Monthly Archives: September 2017

1927 editorial: Prov in 1827

Posted on September 30, 2017 by David Brussat

Below is an editorial from the Providence Journal, published in 1927, about the city’s appearance in 1827, two years before the Journal’s founding in 1829. The editorial was found and given to your trusty editor by Bill Whelan, author of … Continue reading →

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Audrain’s revival in Newport

Posted on September 29, 2017 by David Brussat

Last night, after my boffo lecture at Rosecliff (1902, McKim, Mead & White), I strolled down Bellevue Avenue, in the company of the Preservation Society of Newport County’s Lise Dube-Scherr, by another gem of that thoroughfare, the Audrain Building. Its … Continue reading →

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Artist-in-chief to Louis XIV

Posted on September 27, 2017 by David Brussat

Charles Le Brun (1619-1690) was “premier peintre du roi, director of the Gobelins manufactory and rector of the Académie royale de peinture et de sculpture.” He was also an architect. Let’s just say that he wore a number of hats. … Continue reading →

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Beauty isn’t so difficult

Posted on September 26, 2017 by David Brussat

Originally posted on Architecture Here and There:
I took this from the bridge in the photo above, looking toward the Old Town. How do they do it? Beauty. Other things being equal, people spend their discretionary time in places where…

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“Lost Prov” at Rochambeau

Posted on September 25, 2017 by David Brussat

This evening at 7, at the Rochambeau Library, readers are invited to look and listen as the author of Lost Providence explains why the library serves as a fitting example of a phenomenon the book so ardently regrets. No, the … Continue reading →

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Hometown honey in ol’ D.C.

Posted on September 24, 2017 by David Brussat

I grew up along a somewhat downscale edge of the upscale Washington neighborhood of Cleveland Park. The Bureau of Standards was nearby, and so was WTTG Channel 5, a local TV station. Our house, a relatively plain but lovable semi-detached, … Continue reading →

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“Lost Prov” and WaterFire

Posted on September 23, 2017 by David Brussat

Today at 4:30, in the brand new WaterFire Arts Center (474 Valley St.), Gene Bunnell, the author of Transforming Providence, and I will each offer a 30-minute presentation on the revitalization of Providence, culminating in Barnaby Evans’s WaterFire Providence. We’ll … Continue reading →

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C’mon baby build our brand!

Posted on September 21, 2017 by David Brussat

In 2015, seeking to demonstrate the depth of my naivete about politics in Rhode Island, I, in my role as citizen, wrote a letter to Governor Raimondo to suggest “a way to help improve the Rhode Island economy that is … Continue reading →

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‘Lost Prov’ show at PPL Wed.

Posted on September 19, 2017 by David Brussat

Tomorrow the Lost Providence road show will appear at the Providence Public Library for a slide lecture at 6:30 p.m. The real show here, however, is the exterior of the library on Washington Street, which opened in 1900, the balustrade … Continue reading →

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Staple this to your earlobe!

Posted on September 18, 2017 by David Brussat

I had to buy printer paper so I went to Staples. Four reams of normal printer paper was $21.39, including tax. A $15 “Easy Rebate” was offered to those who would fill out a form online. The form asked for … Continue reading →

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