In 1989, the second and third volumes of the opera omnia of the British architect Norman Foster were published, coordinated by architect and photographer Ian Lambot and designed —even with a special typography for the occasion, the Roos— by the German Otl Aicher (see Arquitectura Viva 9). From the beginning, the compilation was conceived as an extension of studio work, and Foster has closely followed every step of its development.
The penultimate installment, corresponding to the first volume, covers Foster's early steps with Team 4 —formed with Richard Rogers and the sisters Georgie and Wendy Cheesman— and, from 1967, as Foster Associates (which included Wendy Cheesman, who became his wife, and Michael Hopkins, who collaborated with the studio from 1970 to 1975). In total, about forty projects have been described, accompanied by articles by Foster himself, Richard Rogers, Ben Johnson, Tony Hunt, Reyner Banham, Francis Duffy, and Alastair Best. This last one describes Foster's first work as that of a young man full of freshness, vitality, and optimism.
The material realization of this first volume is impeccable, just as with the previous two installments, and it is more densely illustrated, with many of the images appearing to have a biographical character.
