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The Architecture Library is developing a small, reference collection of core architectural building materials samples. The Materials Collection introduces students to a range of materials that can be used in the design and construction of the built environment. 

photo of architectural building materials samples

CSI MasterFormat Divisions

The Materials Collection is organized by the Construction Specifications Institute’s (CSI) MasterFormat to familiarize students with industry standards before entering the design profession. 

CSI MasterFormat is the standard for organizing construction specifications of commercial and institutional building projects in the U.S. and Canada.

MasterFormat is a product of the Construction Specifications Institute (CSI) and Construction Specifications Canada. 

MasterFormat on Wikipedia

External Material Collection Resources

Materia - Materia is the global network in the area of innovative materials. Materia encourages joint innovation on the road to a more beautiful, sustainable and high-quality built environment.

The University of Texas at Austin Materials Laboratory - The Materials Lab maintains the largest and most comprehensive academic material collection in the world. The ever-growing collection features 27,000+ material samples and is reflective of the current building and design markets with a particular focus on smart, emerging and sustainable materials and technlogies. 

aluminum

Peter, John. An international review of aluminum in modern architecture. Louisville, KY: Reynolds Metal Co., 1958. Call # NA 4138 I58 1958

brick

Hall, William, Dan Cruickshank and Jean-Bernard Gouillier. Brique​. Paris: Phaidon, 2016. Call # NA 4120 B74914 2016

Wingender, Jan Peter. Brick: an exacting material. Amsterdam: Architectura & Natura Press, 2016. Call # NA 1148.6 B74 2016

concrete

Bétocib. ​Peaux de béton: 65 architecture contemporaines​. Paris: Dunod, 2013. Call # NA 4125 B48 2013

Canadian Portland Cement Association. Concrete Design Handbook. Ottawa, ON: Canadian Portland Cement Association, 1995. Call # TA 683.2 C576 1995

Cohen, Jean-Louis et Gerard Martin Moeller. ​Architectures du béton: nouvelles vagues, nouvelles recherches​. Paris: Moniteur, 2006. Call # NA 4125 L5614 2006

Day, Richard. The practical handbook of concrete and masonry. New York, NY: Arco, 1969. Call # TA 670 D38 1969

Forty, Adrian. Concrete and Culture: A Material History. London: Reaktion, 2012. Call # NA 4125 F67 2012

Hall, William et Leonard Koren. Béton​. Paris: Phaidon, 2015. Call # NA 4125 C6514 2015 

Kottas, Dimitris. Architecture and construction in concrete. Barcelona: Links, 2012. Call # NA 4125 K68 2012

Mettler, Daniel and Daniel Studer. Made of Concrete. Basel, Switzerland: Birkhäuser Verlag GmbH, 2018. Call # TA 681.5 M33 2018 

Peck, Martin. Modern concrete construction manual: structural design, material properties, sustainability. München: Institut für internationale Architektur-Dokumentation, 2014. Call # TH 1461 A85313 2014

Materials - select print resources

Allen, Edward. Fundamentals of building construction: materials and methods. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley, 2014. Call # TH 145 A417 2014

Berge, Bjørn. The Ecology of Building Materials. Oxford: Architectural Press, 2000. Call # TA 403.6 B456613 2000

Bounoure, Guillaume and Chloé Genevaux. ​La paille dans l'architecture, le design, la mode et l'art​. Paris: Éditions Alternatives, 2017. Call # NK 8714 G45 2017

Bounoure, Guillaume and Chloé Genevaux. ​Le Liège dans l'architecture, le design, la mode et l'art​. Paris: Éditions Alternatives, 2017. Call # NK 4699 G45 2017

Brownell, Blaine. Material strategies: innovative applications in architecture. New York: Princeton Architectural Press, 2012. Call # TA 403.6 B76 2012

Brownell, Blaine. Transmaterial next: a catalog of materials that redefine our future. New York: Princeton Architectural Press, 2017. Call # TA 403.6 T153 2017

Ching, Frank. Building construction illustrated. Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons, 2014. Call # TH 146 C52 2014

Dernie, David. Material Imagination in Architecture. London: Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group, 2016. Call # NA 2750 D38 2016

Fernandez, John. Material architecture: emergent materials for innovative buildings and ecological construction. Boston: Architectural Press, 2006. Call # TA 403.6 F47 2006

