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August 2009 Archives

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As the world turns, princewise

kensington.jpg 4:31 PM Sat, Aug 29, 2009 | | Write a comment
By David Brussat    Email

John Massengale, in "Starchitects imitate art (nihilistic)" on his Veritas & Venustas blog, puts in context the kind of world we are getting on behalf of modern architecture, the one that Prince Charles has attacked with such gusto of......

>> Continue reading As the world turns, princewise

 Tags  Chelsea Barracks   John Massengale   John Simpson   Kensington Palace   Prince Charles   Richard Rogers  

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Column: Light a fire under architecture

pinning.jpg 7:59 AM Thu, Aug 27, 2009 | | Comments (4)
By David Brussat    Email

Left: Charles Pinning criticizes design of GTECH headquarters at hearing in November 2004. (Journal archives) * * * PRINCE CHARLES is the only powerful public figure out there fighting the good fight for the people against modern architecture. America has......

>> Continue reading Column: Light a fire under architecture

 Tags  Architecture   Chelsea Barracks   Frank Gehry   Fred Kent   James Fallows   planning   Prince Charles   Providence RI  

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Coming up: Democratize architecture?

chafeegarden.JPG 8:16 AM Wed, Aug 26, 2009 | | Write a comment
By David Brussat    Email

Illustration: Angry crowd at 2006 meeting of Providence's City Plan Commission voices opposition to property owner's plan to build a house on the site of the Chafee Garden. The American public squarely opposes modern architecture but no bonny prince......

>> Continue reading Coming up: Democratize architecture?

 Tags  Architecture   Chelsea Barracks   development   Prince Charles   Providence RI   Scotland  

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Column: An odd book about an odd state

arcade.jpg 8:32 AM Thu, Aug 20, 2009 | | Comments (3)
By David Brussat    Email

Illustration: The Weybosset Street end of the Providence Arcade (Photo by David Brussat) RHODE ISLAND is the nation's smallest state, and just as clearly the oddest state. Rhode Island probably leads America in the number of books per capita......

>> Continue reading Column: An odd book about an odd state

 Tags  Curiosities   Providence RI   Rhode Island   Rhode Island 101   Seth Brown   Tim Lehnert  

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Dwell editors reveal their true stripes

BIGBOXFarm.jpg 10:43 PM Wed, Aug 19, 2009 | | Write a comment
By David Brussat    Email

Not that anyone is surprised. Although "Repair Kit" by Galina Tahchieva and her DPZ town-planning team won the People's Choice vote, three other entries were selected by a panel of esteemed judges culled from the top ranks of hip......

>> Continue reading Dwell editors reveal their true stripes

 Tags  architecture   Dwell   Entreprenurbia   Frog's Dream   Repair Kit   suburbs  

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How to save New Orleans

110westprov.jpg 10:09 PM Wed, Aug 19, 2009 | | Write a comment
By David Brussat    Email

A floating oil rig, or is it a gigantic baby's tub toy, is the latest thingamabub to pop up in the new modernist cottage industry of toying (Sean Penn, etc.) with the reconstruction of hurricane-damaged New Orleans. Andres Duany......

>> Continue reading How to save New Orleans

 Tags  Andres Duany   Cambridge Seven   New Orleans   Providence RI   TradArch   W Hotel  

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Coming up: A study in oddness

statehouse.JPG 10:50 AM Tue, Aug 18, 2009 | | Write a comment
By David Brussat    Email

A new book summarizes Rhode Island by compiling statistics, cataloging history, tracking fads and luring "contributors" [Conflict alert! I am one of them] to unpack their own hobby horses amid author Tim Lehnert's engaging recapitulation of the smallest state.......

>> Continue reading Coming up: A study in oddness

 Tags  Arcade   Providence RI   Rhode Island   Rhode Island 101   Seth Brown   Tim Lehnert  

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This just in: "Repair Kit" defeats "T-Tree" by . . .

tahchieva.jpg 8:05 AM Tue, Aug 18, 2009 | | Write a comment
By David Brussat    Email

2,339 votes to 1,984 votes [as of 12:07 a.m. Tuesday]. Now Dwell magazine's editors will pick a first, second and third place winner according to the lights of their own judgment. I assume that the editors and most of their......

