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Architecture Notes: At Chartres, leaving no stone unphotographed

Architecture Notes: At Chartres, leaving no stone unphotographed

Jane Vadnal
A detail shot of the West Facade of Chartres Cathedral in Chartres, France, 50 miles south of Paris.
Click photo for larger image.

In a groundbreaking documentation project, University of Pittsburgh professor Alison Stones and her collaborators photographed almost every inch of Chartres Cathedral, inside and out, most recently during a course she taught on-site in May.

More than 3,000 of the high-resolution images have been posted at Pitt's Digital Research Library in a project designed to assist Stones, who teaches medieval art and architecture, and her students. But the Web site also is available for public use, including by students and teachers at other institutions.

"There is no substitute for on-site study, but good, comprehensive Web coverage is essential for preparation and for follow-up. Books simply never include enough images for monuments to be fully comprehensible," Stones said.

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The site opens with maps, a bird's-eye view and photographs of the city of Chartres, about 50 miles southwest of Paris, and floor plans of the cathedral. The images can be browsed or searched, thanks to detailed descriptions, and a zoom feature makes possible close examination of the cathedral's every feature.

Stones hopes the Web site -- images.library.pitt.edu/c/chartres -- will have a significant impact on the field of architectural studies.

Design awards

The transformation of a barn at Fallingwater into a center for conservation education won the highest honor -- a Silver Medal -- at the Pittsburgh chapter of the American Institute of Architects' design awards program last week.

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The project, completed in 2003, also received a Green Design Citation. It was a collaboration between architect Bohlin Cywinski Jackson and contractor Clearview Project Services Co.

Honor awards went to Rensselaer Center for Biotechnology and Interdisciplinary Studies at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, designed by Bohlin Cywinski Jackson and Burt Hill, and to the Pittsburgh Hillsides study produced for the Allegheny Land Trust and Pittsburgh city planning department by Perkins Eastman. For other winners, visit the chapter's Web site at www.aiapgh.org and click on "Design Pittsburgh."

A Scully for the prince

The National Building Museum will award the sixth Vincent Scully Prize to Prince Charles at a sold-out ceremony Thursday at the Washington, D.C., museum.

In conjunction with the award, the museum is presenting two exhibits organized by The Prince's Foundation for the Built Environment and The Prince's School of Traditional Arts: "Civitas: Traditional Urbanism in Contemporary Practice," featuring 17 projects around the world, and "A Building Tradition: The Work of the Prince's School of Traditional Arts." Both will be open Saturday and continue through Jan. 8.

"Through his speeches, publications and charitable foundations, the Prince of Wales has articulated the need for balanced growth of cities, promoted traditional town planning and elevated public awareness of architecture," said Scully Prize jury chairman David Schwarz.

Or as the prince put it to CBS's Steve Kroft on "60 Minutes" Sunday, "What I've tried to do as much as possible is put my money where my mouth is."

First Published: November 1, 2005, 5:00 a.m.

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