Foster, Michael. Architecture: style, structure and design. New York: Excalibur Books, 1982. Call # NA 2500 A73 1982

Gerber, Eckhard. Architectural Material & Detail Structure: Advanced Materials. London: Design Media Publishing, 2016. Call # TA 403 G35 2016

Hebel, Dirk, Marta H. Wisniewska, and Felix Heisel. Building from Waste: Recovered Materials in Architecture and Construction. Basel: Birkhäuser, 2014. Call # TA 403.6 B82 2014

Howes, Philip. Material matters: new materials in design. London: Black Dog Pub., 2012. Call # TA 403.6 H69 2012

Hoyet, Nadia. ​Matériaux et architecture durable: fabrication et transformations, propriétés physiques et architecturales, approche environnementale​. Paris: Dunod, 2017. Call # NA 2542.35 H69 2017 

Kottas, Dimitris, Oriol Vallès and Roberto Bottura. Matériaux: architecture et construction. 2016. Call # NA 4100 K68 2016

Kultermann, Eva. Construction materials, methods, and techniques: building for a sustainable future. Boston, MA: Delmar, Cengage Learning, 2017. Call # TH 145 K85 2017

Lefteri, Chris. Making it: manufacturing techniques for product design. London: Laurence King Pub., 2007. Call # TS 183 L44 2007

Lefteri, Chris. Materials for design. London: Laurence King Publishing, 2014. Call # TA 403 L44 2014

Lyons, Arthur. Materials for architects and builders. London: Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group, 2014. Call # TA 403 L95 2014

Murray, Scott. Translucent Building Skins: Material Innovations in Modern and Contemporary Architecture. London: New York: Routledge, 2013. Call # NA 2940 M89 2013

Spiegel, Ross. Green building materials: a guide to product selection and specification. Hoboken, N.J.: Wiley, 2012. Call # TH 455 S65 2012

Taylor, Geoffrey D. Materials in Construction: An Introduction​. Harlow, Essex: Pearson Education, 2000. Call # TA 403 T39 2000

earth

Gauzin-Muller, Dominique. Architecture en terre d'aujourd'hui. Paris: Museo Édition, 2017. Call # TH 1421 G38 2017

Krahn, Tim. Essential rammed earth construction: the complete step-by-step guide. Gabriola, BC: New Society Publishers, 2019. Call # TH 1421 K73 2019

Mudgirls Natural Building Collective. Mudgirls manifesto: handbuilt homes, handcrafted lives. Gabriola, BC: New Society Publishers, 2018. Call # TH 4860 M83 2018

Rogue, Conrad. ​House of Earth: a complete handbook for earthen construction: cob, straw-clay, adobe, earthbags, plasters, floors, paints​. [United States]: House Alive, 2015.  Call # TH 4818 A3 R64 2015

Volhard, Franz. ​Construire en terre allégée. [Arles]: Actes Sud, 2016. Call # TH 1421 V6514 2016

Volhard, Franz. ​Light Earth Building: A Handbook for Building with Wood and Earth​. Basel: Birkhäuser, 2016. Call # TH 1421 V65 2016

fabric

Yates, Marypaul. Fabrics: a guide for interior designers and architects. New York: Norton, 2002. Call # TS 1767 Y38 2002

glass

Eskilson, Stephen. The Age of Glass: a cultural history of glass in modern and contemporary architecture. New York: Bloomsbury Academic, 2018. Call # NA 4140 E85 2018

Kottas, Dimitris. Architecture and construction in glass. Barcelona: Links, 2012. Call # NA 4140 K88 2012

Vellay, Dominique. La Maison de Verre. London: Thames & Hudson, 2007. Call # NA 7348 P2 V456 2007

Zegarac Leskovar, Vesna. Energy-efficient timber-glass houses. London: Springer London, 2013. Call # NA 2545.3 Z43 2013

metal

Desveaux, Delphine. Nouvelles architectures en métal. Anthony: Moniteur, 2016. Call # NA 4133 N68 2016

Kottas, Dimitris. Architecture and construction in metal. Barcelona: Links, 2012. Call # NA 4133 K68 2012

plastic

Bell, Michael. Permanent change: plastics in architecture and engineering. New York: Princeton Architectural Press, 2014. Call # TA 668 P46 2014

