Category Archives: Interior Design

Blake on Corbu’s “furniture”

Posted on October 4, 2021 by David Brussat

Peter Blake, modernist architect, critic and (eventually) apostate, writes about “functional” modernist furniture in his book Le Corbusier: Architecture and Form (1960), which I’m reading as a sort of launching pad to his book Form Follows Fiasco (the best book … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Art and design, Interior Design | Tagged , , , , | 11 Comments

Johnson’s risky functionalism

Posted on November 9, 2019 by David Brussat

Philip Johnson, the modernist architect who tricked America into embracing modern architecture, was a nasty piece of work according to Mark Lamster’s book, The Man in the Glass House. But there are some humorous passages whose inclusion reflects Lamster’s ability … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Interior Design | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Our “Homes Sweet Homes”

Posted on September 16, 2018 by David Brussat

In his remarkable new book Making Dystopia, James Stevens Curl keeps quoting someone called Osbert Lancaster, who is cited 20 times in the book’s extensive index. Who is Osbert Lancaster? Well, it turns out my friend David Mittell, of Jamaica … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Interior Design | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Try this Brutalist wallpaper!

Posted on January 7, 2018 by David Brussat

“Brutalist wallpaper brings the concrete dream to any room“! Ah, that concrete dream! I must really hand it to Kristen Richards, founder and editor of the indispensable ArchNewsNow.com. She sent me the link. “You’ll love this – not!” she writes, … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Interior Design | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Stan Weiss’s house divided

Posted on December 13, 2017 by David Brussat

For decades until a year or two ago, Stan Weiss’s antiques collection graced the graceful, gilded the lily so to speak, by residing in downtown’s Tilden-Thurber Building. Then he sold Tilden-Thurber to former Providence Mayor Joe Paolino Jr. Weiss also … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Interior Design | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

The Palladio Awards of 2016

Posted on June 3, 2016 by David Brussat

The Palladio Awards may not get the attention of the Driehaus Prize, which does not get the attention of the Pritzker Prize. But the Palladios are the first and only national architecture award that recognizes specific traditional projects and their … Continue reading →

Posted in Architects, Architecture, Architecture Education, Architecture History, Art and design, Interior Design, Landscape Architecture, Urbanism and planning | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Shots of first full WaterFire

Posted on May 29, 2016 by David Brussat

Last night was the first full WaterFire of the season here in Providence. I generally visit rather late, when the crowds have drawn down and parking is easy, well, easier. The lead-off photo above, taken by WaterFire volunteer photographer Jim … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Architecture History, Art and design, Books and Culture, Development, Interior Design, Landscape Architecture, Photography, Preservation, Providence, Urbanism and planning, Video | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Cafe Pushkin comes alive

Posted on May 22, 2016 by David Brussat

No doubt inspired by photographs of mahogany antiques crammed with romantic abandon into a lovely building in downtown Providence (see my post “Tilden-Thurber memories“), Malcolm Millais, author of Exploding the Myths of Modern Architecture, has sent me a tale, in … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Architecture History, Art and design, Books and Culture, Interior Design, Other countries, Preservation, Uncategorized, Urbanism and planning | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Tilden-Thurber memories

Posted on May 21, 2016 by David Brussat

The Tilden-Thurber Building, erected in 1895, designed by Shepley, Rutan & Coolidge, of Boston, was sold last week but remains, so far as I can tell, as it was built, inside and out. Stanley Weiss, the local developer and fine … Continue reading →

Posted in Architects, Architecture, Architecture Education, Architecture History, Art and design, Books and Culture, Development, Interior Design, Photography, Preservation, Providence, Providence Journal, Urbanism and planning | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

See ‘High Rise’ film trailer

Posted on May 17, 2016 by David Brussat

Imagine my thrill at learning today that J.G. Ballard’s suspense novel, High-Rise, depicting what can come of the pressures that build up in the compressed psychosis of a modern residential tower, came out as a film in Britain last year, … Continue reading →

Posted in Architects, Architecture, Architecture Education, Architecture History, Art and design, Development, Interior Design, Landscape Architecture, Uncategorized, Urbanism and planning, Video | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment