Tag Archives: architecture

A new stage for Emerson College

Posted on March 29, 2014 by David Brussat

I spent a year in Boston at Emerson College in 1973-74 when it was still on Beacon Street. After I left Boston I heard that Emerson was planning to move out to the suburbs, or rather to Lawrence, Mass. Then, … Continue reading →

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

(Repost) Waterplace wig-out

Posted on March 29, 2014 by David Brussat

A couple more examples of initial design proposals for buildings in Waterplace Park should suffice to nail down the veracity of the idea that a perverse hand was directing the Capital Center Commission and its design review panel in the … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Architecture History, Providence, Urbanism and planning | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

(Repost) Waterplace wig-out

Posted on March 28, 2014 by David Brussat

A couple more examples of initial design proposals for buildings in Waterplace Park should suffice to nail down the veracity of the idea that a perverse hand was directing the Capital Center Commission and its design review panel in the … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Architecture History, Providence, Urbanism and planning | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Providence’s 10 best lost buildings

Posted on March 27, 2014 by David Brussat

Providence has no Penn Station, no lost building whose absence wounds deeply to this day. Union Passenger Depot, designed by Thomas Tefft and completed in 1848, was replaced by Union Station in 1898, arguably its equal in beauty. The Depot’s … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Architecture History, Preservation, Providence | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

Past blast: Lost house found

Posted on March 25, 2014 by David Brussat

Here, a blast from the past to whet readers’ whistles for my upcoming column listing the best lost buildings in downtown Providence. This, however, is about a lost house on College Hill, whose ghost I lived next to for six … Continue reading →

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L’Abattoir d’unité!

Posted on March 24, 2014 by David Brussat

Malcolm Millais, author of Exploding the Myths of Modern Architecture (2009), has some interesting comments picking up on the skit by Monty Python posted Saturday: Although mainly about Freemasonry, in the skit the John Cleese architect designs an abattoir instead of an office block. … Continue reading →

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Monty Python’s skit on architects

Posted on March 22, 2014 by David Brussat

As a reward for making it through the last few posts I offer this skit, from YouTube, of Monty Python making fun of architects by speaking truth of them, perhaps – since humor does after all require at least a … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Architecture Education, Humor | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Sad, glorious history of the Fogg

Posted on March 22, 2014 by David Brussat

Here, before I unveil a bit of the sad Fogg history, is an intriguing comment from Eric Daum, whose lengthy and erudite essay on the Gloria Dei Swedish Evangelical Church, in Providence, graced this blog several weeks ago: I love … Continue reading →

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Shoe slips on other foot

Posted on March 21, 2014 by David Brussat

Michael Rouchell sends to TradArch a wonderful sketch of the new addition to the Villa Savoye, Le Corbusier’s pathbreaking modernist house of 1931 in suburban Paris. As intended, the addition raises interesting questions. Modernists are wary of additions to their work in … Continue reading →

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Column: The secret to making great streets

Posted on March 20, 2014 by David Brussat

The secret to great streets is that there is no secret, that great streets were once the norm, that making them is easy, and that we can have them again, even in America, if we want them. This is the … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Architecture History, Art and design, Book/Film Reviews, Other countries, Preservation, Urbanism and planning | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment