Timbercraft

Lost Tectonics from East Asia

팀버크래프트

© Rick Keus

At a time when timber is again reshaping architectural practice, Timbercraft: Lost Tectonics from East Asia revisits the enduring legacy of traditional East Asian construction. Spanning more than 1,400 years, the book examines nine landmark buildings in China, Japan, and Korea, tracing the evolution of sophisticated timber systems through interlocking components, bracket complexes, and intricate joinery.

  • Design: Studio Joost Grootens

  • Publisher: nai010 publishers

  • ISBN: 978-94-6208-963-1

  • Publication date: March 2026

  • Language: English

  • Pages: 168

  • Cover: Softcover with dust jacket

  • Dimensions: 220 x 300 mm

© Rick Keus

Written by architect and researcher Jae K Kim, Timbercraft makes this complex body of knowledge accessible through original analytical drawings, section perspectives, exploded axonometric views, and assembly studies. The illustrations reveal both the technical precision of structures that have endured for centuries and the spatial, cultural, and material ideas embedded within them. Essays provide historical and theoretical context, examining the craftsmanship, values, and structural intelligence that shaped the tradition.

Looking forward as much as it looks back, Timbercraft concludes with contemporary design proposals in which Kim reinterprets these time-tested principles, demonstrating how traditional methods can inspire new approaches to structure, fabrication, and architectural expression.

Chapter 01: Principles of East Asian Timber Architecture

Chapter 02: Visual Journey of East Asian Timber Architecture

Chapter 03: Modern Shift of East Asian Timber Architecture

Chapter 04: Reinventing East Asian Timber Architecture

Published by nai010 publishers and designed by Studio Joost Grootens, Timbercraft presents dense architectural research through a precise and coherent visual system. The Netherlands-based publisher specializes in architecture, urbanism, art, and design, while Studio Joost Grootens is internationally recognized for transforming complex information into clear editorial structures.

Combining historical research, design analysis, and visual documentation, Timbercraft offers architects, designers, builders, and scholars a resource on both the enduring intelligence and contemporary potential of timber construction.