Caribbean Style
- Book Review,
by Suzanne Slesin
Amazon.com
Part photo essay, part design survey, Caribbean Style offers cover-to-cover color photos (more than 600 in all) of the landscapes, facades, and interiors of the alluring Antilles, a region "at once showy and down-to-earth." Visit the regal plantation manors, the elegant town houses, the nicely appointed vacation homes, the proudly painted homes of the populace, and the omnipresent gardens of nine beautiful Caribbean islands. The very notion of a unified Caribbean style would seem to be impossible in this realm of separate island worlds, yet the diversity is rooted in a common Creole heritage, resulting in a fascinating vernacular architecture that tells the story of life--both past and present--in the West Indies. --Amy Handy
From Library Journal
In 600 color photographs, accompanied by brief descriptive text, this book takes us on a tour of the brightly painted, widely varied architectural landscape of the Caribbean Islands. As with Slesin and Stafford Cliff's earlier French Style ( LJ 10/15/82) and English Style ( LJ 12/84), the presentation is more an appreciation of styles than a how-to or a discussion of design principles. The text concentrates on providing reasons for particular architectural features; the need for ventilation and shelter from heat and sun gives rise to the variety of solutions illustrated here. Houses are divided into four typesplantation, town, popular, and contemporaryand examples of each are examined. Morris's foreword and Jack Berthelot and Martine Gaume's introduction help to put the photographs into a historical and stylistic context. Highly recommended. Margaret Jean Owens, Santa Ana P.L., Cal.Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Book Description
What visitor to the Caribbean has not been entranced by the beauty and spirit of its tropical islands? In Caribbean Style, more than 600 spectacular full-color photographs and an illuminating text re-create the houses, gardens, and lifestyle of this enchanting region.A trendsetting book that combines travel and design, Caribbean Style offers a previously unseen view of the islands of Guadeloupe, Martinique, St. Bartélémy, Antigua, Nevis, Montserrat, Barbados, Haiti, and Jamaica. The book includes information on island vegetation and colors, plantation houses, town houses, popular houses, contemporary houses, and gardens. In addition, the Architectural Notebook provides plans and information on different types of houses on the various islands.
These pages take you from plantation manor houses with gracious verandahs that catch the mild, cooling winds to brightly painted native dwellings adorned with imaginative wood trim; from colonial plantation gardens with rows of majestic palm trees and winding water canals left from earlier days to simple town-house gardens with bright
patches of bougainvilleas. Caribbean Style explodes with an intense profusion of images and colors. With this vivid portrait of the Caribbean, you will almost feel the soft breezes, inhale the fragrance of tropical flowers, and luxuriate in the warmth of the sun.
From the Inside Flap
What visitor to the Caribbean has not been entranced by the beauty and spirit of its tropical islands? In Caribbean Style, more than 600 spectacular full-color photographs and an illuminating text re-create the houses, gardens, and lifestyle of this enchanting region.
A trendsetting book that combines travel and design, Caribbean Style offers a previously unseen view of the islands of Guadeloupe, Martinique, St. Bartélémy, Antigua, Nevis, Montserrat, Barbados, Haiti, and Jamaica. The book includes information on island vegetation and colors, plantation houses, town houses, popular houses, contemporary houses, and gardens. In addition, the Architectural Notebook provides plans and information on different types of houses on the various islands.
These pages take you from plantation manor houses with gracious verandahs that catch the mild, cooling winds to brightly painted native dwellings adorned with imaginative wood trim; from colonial plantation gardens with rows of majestic palm trees and winding water canals left from earlier days to simple town-house gardens with bright
patches of bougainvilleas. Caribbean Style explodes with an intense profusion of images and colors. With this vivid portrait of the Caribbean, you will almost feel the soft breezes, inhale the fragrance of tropical flowers, and luxuriate in the warmth of the sun.
About the Author
Suzanne Slesin, a former editor and reporter for the Home section of the New York Times, is currently design editor of Condé Nast House & Garden magazine. She is also coauthor of all the titles in the Style Library, and coauthor of the Everyday Things series, including Garden Tools, Wire, and Kitchen Ceramic.
Stafford Cliff, a freelance creative director and design consultant in London, is the designer and coauthor of all the titles in the Style Library and Everyday Things series.
Gilles de Chabaneix is a widely published French photographer who travels extensively for magazines. He is coauthor and photographer of Japanese Style, Greek Style, Spanish Style, New York Style, and Mittel Europa. He is also photographer of Wire, in the Everyday Things series.
Daniel Rozensztroch is the creative director of Marie Claire Maison in Paris. He is coauthor of The International Book of Lofts, Japanese Style, Greek Style, Spanish Style, New York Style, and Mittel Europa. He is also coauthor of the Everyday Things series.
The late Jack Berthelot was a leading architect on his native Gaudaloupe.
Martine Gaume is a French architect working in Guadaloupe and was associated with Mr. Berthelot's architectural firm.
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