| I must admit, their use of natural stone, brick, and the way they are able to manipulate concrete to create their desired effects is very impressive. Also, I'm sure these homes fit their particular market niche and are just what their clients are looking for -- no doubt they have the business and marketing end of things right on the mark. For this I will give them 3 stars. However, being a design book, I do have some criticisms. While many of the exterior elevations are extremely impressive, I found the interiors somewhat out-of-touch with true Tuscan style. I realize that is why it is called "reflections", but in most cases, they seemed way too "modern" in spirit -- they somehow lacked a European feel. They also seemed quite glossed and sterile -- almost soul-less. Although they seemed to have lots of room for a party, the way they were decorated would be monumentally disturbed or destroyed by even light revelry, not to mention if there were children or pets in the house. In some respects the design was outright dishonest, as one house had two garage entries whose doors were completely landscaped over. Now, maybe the landscaping is hardy enough to endure being driven over on a daily basis, but the broken impression was that they were trying to hide the garage access with landscaping and 'natural stone sidewalk, even though the garage doors themselves made no effort at all to conceal themselves. It seems very strange and un-natural. I would like to see a book with alittle more of the spirit of the design in it, not just all the, admittedly, beautiful building materials and craftsmanship which is clearly manifested in these houses -- and maybe that's it right there: these struck me more as expensive houses than as homes. I am glad I bought the book; I will definitely use it as a reference. I'm also glad I bought it from a used book dealer at a discount. |
Tuscan Books In Print, Audio Books.