33884 New Forms Taschen 193

In a very different style, the sculptural appearance of Josh Schweitzer's Monument at Joshua Tree mentioned above is another reminder that California continues to play a role in a redefinition of the relationship between art and archi-tecture. Indeed, the Southwestern United States, because of its largely favorable dimate and because of the rapid growth of certain cities, has proven to be the area from which some of the most innovative new architecture has come in recent years.

Although a bit out of the architectural mainstream. Bart Prince, based in New Mexico, has created numerous private residences, some of which were clearly in-fluenced by his mentor Bruce Coff. The Mead/Penhall Residence, in Albuquerque, New Mexico, however, represents an original solution to the economic problems so often posed to contemporary architects. Designed with a very Iow construction budget and simple materials such as exposed, sandblasted concrete błock for walls around the carport, wood framing finished either with stucco and sheetrock or gal-vanized metal on the exterior and rough-sawn cedar plywood panels on the interior, this house sits on a lot that is only 20x41 m in size. Houses on nearby lots are one-and two-story contractor-designed f rame/stucco structures, with a carport in front of each one. The design here was completed with the idea of providing space for a collection of photographs, paintings and nineteenth century furniture. There is a continuous curving ceiling madę with exposed joists and metal. A series of covered and uncovered decks on the roof level emphasizes the distant mountain views to the north and east. It is particularly interesting to see Bart Prince's efficient and visually spectacular approach to a low-budget project.

An area that this volume has not delved into in detail is that of ecologically oriented or "green' architecture. Often setting aside esthetic reasoning to reduce energy consumption or to use non-polluting materials, green architecture is a significant and growing trend both in the United States and in Europę. One of the early proponents of an ecologically sensitive approach to architecture, James

204 Outlook