Prince Charles and architectural protectionism

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There is no real equivalent in this country for the active, contrarian role that Prince Charles plays in debates over architecture and preservation in Britain. Maybe if Bill Clinton decided that a new building in New York by Rem Koolhaas needed to be stopped at any cost, or Jimmy Carter started a public-relations campaign against the work of Richard Meier, we’d have some sense of how the Prince-hates-contemporary-architecture arguments have been playing out this summer in London. But even that might not do it.

For my Critic’s Notebook on what the Prince’s campaign to protect his favorite historic buildings says about contemporary architecture -- and what it has to do with the federal stimulus package in this country -- click here.

For one of the most recent British roundups of the Prince versus the Starchitects row -- this one from the Guardian, which has been covering the story aggressively throughout the summer -- click here.

And for even fresher news, just stay tuned. This seems to be a dustup that neither the Prince nor the British press is content to let die. It’s just too useful, in the end, for both sides.

-- Christopher Hawthorne