Category Archives: Architecture

Henry James’s Roman ruins

Posted on October 21, 2016 by David Brussat

As we saw in his novel The Princess Casamassima, Henry James indulges himself in his descriptions of cities. In Daisy Miller, he describes the ruin of the Palace of the Caesars, and the Colosseum, in Rome: A few days after … Continue reading →

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Coming up: ‘If Venice Dies’

Posted on October 20, 2016 by David Brussat

My colleague from my days as a dictationist (1978-81) at the Washington bureau of the Associated Press, Michael Wise, who was a D.C. metro reporter there, is now a publisher, the co-founder, with Ross Ufberg, of New Vessel Press. Wise … Continue reading →

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Modernizing Malta – awk!

Posted on October 19, 2016 by David Brussat

This photo from “Totemic elevator” on Geoff Manaugh’s fine blog BLDGBLOG had me fooled for a moment. The shot shows a lovely scene taken along the fortifications of Valletta, the capital of the island nation of Malta in the Mediterraean … Continue reading →

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Kafka on China’s Great Wall

Posted on October 17, 2016 by David Brussat

Even though I did a post not long ago on the Great Wall of China – linking to magnificent photographs on the website Kuriositas – I lack the knowledge to assess the comments by Franz Kafka on this subject. Kafka … Continue reading →

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No fine center for fine arts

Posted on October 13, 2016 by David Brussat

Colleen Kelly Mellor asks a fine question on today’s Providence Journal oped page. (Her name is a fine art!) “URI should make its fine arts fine,” her piece suggests. The University of Rhode Island is becoming a high-class institution in … Continue reading →

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Facing the faces in facades

Posted on October 12, 2016 by David Brussat

Most architects don’t get it. The brain is hardwired to prefer traditional buildings over modernist buildings because building facades with more things going on – windows and doors clearly marked, ornament and detail at a range of scales – make … Continue reading →

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“Vessel” and Gaillard Center

Posted on October 11, 2016 by David Brussat

Far distant on the spectrum of the architectural firmament from “The Vessel,” whose status as Jim Kunstler’s Eyesore of the Month I touted in a post, “Stairway to nowhere in N.Y.,” earlier today, is the new Gaillard Center, a concert … Continue reading →

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Stairway to nowhere in N.Y.

Posted on October 11, 2016 by David Brussat

Above is “The Vessel,” so-called. Jim Kunstler has selected it for October’s Eyesore of the Month, on his website. “The Vessel” is designed by Thomas Heatherwick, the British architect who specializes in the ridiculous. It is apparently an attempt to mimic … Continue reading →

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Cry for Palmyra, not Paris?

Posted on October 6, 2016 by David Brussat

Far be it from me to wish people would shut up about Palmyra and cry for Paris instead. For one thing, Paris isn’t anywhere near as close to death as Palmyra and other archaeological sites in the ISIS cross-hairs. But … Continue reading →

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Notre Dame’s 6-10 charrette

Posted on October 5, 2016 by David Brussat

Here are the boards – images reflecting thoughts thus far – of the charrette or brainstorming session on the 6-10 connector and Route 195 land issues, hosted last month by Prof. Philip Bess and his graduate students from the School … Continue reading →

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