BAROQUE TOPOLOGIES

"Andrew Saunders's computer-generated models of churches in Rome and Piedmont force us to see complex buildings with fresh eyes. Their beauty and their strangeness shock us into new recognitions of buildings we thought were familiar. They reify space, making it into a sculpted substance in which the contained takes on life, even when the enclosing container is peeled away. Beautifully articulated specimens of plasticized space are put on our screens to amaze and enlighten us." — Joseph Connors Professor of History of Art and Architecture, Renaissance and Baroque Architecture Harvard University Department of History of Art and Architecture Director of the American Academy in Rome (1988-1992) Director of the Harvard Center for Italian Renaissance Studies in Florence (2002-2010)
"To study the work of the Baroque using advanced technologies themselves, rather than merely using the Baroque as a metaphorical precedent is a commitment that requires not only dedication and insight- but a combination of digital skills and knowledge of architectural history not commonly found in either historians or practitioners of architecture. It is a rare alignment to have the proper technology and team available and willing to do this research, for the material to be accessible, and for a contemporary audience of practitioners to be eagerly awaiting the findings. For a research project to re-examine the work of the Baroque in unprecedented 3d detail is a timely, relevant, and much needed endeavor that would benefit not only the study of architectural history, but it's most innovative forms of practice today." — Mark Foster Gage Principal, Mark Foster Gage Architects Assistant Dean, Yale School of Architecture