Tag Archives: Style Wars

Duo vs. the “style wars”

Posted on May 11, 2020 by David Brussat

Maybe I am a rascal, or maybe I’m going batty in coronaprison, or maybe I would really just like to foster an amicable agreement, among architects, that an architecture that worked for thousands of years is preferable to – and … Continue reading →

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

Bring diversity to fed design

Posted on February 9, 2020 by David Brussat

A provocative debate has broken out over a draft proposal to return classical design to the heart of federal architecture, especially in our nation’s capital. The title of the draft executive order, “Making Federal Buildings Beautiful Again,” leads with its … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture | Tagged , , , , , | 18 Comments

Comments on the style wars

Posted on December 8, 2019 by David Brussat

My last post “Modern architecture as spin” drew a reply from architect Daniel Morales that, paired with my reply, deserves to be front and center on this blog, rather than stuck in the comment section. Dan and I have gone … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture | Tagged , , , , , | 6 Comments

The apology to Sir Roger

Posted on July 11, 2019 by David Brussat

The New Statesman magazine, a British rag, has apologized at last for using monkeyed quotes from an interview in April to defame Sir Roger Scruton, who lost an important government post as a result. Who knows whether Scruton would like … Continue reading →

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

Flèche of Viollet-le-Duc

Posted on April 21, 2019 by David Brussat

The lost spire of Notre-Dame must be rebuilt, but how? An international design competition has been announced to decide how to rebuild it, whether as it was or as “adapted to techniques and challenges of our times.” These last are … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Preservation | Tagged , , , | 3 Comments

M. Laugier’s pilasterphobia

Posted on April 18, 2018 by David Brussat

An Essay on Architecture was published anonymously in 1753 by the Abbé Marc-Antoine Laugier, who soon after quit the Jesuitical order, enabling his name to appear on the next edition. It’s the most amazing book. In Chapter 1, “General Principles … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture | Tagged , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Trad and not so trad, cont.

Posted on December 17, 2017 by David Brussat

Classicism over thousands of years has developed an architectural language that modernism has not even sought to construct. A language would suggest a reliance on precedent. Among those who have criticized my admiration for Stan Weiss’s interior decor, Eric Daum … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Art and design | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

“Aware now of its dullness”

Posted on December 12, 2017 by David Brussat

Early in Girl With a Pearl Earring, Tracy Duvalier’s novel set in 17th century Holland, is a passage that launched several thoughts about architecture and design. The teenage girl has just become a maid in the household of the successful … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Art and design | Tagged , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Among ye olde Victorians

Posted on July 21, 2017 by David Brussat

Victorian architecture, seen as the architecture of the long reign of Queen Victoria, shows the absurdity of those who claim that Victorian styles fell out of favor during the 1950s and ’60s, as many observers attest, modernist and otherwise. My … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Architecture History | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

The cat and the bunny

Posted on July 10, 2017 by David Brussat

I shot this brief video earlier today in a state of astonishment. I had just returned home and saw our cat, Gato, sitting out on our front stoop with a strange bunny. They sat as I approached. I hoped to … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Humor, Video | Tagged , , , , , , | 10 Comments