The Globe and Mail’s architecture critic Alex Bozikovic discusses the new book he’s co-authored with the artist Raymond Biesinger 305 Lost Buildings of Canada (Goose Lane Editions, 2022), with Joseph Planta.

305 Lost Buildings of Canada by Raymond Biesinger and Alex Bozikovic (Goose Lane Editions, 2022). Click to buy this book from Amazon.ca: 305 Lost Buildings of Canada

Text of introduction by Joseph Planta:

I am Planta: On the Line, in Vancouver, British Columbia, at TheCommentary.ca.

One of the more fascinating books of the season is 305 Lost Buildings of Canada by Raymond Biesinger and Alex Bozikovic. Mr. Biesinger is the acclaimed Montreal artist who renders illustrations of these 305 buildings lost to demolition, fire, neglect, changing mores, even mystery. They’re evocative illustrations that make the buildings come alive once more. Alex Bozikovic joins me now to talk about working with Mr. Biesinger, and how they collaborated on this book that captures the historical import and legacy of a lot of these buildings, and at times provide cautionary advice with regards to what’s saved or what sort of buildings should be built in our cities in the future. The book spans the country, and it’s easy to get nostalgic even for places one couldn’t have possibly seen. There are buildings that have outlived their usefulness, such as buildings that housed residential schools or traumatic structures like that. I’ll ask Mr. Bozikovic about the sort of Canada they represent in the book, and what buildings fascinated him. He is the architecture critic for the Globe and Mail, and the co-author of Toronto Architecture: A City Guide. I’ll ask him about his thoughts on heritage as well as development in our cities when affordability seems to be foremost on a lot of people’s minds. This new book is published by Goose Lane. The Twitter handle is @alexbozikovic. We taped this interview earlier this week. Please welcome to the Planta: On the Line program, Alex Bozikovic; Mr. Bozikovic, good morning.

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