The Aesthetic City
Episodes
#59 - Michael Diamant, part III: Why Tradition Is Progressive
18 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Diamant is the founder and a leading voice of the global "New Traditional Architecture" movement. His background is in urban sociolo...
#58 - Timothy Smith, Smith & Taylor Architects - The Revival of Classical Architecture Education in Britain
06 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Timothy Smith is an accomplished architect, a partner at Smith and Taylor Architects, and a leading voice in contemporary classical design based in Lo...
#57 - Will McCollum, Citymakers Collective: Creating Urbanism Education Alternatives in the USA
30 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Will McCollum is a designer who worked alongside celebrated urbanist Lew Oliver for 10 years to create meaningful and beautiful communities across th...
#56 - Ann Sussman: Why It's Time for Human-Centric & 'Biological' Architecture & Urban Design
30 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Ann Sussman is an architect, author and researcher interested in how buildings influence our behavior. She's president of the Human Architecture a...
#55 - Alexandros Lavdas: Why Our Brains (& Bodies) Need Beautiful Cities
04 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Alexandros Lavdas is a is neuroscientist, a tenured Senior Researcher at Eurac Research, Bolzano, Italy and head of Psychology at Webster University, ...
#54 - Jon Jon Wesolowski, The Happy Urbanist: Making Happy Cities
02 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Jon Jon is an avid urbanist, national speaker, and content creator passionate about decoding what makes spaces great. His TikTok channels have amass...
#53 - Diana Trushell: The Design Professor
21 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Diana Trushell is the founder of The Design Professor, an online education platform for creative professionals who are interested in examine design th...
#52 SPECIAL - Ruben Hanssen: Why We Started An Academy
24 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this special episode, Bart Urban interviews Ruben about the launch of their new course: The Aesthetic City Academy!They discuss: What the course is...
#51 - Aaron Lubeck
20 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Aaron Lubeck is a designer, builder, and urbanist who’s spent over two decades shaping sustainable, walkable, and affordable communities, with a dee...
#50 - Chuck Marohn, StrongTowns
30 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Chuck Marohn is a civil engineer, urban planner, and the founder of StrongTowns: an organization that has been shaking up the world of planning, devel...
#49 - Kevin Klinkenberg, the Messy City: Fixing Architecture School & Making US Cities Walkable
16 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Kevin Klinkenberg is an urban designer, planner, and architect from Kansas City with over two decades of experience in creating walkable, human-center...
#48: Sabin Howard: Classical Sculpture & The Quest for Beauty
18 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Sabin Howard is a renowned sculptor and author, born in New York, who has emerged as a leading voice in modern classical sculpture. Trained in traditi...
#47 - Guy Courtois: Towards an Urban Renaissance
03 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Guy Courtois is a strategist-turned-visionary who is leading a true urban renaissance in France and worldwide, promoting more beautiful, livable citie...
#46 - Coby Lefkowitz, part III: Building Optimism
21 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Coby Lefkowitz returns for his third appearance on The Aesthetic City Podcast. An urbanist, real estate developer, and writer based in New York, Coby ...
#45 - Eldin Smajlović, The Immortal Art Podcast: The First Cities
14 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Eldin Smajlović is an artist and author born in Pristina to parents from Srebrenica. He grew up in Sarajevo during Yugoslavia’s collapse where he w...
#44 - Alicia Pederson, the Courtyard Urbanist: How Courtyard Urbanism Could Improve American Cities
28 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Alicia Pederson, Ph.D., known as the Courtyard Urbanist is a passionate advocate for family-friendly cities. With a focus on traditional courtyard urb...
#43 - Léon Krier (part 2): The Story of Poundbury
18 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Léon Krier is a renowned Luxembourgian architect and urban planner, often hailed as the godfather of the New Urbanism and Traditional Urbanism moveme...
#42 - Steve Mouzon: True Sustainability & the Importance of Loveable Cities
29 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Steve Mouzon is an architect, urbanist and author known for his work in the New Urbanism movement. With several influential books and articles on the ...
#41 - Lew Oliver: New Urbanism, Humane Design, Facades as Masks & Architectural Truth Bombs
16 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Lew Oliver is an Atlanta-based designer, urbanist and master planner, celebrated for advancing New Urbanism and designing whole towns with a focus on ...
#40 - Jonathan Weatherill: Teaching in Rome, Drawing, Moving towards Traditional Architecture Without the Myths
25 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Jonathan Weatherill is an architect based in Rome and professor at Notre Dame University. He graduated at the Architectural Association in London over...
#39 - Pierre Bidaud, Stonemasonry Company: Natural Stone, or the Most Underrated Construction Material
22 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Pierre Bidaud is a skilled stonemason and entrepreneur promoting the use of natural stone for load bearing structures. He is the co founder of the St...
