Must Reads of the Week: Active Preservation + the Splendor of Cities

Must read of the week goes to Mario Ballesteros' article in Domus, A Call To Account! A Case for Active Preservation, really got the wheels turning this week. He writes:

In contexts of crisis, architectural preservation—of buildings, but also of structures, archives, discarded or abandoned plans, as well as other minutiae and ephemeral documentation—becomes an indispensable tool for critical, political, and historical disclosure. Historical value, in this sense, transcends formal architectural merit. Preservation needs to move away from nostalgia and surface; it needs to be cold, clinical, and combative.

Ballesteros' piece is a ballsy reminder of what preservation is good for: survival, deeper cultural understandings, and inclusion. In particular, the Preservator loves the idea of preservation as disclosure.

And while we're out recommending articles, I hope you didn't miss today's NY Times column by David Brooks, Splendor of Cities. Brooks echoes the pro-urban ideas of thinkers like Richard Florida, and reminds us: "Cities thrive because they host quality conversations, not because they have new buildings and convention centers." Word.