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.

Review: ‘Making Dystopia’

[Review by David Brussat of Making Dystopia, by James Stevens Curl. Oxford University Press. 592 pages. U.S. publication date Oct. 23, 2018.] *** Modern architecture has hoaxed the world for well over half a century. Charlatans bred the founding modernist … Continue reading

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Halloween in Providence

Last night’s Halloween trick-or-treat scene near our little house on Providence’s East Side showcased the charms of our more modest nook of the Blackstone neighborhood. On account of its evident friendliness, our district is usually mobbed by families from other … Continue reading

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How the Gothic got haunted

Here’s an interesting article, perhaps a day early, on the history of Gothic architecture – you know, with the pointed arches and towers reaching for the sky. All haunted houses are Gothic, are they not? Some say haunted houses are … Continue reading

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‘Dystopia’ on sale in U.S.

On Monday, Making Dystopia, by British architectural historian James Stevens Curl, officially went on sale in the United States. I am mere pages away from its completion and will review it soon. It offers a comprehensive study of a monstrous … Continue reading

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A little off the top for Fane

Monday night’s public hearing into the Fane tower at City Hall barely seemed to push the needle one way or the other on whether to permit its developer, Jason Fane, to ignore the 100-foot height limit on the Jewelry District … Continue reading

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Buildings that go extinct

Here is an interesting article in The Baffler, “The Archivists of Extinction,” by McMansion Hell blogger Kate Wagner. She focuses her microscope on folks who collect and post photos of old Kmarts, Toys ‘R’ Us’s, and the like, which are … Continue reading

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Is architecture charming?

Although it says nothing of architecture, an essay by Joseph Epstein on charm causes me to wonder whether architecture can be charming. His essay, “Life’s Little Luxury,” in The Weekly Standard, is discursive, that is, it rambles round, making its … Continue reading

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Stop Fane tower on Monday

The good guys will have another opportunity to denounce the bad guys on Monday at a 5:30 p.m. public hearing of the ordinance committee of the Providence City Council. I refer, naturally, to the proposed 600-foot Hope Point Tower by … Continue reading

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North vs. South on Benefit

After a couple of centuries dodging various bullets, including the College Hill Study of 1959, Benefit Street has come under the wing of a new organization called the Mile of History Association. It held its first annual meeting Sunday in … Continue reading

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Learn from Lombard Pozzi

Thursday evening I attended a lecture on the late Bristol architect Lombard Pozzi, who died in 2013. Lombard Pozzi – what a great name! More than anyone else, Pozzi is responsible for Bristol’s having managed to remain true to its … Continue reading

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