A new book by Robert Gatje gives public squares and piazzas the coffee-table treatment, meticulously detailing what makes these historic spaces work.
Jane Merkel reviews Great Public Squares by Robert Gatje. She is impressed by the attention to detail:
"Wonderful colored maps, inspired by the Nolli Map of Rome, help you understand solid and void, distinguish parterres from pavement, grasp street patterns, and, in some cases, identify significant works of architecture."
"This is a book only an architect could have written-with careful observations, measurements, materials, orientation, and alterations emphasized."
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