#38 - Micah Springut, Monumental Labs: Disrupting How We Build - Robotics, AI & Automated Stone Carving
30 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Micah Springut is an entrepreneur based in New York City. After having set up multiple successful software startups, he is now on the path of disrupti...
#37 - Prof. Ettore Maria Mazzola, Notre Dame School of Architecture: Urban Regeneration, Traditional Urbanism & Education
16 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Ettore Mazzola is a professor at Notre Dame School of Architecture, based in Rome, where he teaches traditional urbanism, architecture and building te...
#36 - Pablo Funes, Classic Planning Institute: A Professional Journey, Classical Architecture Education and the Classic Planning Academy
02 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Join us as we delve into the rich world of classical architecture with our distinguished guest, Pablo Funes. A seasoned architect hailing from Spain, ...
#35 - Mark Wilson Jones, Apollodorus Architecture: A New Arena for Bath, Education & Learning from the Past
19 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Mark Wilson Jones is an an esteemed academic architectural historian. He is known for his significant contributions to the understanding of architectu...
#34 - Ann Sussman, the HAPI: The Brain, Biology, Beauty and our Built Environment
05 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode we are joined by Ann Sussman, architect and president of the Human Architecture and Planning Institute, or the Hapi. Her book C...
#33 - Patrick Webb: Craftsmanship & Beauty in the Shadow of Hobbes' Leviathan
21 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode we are joined by Patrick Webb, master plasterer, educator, a strong proponent of traditional architecture and a bit of a philosophe...
#32 - Léon Krier: His Life & Education, Traditional Urbanism & The Threat of Bureaucracy
07 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Léon Krier is a renowned Luxembourgian architect and urban planner, often hailed as the godfather of the New Urbanism and Traditional Urbanism moveme...
#31 - Maria Sánchez & Pedro Godoy, Estudio Urbano: Designing a New City in Guatemala, Cayalá
24 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Maria Sánchez and Pedro Godoy are two architects from Guatemala in South America. The couple graduated at Notre Dame School for Architecture in South...
#30 - Michael Diamant, Part II: The Expansion of the Architectural Uprising, Futuristic Ornament, The Needlessness of Ugliness
10 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Diamant is founder of New Traditional Architecture & Urbanism and is a very vocal critic of Modernist architecture and planning. He has fo...
#29 - Alejandro García Hermida: Traditional Building Methods & Techniques, The Short Lifespan of Reinforced Concrete, Construction Myths & More
22 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
We are thrilled to welcome Dr. Alejandro García Hermida to the podcast today. He is an architect with a PhD and a Master's degree in Conservation...
#28 - Prof. Nikos Salingaros: Buildings for People Instead of Machines, Biophilic Principles, Modernist Power Play & More
04 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
We're thrilled to have none other than Professor Nikos Salingaros as our guest on this episode. He is a distinguished Greek-American mathematicia...
#27 - Peter Drijver, Scala Architecten: the Birth of & Battle for New Traditional Architecture in the Netherlands & Modernist Power Games
18 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
We are delighted to host Peter Drijver as our guest today. He is a skilled architect from the Netherlands with a fascinating background. While studyin...
#26 - Eric Norin: The Architecture Uprising, how to drive change towards beauty through democratic processes, social media and education
14 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
We're excited to have Eric Norin as our guest on this episode. Eric is a classical architect from Sweden who studied at the School of Architecture in ...
#25 - Katherine O'Neil, Builtfully
16 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Katherine O'Neil is a placemaking consultant, writer, photographer, and community event planner, specializing in urban design and city planning. Over ...
#24 - Prof. Brandon Ro: Classical Architecture, Traditional Architecture Education, Neuroscience & the Transcendental Quality of Architecture
03 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Brandon Ro is a professor at Utah Valley University and an experienced Classical architect from the USA. He has over 16 years of experience in both ne...
#23 - Erik Bootsma: Traditional & classical architecture, craftsmanship, improving the city
10 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Erik Bootsma is a Catholic architect and author, specialised in classical and sacred architecture. He is instructor of sacred architecture at the Cath...
#22 - Peter Verschuren: Dutch Urbanism, The Expression of Facades, Creating Great Urban Spaces
05 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Peter Verschuren is an experienced Dutch urbanist who has worked for the Town Planning Department of both Rotterdam and The Hague and later founded hi...
#21 - Prof. Michael Lykoudis, University of Notre Dame School of Architecture: Education, the Driehaus Prize, Materials, Hope for the Future
06 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Professor Michael Lykoudis is an experienced architect, educator and consultant. He is a professor at the University of Notre Dame's School of Archite...
#20 - Nicholas Boys Smith, CreateStreets: Utrecht, Creating Happy Places, Achieving Beauty, Gentle Density & Good Urbanism
15 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Nicholas Boys Smith is founder of CreateStreets, an organisation that exists to help solve the housing crisis and that aims to help actors such as dev...
