Category Archives: Architecture

“Lost Providence” explained

Posted on October 11, 2017 by David Brussat

I just submitted my October post for my blog at Traditional Building, entitled “Monument vs. Fabric, or the difficulty of admitting deep error.” This means I am free to post my last month’s TB post on my Architecture Here and … Continue reading →

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“Lost Prov” at Lippitt House

Posted on October 10, 2017 by David Brussat

The Lost Providence dog and pony show looks forward to luxuriating, on Thursday evening, at the Henry Lippitt House Museum, on the southeast corner of Hope & Angell streets. Hosted by Preserve Rhode Island, the event begins with a reception … Continue reading →

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Henry James’s Fort Chester

Posted on October 9, 2017 by David Brussat

At the outset of his novel The Ambassadors, Henry James describes a couple meandering through Chester, England, once a Roman town, near today’s industrial city of Liverpool. His description evokes the subtleties of living architecture as well as I have … Continue reading →

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Where’s the “beauty” beef?

Posted on October 7, 2017 by David Brussat

A couple of days ago, aware that I’ve been going around telling people that the public prefers traditional to modern architecture by huge margins, my dear mother-in-law, Agnes, asked me a good question: “Where’s the beef?” There is a lot … Continue reading →

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Sir Roger Scruton on beauty

Posted on October 5, 2017 by David Brussat

Here is a lovely video of the British philosopher and architectural theorist Roger Scruton called “Why Beauty Matters.” The usefulness of beauty in uplifting human lives serves as the bottom-line rationale for my book Lost Providence, on which I will … Continue reading →

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New teaching in architecture

Posted on October 4, 2017 by David Brussat

Yesterday’s post, “‘Building Beauty’ in Naples,” discusses a new program of architecture education in Italy that emphasizes beauty. It is mind-boggling that even in Italy an architecture program that emphasizes beauty is news. I issued a tentative warning about the … Continue reading →

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“Building Beauty” in Naples

Posted on October 3, 2017 by David Brussat

A new architectural program that focuses on beauty, of all things, opens its doors this semester at University Suor Orsola Benincasa, in Naples. The development of the curriculum, known as “Building Beauty,” was led by architect Christopher Alexander, known for … Continue reading →

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Shepley Library addendum

Posted on October 2, 2017 by David Brussat

Correspondents have weighed in on the Shepley Library, and perhaps the most interesting suggestion comes from Peter Van Erp, who contends that the Shepley Library was not on what are now the grounds of the John Brown House. In fact, … Continue reading →

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Shepley Library on Benefit?

Posted on October 1, 2017 by David Brussat

Lost Providence ought to have included the Shepley Library, formerly on the grounds of the John Brown House between Charlesfield and Power on Benefit Street. It appears to have been built just before or just after the turn of the … Continue reading →

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1927 editorial: Prov in 1827

Posted on September 30, 2017 by David Brussat

Below is an editorial from the Providence Journal, published in 1927, about the city’s appearance in 1827, two years before the Journal’s founding in 1829. The editorial was found and given to your trusty editor by Bill Whelan, author of … Continue reading →

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