Category Archives: Architecture

Center for Fiction

Posted on February 14, 2019 by Brian D. Butler

Awhile ago I shared a story about the imminent big move for New York City’s historic Center for Fiction from Manhattan to Brooklyn. Well, it has finally happened and the new site’s grand opening is on Tuesday February 19th. The … Continue reading →

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Misteriosi d’Italia

Posted on February 11, 2019 by Brian D. Butler

I recently stumbled upon a marvelous new book of stories and illustrations exploring magical places, spooky folklore, mysterious legends, and unexplained phenomena in Italy. The Atlas of Mysterious Places of Italy was a joint project of illustrator Francesco Bongiorni and writer Massimo … Continue reading →

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Stand in Philadelphia

Posted on February 4, 2019 by Brian D. Butler

Just before Philadelphia got walloped by the infamous polar vortex, British artist Antony Gormley installed an impressive large-scale series of sculptures called STAND on the iconic steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art. The huge figures invite engagement from the … Continue reading →

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A Library is a time machine

Posted on January 28, 2019 by Brian D. Butler

I am a huge fan of the Little Free Library movement and I am also a life-long Doctor Who devotee, so I couldn’t resist this amazing neighborhood library in Minneapolis.

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Theory of Time

Posted on January 24, 2019 by Brian D. Butler

The Indian artist known as Daku created this wonderful installation for the Start Goa Festival in the state capital Panaji. Suspended netting with inverted lettering used sunlight to project text onto the streets of the old colonial city. The project was alternately titled … Continue reading →

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NYC: Underground Arts

Posted on January 20, 2019 by Brian D. Butler

All to often we see horror stories in the media about the terrible state of the New York City subway system. As someone who has traveled the MTA all of my life, I have to admit that it can be … Continue reading →

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Visit the Library Planet

Posted on January 17, 2019 by Brian D. Butler

Library Planet is a new crowdsourced online travel guide for libraries around the world. Created by Danish librarians Marie Engberg Eiriksson and Christian Lauersen, who proclaim their mission to make library tourism easier and to share enthusiasm for visiting libraries. The … Continue reading →

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Britain In Pictures

Posted on January 13, 2019 by Brian D. Butler

The books  in the 1940s Britain in Pictures series were designed to boost morale during World War II, but perhaps also record the British way of life in case the Germans completed their European campaign by successfully crossing the English Channel. The … Continue reading →

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Isn’t all of Britain fictional

Posted on January 10, 2019 by Brian D. Butler

Fake Britain is a marvelous map to more than 400 fictional locations in England, Scotland and Wales featuring made-up towns, villages, castles, islands, and more. Created by Matt Brown and Rhys B. Davis, the map draws from films, television and books. … Continue reading →

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Library Porn

Posted on December 29, 2018 by Brian D. Butler

Every bibliophile that I know would love to have one of these in their neighborhood. This stunning little library was designed by Shulin Forest Architects to be a serene reading space for the book-loving village of Liangjiashan in Zhejiang Province, … Continue reading →

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