Author Archives: David Brussat

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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. History Press asked me to write and in August 2017 published my first book, "Lost Providence." I am now writing my second book. My freelance writing on architecture and other topics 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.

Choo-choo afternoon

Posted on October 19, 2014 by David Brussat

Spent an hour at the model train show in the Pawtucket Armory on Sunday afternoon. Superlative setups, though not as many as we had hoped, and most were linear, with mostly HO-scale trains choo-choo’ing up and down long, narrow platforms … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Art and design, Rhode Island, Urbanism and planning | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Patrick Conley’s waterfront

Posted on October 19, 2014 by David Brussat

Here is the column I refer to in my last post, “The lady on the waterfront“: Pat Conley’s educational wharf Sept. 29, 2005 STATE PIER No. 1 might be called the Ellis Island of the Ocean State. It was the … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Blast from past, Development, Providence, Urbanism and planning | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

The lady on the waterfront

Posted on October 19, 2014 by David Brussat

In her chapter “The curse of border vacuums” in The Death and Life of Great American Cities, Jane Jacobs considered waterfronts a potential assassin of liveliness in city districts, not intrinsically so but because they were often poorly used. But … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Development, Providence, Urbanism and planning | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Barbarians at the gate

Posted on October 18, 2014 by David Brussat

Above you can see them in the distance, but watch the video by Mary Campbell Gallagher and you will find that they are marshalling their vandalism for an invasion of central Paris. And here, again, is a petition to get … Continue reading →

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The new brand of France!

Posted on October 18, 2014 by David Brussat

Above is Frank Gehry laughing all the way to the bank. His latest paean to his genius sits in the background, which happens to be the Bois de Boulogne, the vast park at the western edge of central Paris. Soon … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Art and design, Other countries | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

ICAA Northshore splash

Posted on October 18, 2014 by David Brussat

Originally posted on Architecture Here and There:
Northshore, the stylish monthly of the shore north of Boston, has a spread in its October issue on the New England chapter of the Institute of Classical Architecture & Art. It’s an interesting…

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ICAA Northshore splash

Posted on October 17, 2014 by David Brussat

Northshore, the stylish monthly of the shore north of Boston, has a spread in its October issue on the New England chapter of the Institute of Classical Architecture & Art. It’s an interesting think piece by Jeff Harder, with illustrations … Continue reading →

Posted in Architects, Architecture, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Copy the past

Posted on October 17, 2014 by David Brussat

An article shedding light on the idea of copying the past has been published in The Washington Post. “Recognizing a revival in pattern books,” by Kirstin Downey, treats the construction of houses from pattern books with examples of really nice … Continue reading →

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Sign petition to save Paris!

Posted on October 16, 2014 by David Brussat

Here is a petition sent out worldwide to save Paris from skyscrapers. Need I say more, except that it comes to me (and the TradArch list) from the inimitable Mary Campbell Gallagher – our correspondent for all things Paris. I … Continue reading →

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Column: Kennedy Plaza’s future spins its wheels

Posted on October 16, 2014 by David Brussat

Standing on the steps in front of City Hall, several people waited for a tour of Kennedy Plaza to begin, followed by a public discussion of its future. We wondered why the front doors of so many important Providence public … Continue reading →

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