Author Archives: David Brussat

About David Brussat

This blog was begun in 2009 as a feature of the Providence Journal, where I was on the editorial board and wrote a weekly column of architecture criticism for three decades. Architecture Here and There fights the style wars for classical architecture and against modern architecture, no holds barred. My freelance writing and editing on that topic and others addresses issues of design and culture locally and globally. I am a member of the board of the New England chapter of the Institute of Classical Architecture & Art, which bestowed an Arthur Ross Award on me in 2002. I work from Providence, R.I., where I live with my wife Victoria, my son Billy and our cat Gato. If you would like to employ my writing and editing to improve your work, please email me at my consultancy, dbrussat@gmail.com, or call 401.351.0457. Testimonial: "Your work is so wonderful - you now enter my mind and write what I would have written." - Nikos Salingaros, mathematician at the University of Texas, architectural theorist and author of many books.

Notre Dame redivivus?

Posted on April 16, 2019

Notre Dame lives! Monday was pure concentrated stress and sadness – the horror! – watching the spire teeter and fall, then seeing the fire creep along what remained of the roof toward the betowered west façade, and then, as flames … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Preservation | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 13 Comments

More for my groaning shelf

Posted on April 14, 2019

Here is the UK Guardian architecture critic Oliver Wainwright’s critique of Hudson Yards, the “largest and most expensive private real estate project in U.S. history.” His article is called “Horror on the Hudson: New York’s $25bn architectural fiasco,” and it … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Development | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Sir Roger’s inevitable sack

Posted on April 12, 2019

Roger Scruton’s dismissal from his chairmanship of a commission set up to bring beauty back into the discussion of British housing policy was probably inevitable. Sir Roger is a voice of reason who will not shut up, and good for … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Final say on Fane design?

Posted on April 10, 2019

Fane tower supporters left Monday night’s meeting in full glum after the city’s design panel recommended against approving three of four Fane requests for exemptions from zoning that could kill the project. Opponents left in full euphoria, in the belief … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Development | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

Block Fane tower Monday

Posted on April 7, 2019

Hope Point Tower should be called Hope Punt Tower. When it comes to hope for the livability of Providence, it punts. The tower’s design goes for its second session before the Downtown Design Review Committee on Monday at 4:45 p.m., … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Development | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Barf on Arc de Triomphe

Posted on April 5, 2019

Christo plans to work his tragic on Paris’s Arc de Triomphe, draping it in blue fabric, but fortunately not until 2020, well after my family and I visit the City of Light, if we decide to go. The arch has … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Humor, Video | Tagged , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Hope for Henderson Bridge?

Posted on April 3, 2019

Rhode Island’s Department of Transportation plans to use extra federal transportation funds to replace the stodgy old Henderson Bridge – a span that not only looks like a highway overpass but is a highway overpass. It was originally built in … Continue reading →

Posted in Development, Urbanism and planning | Tagged , , , , , | 5 Comments

Lovely Venice in 9 minutes

Posted on March 31, 2019

This beautiful travel video of Venice from Expedia lives up to the high standards of its tribe. The online travel booking service has dozens of fine videos of cities around the world that are so nice that they might make … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Video | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Vid cities in ‘Fortnite’ game

Posted on March 29, 2019

I’ve written several posts on the Assassin’s Creed video games, which take place in cities like Venice, Florence and London long ago. Recently, the 13-year-old son of a member of the Pro-Urb online discussion group published on his blog a … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Art and design, Video | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

Fane tower & Hudson Yards

Posted on March 26, 2019

A relic of dated 2000s thinking, nearly devoid of urban design, it declines to blend into the city grid. The Fane tower, right? That building proposed for the Jewelry District near downtown Providence? No. In fact, it’s the Hudson Yards … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Development, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | 10 Comments