies which prove this point.

The Case Studies are divided into three categories, Production, Custom and Concept according to the aspect of the design that the authors see as paramount. Benthem Crouwel, Shigeru Ban, Julyan Wickham, Aldo van Eyck and Pierre d'Avoine are represented, as well as an impressive number of houses by equally talented designers that you have never heard of. There are a few dogs, but on the whole it is gratifying to see that such stunning houses have been built. My own favourite is a New South Wales Farmhouse by Collins and Turner.

My regret is the lack of nitty-gritty. There are no details, so one is left in ignorance as to how the parts fit together.