Faircloth, Billie. Plastics now: on architecture’s relationship to a continuously emerging material. London: Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group, 2015. Call # TA 668 F35 2015

Kottas, Dimitris. Architecture and construction in plastic. Barcelona: Links, 2012. Call # NA 4145 P53 K68 2012

straw

California Straw Building Association. Straw bale building details: an illustrated guide for design and construction. Gabriola Island, British Columbia: New Society Publishers, 2019. Call # TH 4818 S77 S87 2019

Magwood, Chris. Straw bale building: how to plan, design & build with straw. Gabriola Island, British Columbia: New Society Publishers, 2000. Call # TH 4818 S77 M34 2000

wood

Aicher, Simon. Materials and joints in timber structures. Dordrecht: Springer, 2014. Call # TH 1101 M38 2014

Désveaux, Delphine. Nouvelles architectures en bois. Antony: Éditions Le Moniteur, 2016. Call # NA 4110 D48 2016

Forest Products Laboratory. Wood handbook: wood as an engineering material. Madison, WI: U. S. Dept. of Agriculture, Forest Service, Forest Products Laboratory, 2010. Call # TA 419 W66 2010

Galindo, Michelle. Wood architecture & design. Salenstein: Braun, 2012. Call # NA 4110 G26 2012

Glasner, Barbara. Wonder wood: a favorite material for design, architecture, and art. Basel: Birkhäuser, 2013. Call # NK 9604 G53713 2013

Green, Michael. Tall wood buildings: design, construction and performance. Boston:  Birkhäuser, 2017. Call # TA 666 G74 2017

Hall, William and Richard Mabey. Bois​. Paris: Phaidon, 2017. Call # NA 4110 W6514 2017

Hall, William and Richard Mabey. ​Wood​. Paris: Phaidon Press Limited, 2017. Call # NA 4110 W65 2017

Hansen, Hans Jürgen. Architecture in wood: a history of wood building and its techniques in Europe and North America. New York, NY: Viking Press, 1971. Call # TH 1101 H2913 1971

Herzog, Thomas. Timber construction manual. Basel: Birkhäuser, 2004. Call # TA 666 T472 2004

Hoadley, R. Bruce. Understanding wood: a craftsman’s guide to wood technology. Newton, Conn: Taunton Press, 1980. Call # TT 180 H59 1980

Hudert, Markus and Sven Pfeiffer. Rethinking wood: future dimensions of timber assembly. Basel, Switzerland: Birkhäuser Verlag, 2019. Call # TA 666 R48 2019

Jeska, Simone. Emergent timber technologies: materials, structures, engineering, projects. Basel: Birkhäuser, 2015. Call # TH 1101 N42213 2015

Jodidio, Philiip. 100 contemporary wood buildings. Cologne: Taschen, 2015. Call # NA 4110 J635 2015 V.1 & V.2

Lennartz, Marc Wilhelm. New architecture in wood: forms and structures. Basel: Birkhäuser, 2016. Call # NA 4110 L45713 2015

Mayo, Joseph. Solid wood: case studies in mass timber architecture, technology and design. New York: Routledge, 2015. Call # NA 4110 M29 2015

McLeod, Virginia. Detail in contemporary timber architecture. London: Laurence King Pub., 2010. Call # NA 4110 M354 2010

Meyhöfer, Dirk. Touch wood: the rediscovery of a building material. Berlin: Braun, 2008. Call # NA 4110 T68 2008

Monies, Finn. Wood in architecture. New York, NY: F.W. Dodge Corporation, 1961. Call # NA 1218 M613 1961

Norman, Anne. Made in wood: l’art de construire en bois. Bruxelles: Mardaga, 2014. Call # NA 4110 N675 2014

Pryce, Will. Architecture in wood: a world history. London: Thames & Hudson, 2016. Call # NA 4110 P79 2016

Schwinn, Tobias. Advancing wood architecture: a computational approach. New York: Routledge, 2017. Call # NA 4110 M456 2017

Steiger, Ludwig. Basics timber construction. Basel: Birkhäuser, 2007. Call # TA 666 S685 2007

Wilk, Christopher. Plywood: A Material Story​. New York, NY: Thames & Hudson, 2017. Call # TS 870 W55 2017