Architectural History

Booksreview

Taking a close look at classical architecture as a ‘living system’

Edward McParland's recent, wide-ranging book takes an idiosyncratic approach to classicism, examining its complexities and expressive forms

Booksreview

Photographer documents thousands of churches 'in a manner only angels and spiders could achieve'

Remarkable photographs of thousands of church interiors in rural England and Wales have been brought together in this landmark publication

My plea to London’s National Gallery to scrap its £35m Sainsbury Wing new entrance plans

Architecture critic Hugh Pearman argues that the gallery is making irreversible changes to a Grade I listed building—while removing most of its early Renaissance collection from display until 2025

Archaeologists find ruins of vast Medieval Nubian cathedral in Sudan

Polish team used remote sensing techniques to detect the building, the largest of its kind in the region, as well as a possible tomb of an archbishop

Podcastspodcast

Old Masters meet Brutalism: inside Frick Madison in New York

Plus, the story of a notorious forger and artist Collier Schorr on August Sander

Hosted by Ben Luke. with guest speaker Vincent Noce. Produced by Julia Michalska, David Clack, Aimee Dawson and Henrietta Bentall
Booksreview

The magical and divine in ancient stones revealed in a game-changing new book

A revolutionary study based on Enlightenment theories explains what coloured marbles meant, from Egypt to the 17th century

Saga of Picasso murals ripped from Oslo building continues as heirs head to court

Family of artist Carl Nesjar—who collaborated on the works with Picasso—say they have a copyright claim and should help decide where the pieces are relocated

Once greeted as a sensation, 1931 aluminum-clad house gets a boost for relocation at the Palm Springs Art Museum in California

$100,000 grant will advance an effort to reassemble and display Albert Frey and A. Lawrence Kocher’s Modernist Aluminaire House

New York preservation group launches online mapping tool to champion former haunts of artists and activists

Organisation hopes the city will protect former home of Jackson Pollock and other buildings south of Union Square by designating a new historic district

Picasso murals ripped from Oslo building as legal battle intensifies

Daughter of the works' co-creator Carl Nesjar says safeguarding the sandblasted works is imperative

Beautiful book captures the colourful restorations of Georgian homes in London

The story of a collection of 18th-century houses in the East End that have been carefully saved after years of neglect

The testimonies of 100 artists to the lasting influence of Mies van der Rohe on their work are compiled in this book

Book's well selected illustrations make clear the connections between the architect’s work and those of contemporary artists

The story of the 20th-century creation of a Palladian villa is beautifully presented in this coffee-table book

Written by an architectural historian, the book describes the building of Henbury and the making of its interiors

Booksreview

New catalogue presents virtuosity of Neo-Classicist goldsmith Luigi Valadier

Alvar González-Palacios’s book on the Italian decorator is a peak in his distinguished career

Booksreview

How Rheims Cathedral's destruction in the First World War had a happy ending

New book explores how the burnt cathedral created a 'profound intellectual rift' between Germany and France, then reconciliation

Podcastspodcast

The Notre Dame fire: what happens next? Plus, Cold War Steve

We talk about the effects of the fire at Notre Dame, the building’s history, and what happens next. And we speak to satirical artist Christopher Spencer, the man behind Cold War Steve. Produced in association with Bonhams, auctioneers since 1793.

Hosted by Ben Luke. Produced by Julia Michalska, David Clack and Aimee Dawson

V&A Cast Court restored to Victorian splendour

£2m, two year refurbishment to open next month

Booksarchive

Book Review: The arch of time

From its invention by the Romans, the monumental arch has been a feature of the built environment ever since

Unescoarchive

Samarra shrine must be rebuilt: Unesco says reconstruction will help unite warring factions

The site is considered one of the holiest in Iraq, containing the remains of two of the Prophet's descendants

Booksarchive

Janet Myles, L.N. Cottingham, 1787-1874: architect of the Gothic Revival

Restoring a pioneer of the Gothic Revival to his rightful position

Booksarchive

Books: The Muslims’ transformation of Christian Jerusalem

Computer-generated reconstructions relate Islamic architecture to other key monuments

Booksarchive

Books: Pugin’s Gothic genius

Two books accompanying recent museum shows

Pugin, founder of modernism, in a riot of polychromy at the V&A

A major survey of the high priest of the Gothic Revival

Frank Lloyd Wright retrospective at MoMA

The exhibition covers the span of his seventy year career, and includes a huge range of works and materials

Vanbrugh at the V&A

Newly bought architectural albums on show