Herzog & De Meuron / Ai Weiwei

The method used for developing the topography of the 2012 Serpentine Pavilion is certainly interesting, but there are aspects of this book that could have been improved. Despite the relative scarcity of text, there’s a good deal of repetition (how many times must the reader be reminded that this is the twelfth pavilion?). It’s also written in a simplistic manner. There’s repetition in the diagrams that could have been avoided. Perhaps more photos of the pavilion could have been included (there are 14), or a section. It’s mentioned numerous times that the shallow pool on the roof could be drained for certain types of functions; why are there no photos showing the roof in use as a platform? The book is okay as an object. The photos of the pavilion are nicely printed on heavy paper. The bulk of the book is printed on a very lightweight, translucent paper. This would be fine if those sections were almost exclusively text, but they’re not.