#19 - Prof. Robert Adam, Robert Adam Architecture: Time and Architecture, Myths & Misconceptions about Modernity, the Value of Beauty & Classical Architecture
18 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Professor Robert Adam has over 40 years of experience as an architect, specialised in Classical architecture. In 1992 he founded ADAM Architecture, ha...
#18 - Sarah Bannister, Meristem Design: Urban Greening, Improving British Cities, How People Can Make a Difference
11 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Sarah Bannister is a promising urban planner from Bath, studying for her masters at the Bartlett School of Planning in London. She has a diverse range...
#17 - Coby Lefkowitz, Backyard, Part 2: Highrise, Densification, Organic Growth & the Value of Building Beautifully
01 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Coby Lefkowitz is an urbanist, developer and writer living in New York City. He was a real estate analyst, but left his company to co-found Backyard, ...
#16 - Michael Spicher, Aesthetics Research Lab: The Importance of Aesthetics, Beauty vs. Taste, the Value of Interdisciplinary Research
21 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Spicher is a writer and philosopher, who is specialised in art and aesthetics. He is based in Boston and earned his PhD in Philosophy from the...
#15 - Austin Tunnell, Building Culture: Structural Brick Masonry & The Value of Authenticity & Craftsmanship, an Alternative to Stick Framing
14 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Building Culture creates wonderful structural brick masonry, something not common in current construction practice (to put it very mildly). Their work...
#14 - Steve Wright: Universal Design, Accessibility for All in a Holistic Design Approach
07 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Steve Wright is a storyteller, educator, advocate and planner with four decades of expertise in planning, urban design, engineering and universal desi...
#12 - Samuel Hughes: Intensifying and Beautifying the City, the Value of Beauty
23 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Samuel Hughes is a research fellow at Oxford University and senior fellow at Policy Exchange and Create Streets. He has a background in philosophy, as...
#11 - Ben Southwood, Stripe: StreetVotes, Strong Suburbs and A Win-Win Solution for Gentle Densification & Tackling the Housing Crisis
16 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Ben Southwood has worked for KPMG, was head of research at the Adam Smith Institute and the head of Housing, Transport and Urban Space at the UK think...
#10 - Marjo Uotila, INTBAU Finland: Common Fallacies about Traditional Architecture, the Architectural Uprising in Finland and beyond
09 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Marjo Uotila is the founder of INTBAU Finland, connecting Finland to the International Network of Traditional Building, Architecture and Urbanism, and...
#9 - Milly Main, StreetLevel: Traditional Architecture and Urbanism Down Under, Achieving Change through Local Advocacy and Education
26 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Milly Main is a consultant at a global business strategy firm by day, but late last year she founded an organisation called StreetLevel in Australia. ...
#8 - Coby Lefkowitz, Backyard: Creating Beautiful Places as a Developer, Achieving Better Urbanism in the United States
19 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Coby Lefkowitz is an urbanist, developer and writer living in New York City. He was a real estate analyst, but left his company to co-found Backyard, ...
#7 - Vincent Veneman: Music and Architecture, the Virtues of Classical Architecture & Education, Engelsberg Summer School
12 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Vincent Veneman is a professional trombonist, composer and arranger and an architectural designer specialised in classical architectural design. ...
#6 - Jude Sherry and dr. Frank O'Connor, #DerelictIreland: on Dereliction in Ireland, why it matters & how to solve it
05 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Ireland faces a horrendous housing shortage and a lack of commercial real estate accessible to smaller entrepreneurs, as well as a homelessness proble...
#5 - Dr. Nir Buras, Classic Planning Institute: on Beauty and the Sublime, Classic Planning, Learning Architecture, the book 'the Art of Classic Planning'
28 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Dr. Nir Buras is an experienced architect, planner, author and founder of the Classic Planning Institute, which is a traditional architecture and urba...
#4 - Joseph Jutras, Institute of Traditional Architecture: the ITA & education, the coming Summer School in Utrecht, architectural beauty as a life changing experience
15 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Joseph Jutras is the founder of the Institute of Traditional Architecture, on which he shares useful information on correctly applying traditional arc...
#3 - Michael Diamant, New Traditional Architecture: fighting the status quo for more beautiful environments, Arkitekturupproret, activism & social media
07 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Michael Diamant is founder of New Traditional Architecture & Urbanism and has been a very vocal critic of contemporary architecture and planning p...
#2 - Mieke Bosse, Scala Architecten: The fundamentals of building, traditional building in the Netherlands, housing, education
25 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Mieke Bosse is an experienced architect at Scala Architecten, a traditional architecture firm based in The Hague, the Netherlands. With her firm she h...
#1 - Flavio Diaz Miron: The urban planning discipline, education, beauty, modernism
10 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Flavio Diaz Miron is a young urban planner based in La Paz, Mexico, with a background in political sciences. He did an internship at La Table Ronde d'...