Monthly Archives: May 2022

“Paris Without Skyscrapers”

There is an infinity of reasons why Paris should not build skyscrapers. Each street, each building, amounts to such a reason. You could say each citizen of Paris, each citizen of the world is a reason. But one reason I … Continue reading

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Van Gogh, boring fr. within

This past weekend we took in the Van Gogh exhibit, called “Beyond Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience,” that has taken the country by storm these last few months. Van Gogh isn’t quite my cup of tea, but I was prepared … Continue reading

Posted in Architecture, Art and design, Books and Culture, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Still no basis to leave plaza

Not much seems to have changed from last November when I first wrote about a new proposal to replace the Kennedy Plaza bus depot with a new, indoor facility at Dorrance and Clifford streets, four or five blocks south of … Continue reading

Posted in Architecture, Development | Tagged , , , , , | 9 Comments

The joy of hating modernism

My favorite writer of all time is William Hazlitt, the British essayist of the early 19th century and contemporary of Charles Lamb and Samuel Taylor Coleridge. He was considered a “good hater” (or maybe it was “a good damner”) and … Continue reading

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From this house to Parcel 2

As I begin to write, I have no idea where the house above is located. America? Europe? I have asked the instigator of a very brief conversation on an online list serv where it is. The conversation went: “Why can’t … Continue reading

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Mittell: Ukraine the beautiful

My friend and former colleague at the Providence Journal, David Mittell, has sent me a timely guest post about Ukraine. He speaks of the beauty that could arise in rebuilding Ukraine after this awful war. His post brings to mind … Continue reading

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