Monthly Archives: April 2020

Dickinson vs. Dickinson

Posted on April 27, 2020 by David Brussat

Duo Dickinson is an architect in New Haven whose work, primarily private houses, is creative yet overwhelmingly traditional in appearance. I like his architecture very much. His firm’s portfolio and productivity are impressive. However, when writing and speaking about architecture … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Preservation, Video | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 32 Comments

Is Wuhan China’s Chicago?

Posted on April 24, 2020 by David Brussat

Wuhan, the Chinese city where the Wuhan virus originated, is sometimes called “The Chicago of China” for its size (pop. 11.8 million), its central location, its setting on the Yangtze River and its historic buildings and its modern architecture. Here … Continue reading →

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Your face as face mask art

Posted on April 22, 2020 by David Brussat

Years ago, I urged Providence artists to create murals designed to look like the buildings on which they were painted. A façade with no windows could be painted to look like the rest of the building. Humans could be leaning … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Art and design | Tagged , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Melania’s tennis pavilion

Posted on April 20, 2020 by David Brussat

It will be of some modest good cheer for most readers of this blog to learn that a classical tennis pavilion is under construction in the back yard of the White House. The project has been led by First Lady … Continue reading →

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Monster U.’s oddball campus

Posted on April 17, 2020 by David Brussat

Imprisoned in our own home, we decided (that is, Billy, 11, decided, with Mom’s backing) that we’d watch Monster University, a 2013 Disney animated prequel to 2001’s Monster Inc. by Pixar. Monster U. features six cute young frat monsters led … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Humor, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Eyed by Ranalli’s theater

Posted on April 15, 2020 by David Brussat

Do the citizens of Doylestown, Penn., feel as if the new addition to their theater is giving them the eye, following them closely as they walk by? Sort of like the Mona Lisa or some dark portrait of an old … Continue reading →

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Review: “Villa of Delirium”

Posted on April 12, 2020 by David Brussat

In our reading of the novel Villa of Delirium, we last left our hero, Achilles, hanging on the ledge of beauty at Villa Kerylos. Would he fall? As a boy, Achilles was adopted by a wealthy French family and raised … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Book/Film Reviews | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Rouchell: Case for classicism

Posted on April 10, 2020 by David Brussat

Michael Rouchell is an architect in New Orleans and a founder of the Louisiana chapter, one of 15 regional chapters of the Institute of Classical Architecture & Art. On March 30, he posted the following remarks in an online discussion … Continue reading →

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Going wild over beauty

Posted on April 8, 2020 by David Brussat

Beauty is a form of Genius – is higher, indeed, than Genius, as it needs no explanation. It is one of the great facts of the world, like sunlight, or spring-time, or the reflection in dark waters of that silver … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Books and Culture | Tagged , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Take Sussman’s fish test here

Posted on April 5, 2020 by David Brussat

Ann Sussman, the Concord, Mass., architect and researcher, asked me to take a test a few days ago. I was to look at a set of illustrations of fishes and note what my eyes do. I took her test, and … Continue reading →

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