>> Continue reading This just in: "Repair Kit" defeats "T-Tree" by . . .

 Tags  architecture   DPZ   Dwell   Galina Tahchieva   Repair Kit   suburbs   T-Tree  

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Column: How to (or not to) fix the 'burbs

stflorian.png 7:03 AM Thu, Aug 13, 2009 | | Comments (1)
By David Brussat    Email

Illustrations: Above, From Galina Tahchieva's "Repair Kit" for fixing drive-thru restaurant pod (courtesy of DPZ); Below, original St. Florian WWII memorial submission and memorial photographed as built; from Dwell contest: T-Tree, Airbia, Modular Train, Radial Erect-Urbia (courtesy of Dwell)......

>> Continue reading Column: How to (or not to) fix the 'burbs

 Tags  architecture   DPZ   Dwell   Galina Tahchieva   Reburbia   suburbs  

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Coming up: Reburgitating suburbia

modular.jpg 11:21 PM Wed, Aug 12, 2009 | | Write a comment
By David Brussat    Email

Readers want to know what can be done about the 'burbs, not whether anything should be done about them. That's someone else's gig. True, some folks revel in their 30 minute, twice-daily holiday with themselves alone. That's someone else.......

>> Continue reading Coming up: Reburgitating suburbia

 Tags  architecture   Dwell   Galina Tahchieva   suburbs  

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Column: Roger Williams and his discontent

rogerrhand.JPG 12:29 AM Thu, Aug 06, 2009 | | Write a comment
By David Brussat    Email

Illustrations: Statue of Roger Williams at Prospect Terrace (Photos by David Brussat) THE STATUE of Roger Williams at Prospect Terrace, in Providence, was disfigured several years ago by vandals who chopped all five fingers from his left hand and......

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 Tags  Leo Friedlander   Plantations   Providence RI   Rhode Island   Roger Williams  

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Why RISD is losing Hope

alswing.jpg 11:56 PM Wed, Aug 05, 2009 | | Comments (4)
By David Brussat    Email

Unmentioned thus far in the flap over the sudden departure of Hope Alswang from her post as director of the RISD Museum is the RISD Museum's Chace Center. As it was being built, sources informed me that the campus community......

>> Continue reading Why RISD is losing Hope

 Tags  Chace Center   Hope Alswang   John Maeda   Providence RI   RISD   Roger Mandle  

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What's wrong with this picture?

firestation2.jpg 4:36 PM Wed, Aug 05, 2009 | | Write a comment
By David Brussat    Email

Nothing's wrong with the picture but with the collection of buildings into which it has been absurdly shoehorned by editors seeking to make, ahem, a point of ideology. Why should Prince Charles's fire station at Poundbury be nominated for......

>> Continue reading What's wrong with this picture?

 Tags  BD   carbuncle   fire station   Poundbury   Prince Charles  

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Coming up: What Roger Williams planted

rogerhead2.JPG 11:56 PM Tue, Aug 04, 2009 | | Comments (1)
By David Brussat    Email

Roger Williams planted the colony of Providence Plantations, and with a perverse sense of gratitude posterity has chopped off six of his ten fingers. Now the state that descends from the colony he planted has threatened to consider chopping......

>> Continue reading Coming up: What Roger Williams planted

 Tags  history   Plantations   Providence RI   Rhode Island   Roger Williams  

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Forbidden fascist fruit

natwwiimemorial.jpg 9:24 PM Mon, Aug 03, 2009 | | Write a comment
By David Brussat    Email

Illustration: Above: the fascist summer camp for boys mentioned by Jonathan Glancey in his BD Design essay; below, Friedrich St. Florian's World War II Memorial (I could find no credit for the photograph from bridgeandtunnel.com, so I link you......

>> Continue reading Forbidden fascist fruit

 Tags  architecture   fascist   Friedrich St. Florian   Jonathan Glancey   Mussolini   World War II Memorial  

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