Category Archives: Architecture History

Save Peter Pan’s birthplace

Moat Brae survives. Moat Brae is the 1823 house and garden in Dumfries, Scotland, where J.M. Barrie, age 8 in 1868 and playing at pirates, conceived Neverland, the land of eternal childhood. That’s the good news. Moat Brae lives – … Continue reading

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

Ross Award laureates, 2016

This year’s winners of the Arthur Ross Awards have been announced by their sponsor, the Institute of Classical Architecture & Art. The institute is the leading organization in the United States fostering classical and traditional architecture and its allied arts: … Continue reading

Posted in Architects, Architecture, Architecture Education, Architecture History, Art and design, Books and Culture, Development, Interior Design, Landscape Architecture, Other countries, Photography, Preservation, Urbanism and planning | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Incense and monuments

Here is the latest ancient ruin from Clayton Fulkerson, whose Greek and Roman monuments graced this blog (“Ancient temples on parade“), and Cranston’s William Hall Free Library, last November. I dined with Clay this afternoon at the Chapel Grille, also … Continue reading

Posted in Architecture, Architecture History, Art and design, Video | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Providence prints on parade

Thursday evening I beheld the fine prints of Peter Thornton lining the walls of City Hall, showing the artist’s sweet take on the most pleasing points in Providence. There was City Hall flanked by the Biltmore, with the Westin addition … Continue reading

Posted in Architecture, Architecture History, Art and design, Preservation, Providence, Urbanism and planning | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Preserve Mineral Spring Ave.

Here is a column I wrote precisely 17 years ago. At the end is a mini-column relating to an early version of what turned out to be the GTECH building. *** Preserve Mineral Spring Avenue April 1, 1999 TWO YEARS … Continue reading

Posted in Architecture, Architecture Education, Architecture History, Art and design, Development, Landscape Architecture, Preservation, Urbanism and planning | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Dame Zaha, rest in peace

I have had many bad things to say about the architect Zaha Hadid, but she did not deserve to die this young. Her architecture inspired her colleagues around the world, and she was a model for rising female architects. Zaha … Continue reading

Posted in Architects, Architecture, Architecture Education, Architecture History, Art and design, Development, Other countries, Urbanism and planning | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Peter Thornton’s Providence

Tomorrow evening at City Hall, some of the buildings of Providence that I love and have photographed over the years will be on display as buildings loved and painted by the artist Peter Thornton of our fair city. His show … Continue reading

Posted in Architecture, Architecture History, Art and design, Landscape Architecture, Photography, Providence, Urbanism and planning | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

And these are the winners!

Winners have been announced in the 2016 eVolo magazine skyscraper design competition, and they are real doozies. eVolo, which I’d never heard of, exists to discuss “the most avant-garde ideas generated in schools and professional studios around the world,” and … Continue reading

Posted in Architects, Architecture, Architecture Education, Architecture History, Art and design, Development, Humor, Landscape Architecture, Urbanism and planning | Tagged , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Steampunk vid of New York

Came across this film, “The Old New World,” of New York and bits of Boston and Washington, D.C. (the Capitol), in about 1931, on the Kuriositas website. It is the Old New World Project run by Alexey Zakharoff. It is … Continue reading

Posted in Architecture, Architecture History, Art and design, Blast from past, Old Video, Photography, Urbanism and planning, Video | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

Brussels under dark skies

The world stands with Brussels now that it has come under the ire of ISIS. The beauty of Brussels makes it a prime target for terrorist uglies. I have been to Bruges but not to Brussels. The elegance of the … Continue reading

Posted in Architecture, Architecture History, Art and design, Photography, Preservation, Urbanism and planning | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment