Contrasts: Or, a Parallel Between the Noble Edifices of the Middle Ages, and Corresponding Buildings of the Present Day, Shewing the Present Decay of Taste

by Augustus Welby Northmore Pugin

This is a copy of the original book. In this series, we are bringing old books back into print using our own state-of-the-art techniques. Generally, these books are created from careful scans of the original. This allows us to preserve the book accurately and present it in the way that the author intended. However, as we are working with old material, so occasionally there may be certain imperfections within the text. We are so pleased to ensure these classics are available again for generations to come.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Religion

212 pages, Paperback

First published January 18, 2013

About the author

Augustus Welby Northmore Pugin was an English architect, designer, artist and critic, chiefly remembered for his pioneering role in the Gothic Revival style; his work culminated in the interior design of the Palace of Westminster. Pugin designed many churches in England, and some in Ireland and Australia. [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Augustus...]

Reviews

[Evan Whyman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Silence wasps A.W.N Pugin is speaking ✋

[Santiago Vieto Rodríguez · Rating 5 out of 5]

A moral manifesto in which Pugin convey the idea of how the architecture and art are deeply related with the faith of a nation.
This was wrote when people in general still believe in the existence of an objetive truth, and in beauty being the splendor of it.
Pugin was convinced that the Gothic art is the true outcome of the Catholic Civilization, and because of this the most elevated of all forms of art.
Therefore, I think this book is an espectacular example of art critic, and practical apologetic.
It remembers me a lot of the many writings of our founder Plinio Correa de Oliveira, in the famous "ACC" articles in the magazine “Catolicismo”, where he proclaims the same convictions, and the existence of what he called "trending revolution”.

[Kevin de Ataíde · Rating 4 out of 5]

The shortest of Pugin's works that I could find; I anticipated an architectural survey, but found instead a history of the protestant reformation in England and the atrocities produced by it upon the religious and their buildings. There is also a great lament over the general switch in Europe from Christian architecture to what Mr. Pugin calls pagan architecture, which was also being taken up by the Anglican clergy in the renovations made to old buildings in England. Pagan architecture refers to the revived classical Greek and Roman forms, which I hardly find disastrous, but which Mr. Pugin clearly disliked. The purpose of the book is ultimately futile: to return to an Age of Faith, to rediscover now almost forgotten principles of Catholic architecture.

[Jessica · Rating 2 out of 5]

So bad. So rather utterly bad. I did not come for the invective, and I only stayed out of obduracy, meaning to see the thing to the end. Favorably for me there were entire tracts of the appendix – about half of the whole thing, mind – and that’s if we’re only considering the textual portions – in French, which meant I could ramp the skimming up to skipping, where said appendix was concerned. I also did not come for detailed descriptions of Catholic persecution and the desecration of sacred buildings (see appendix), although what did at least interest me from a purely rhetorical perspective was the relationship between the thing at the end and the rest of the book. Pugin loads up on extracts – sometimes lengthy, esp. if French – that seem to afford him the remorselessly prejudicial view he takes of Protestantism, to the effect that the sources are fairly cleanly divorced from their analysis. Not the first thing I’d teach my students as a persuasive tactic. Obviously, perhaps, my bemusement at this was nothing compared to my irritation at the sophomoric argument propounded here. We have the Protestants to blame for architectural-cum-spiritual dissipation? I don’t even want challenge this position – because it doesn’t even deserve to be challenged. And needless to say, it doesn’t matter that I’m not even a Protestant. I learned about three things from this book, all contained within the second chapter or so, and representing just about the only architectural comments Pugin makes, and I wouldn’t vouch for their veracity. I seriously hope True Principles has got legs enough for all the lost ground it has to cover.

[Nile · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pugin is as biased as it's suggested by comment on his work, but while biased he comes across as essentially correct, and who doesn't love a little Anglican-bashing.

He's also limited in scope but that can hardly be helped. Would have loved to drop the lad into Hagia Sophia and see him rethink what 'pure' Christian architecture truly looks like but we can't have everything in life ('everything' here being the ability to move time and space to see a new revised edition of a book).

The book really did get me thinking about classical architecture's entry into Catholic church-building...