Shelter Cookbook traces a line from Lloyd Kahn's iconic 1970s self-build publications to the contemporary architectural practice of Leopold Banchini, mapping unexpected relationships between DIY building culture and experimental design thinking.
About This Book
Part archive, part provocation, Shelter Cookbook is an eclectic meta-manual that reactivates the intellectual energy of the self-build movement for a contemporary audience. American publisher and DIY architect Lloyd Kahn shaped a countercultural approach to dwelling in the 1970s through a series of now-canonical publications. Here, his thinking is brought into dialogue with Swiss architect J Leopold Banchini and curator Lukas Feireiss, forging connections across generations of alternative building practice. The book reads as a personal document of investigation rather than a conventional monograph — threading historical material, interviews, photo spreads, and mycological inquiry into a single, searching volume. Essential reading for those interested in vernacular architecture, self-build culture, and the boundaries of architectural knowledge.
Key Features
- 112 pages of interviews, documentary photo spreads, and historical and contemporary architectural material
- Authors: J Leopold Banchini, Lukas Feireiss, and Lloyd Kahn
- Published by Spector Books, ISBN 9783959054904
What You'll Discover
- How Kahn's 1970s self-build publications established an alternative architectural vernacular that continues to resonate in contemporary practice
- The dialogue between DIY building culture and the experimental design sensibility of Swiss architect Leopold Banchini
- A mycological thread of investigation that surfaces unexpected structural and conceptual parallels with architectural thinking
- How personal research and archival documents can form the basis of architectural discourse outside conventional academic or monographic formats
About the Author
Lloyd Kahn is an American publisher and DIY architect who became a significant figure in the self-build movement through his influential publications of the 1970s. J Leopold Banchini is a Swiss architect whose contemporary practice is brought into critical dialogue with Kahn's legacy throughout the volume. Lukas Feireiss is a curator who co-authors the book and contextualises the exchange between historical and contemporary architectural thinking.
Specifications
- Format: Softcover
- Pages: 112
- Dimensions: 280 x 365 mm
- Language: English
- ISBN: 9783959054904
- Publisher: Spector Books
- Publication Date: [Details available upon request]
Perfect For: Architects and students drawn to vernacular and self-build traditions, design researchers exploring the intersection of counterculture and contemporary practice, and anyone interested in the expanded field of architectural publishing.