What the shape of things to come once looked like
Glenn Adamson’s new book explores how predictions about the future have always spoken volumes about the present
How Oxford became a pale shade of its former self
The replacement of Boswell’s department store with a luxury hotel is part of a beautification process that has gathered pace in recent years
London’s most modern building looks to the future
The BT Tower floats above the city, a reminder of 1960s optimism and a faith in technology that is in short supply today
The architects who have dreamt of impossible buildings
Aaron Betsky’s account of the wildest visions architecture has to offer is full of buildings that haunt the structures of the real world
Lost in fantasy at the British Library
This impressive exhibition takes us through the very long history of a literary genre, but overlooks the part played by artists and illustrators
Man about town – around modern London with Ian Nairn
A reissue of the architectural critic’s guide to new buildings in the capital is just as fresh as it was 60 years ago
Genteel flats for genteel people
The mansion block has often reconciled Londoners who can’t afford actual mansions to the realities of apartment-living
The Tower of Babel now owes more to Bruegel than the Bible
When we think of the biblical folly, it’s Pieter Breugel the Elder’s painting that first comes to mind – but artists and writers are still reimagining it today
Photographic memory – an interview with Thomas Demand
The artist who builds and photographs meticulous maquettes explains how the pleasure of tricking people plays second fiddle to his interest in reality
The psychedelic ceramics of Redd Ekks
The Norwegian American’s trippy sculptures are cult classics in the making
Constructive criticism and mid-century modernism
Eero Saarinen’s marriage to the publicist Aline Louchheim tells us a lot about how the architect made his name
Scary storeys – ‘Horror in the Modernist Block’, reviewed
Contemporary artists explore the fearful side of modernist architecture at Ikon, but a real sense of menace may be missing
The call of the shopping mall
In ‘Meet Me by the Fountain’, Alexandra Lange uncovers the surprisingly utopian origins of the modern mall and defends it from its critics
What photographs can and can’t tell us about buildings
Since the invention of the medium, photography has always had an ambiguous relationship with architecture
In ‘Archive 81’, restoring VHS tapes turns out to be a complete nightmare
In this Netflix series a film conservator is tasked with rescuing a set of videotapes from the 1990s. What could possibly go wrong?
Light years ahead – ‘Isamu Noguchi’ at the Barbican, reviewed
The familiarity of the designer’s most famous products has long obscured his more utopian side
Do minimalist architects make the best murderers? – ‘The Girl Before’, reviewed
A dislike of frills can signal much more sinister tendencies – or that’s what a BBC adaptation of J.P. Delaney’s thriller ‘The Girl Before’ would have us believe
The Candyman is back – and this time he’s haunting the art world
The Chicago art scene turns out to be a suitably chilling setting for Nia DaCosta’s sequel to the cult horror film
The Martian landscape is magical but mundane – though it would be a mistake to start taking it for granted
Mars has never seemed closer, with rovers spamming us with photos from its surface
Shutting up shop: an elegy for the department store dream
These vast, bustling buildings were once emblems of city life – but they’ve been in decline for years and the pandemic has only hastened their demise
Video in demand? The nostalgic appeal of VHS
Videos have become relics of a bygone era – but they are attracting a new following, glitches and all
The invasion of the Capitol fulfilled a warning from history – and will haunt us for years to come
The inauguration of Joe Biden as president marks a new chapter, but it won’t wipe out the ugly scenes of the storming of Congress
How to see the world like Wes Anderson
All the world’s a set for the director’s films, according to an enjoyably idiosyncratic travel guide
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The deep humanity of Shirley Hughes animates every page of her work
The author of beloved books such as the ‘Alfie’ series and ‘Dogger’ simply knew how children look and act