22 DECEMBER 1923, Page 20

SHORTER NOTICES.

THE ARCHITECTURAL REVIEW. (Price 29. 6d.)

The December number of the Architectural Review is worthy of special attention. The first article on " The Theatre of Sabbioneta " will prove a delight by reason of its pictures of the Teatro Olimpico at Vicenza and the great Teatro Farnese at Parma. The Parma Theatre, of course, is the very apotheosis of paint, lath, and plaster, and of all scene-painting effects transferred from the stage to the auditorium. Another fascinating article is that which deals with the Gothenburg Exhibition, and shows pictorially the beauty, originality, and invention of the Swedish architects, which Mr. Williams-Ellis indicated in these columns last summer. They seem to have the power of using the old Greek and Italian forms, not as slaves, but as colleagues of the Ancients. Another charming article in the magazine is " The Church of the English Martyrs, Birmingham." " The

Historical Development of Architectural Drawing to the End of the Eighteenth Century " has got some delightful things in it. Sandby's architectural composition is hard to beat, and

marvellous is the Dome attributed to Mauro Antonio Tesi. The well-known etching of Piranesi, of which De Quhicey made

so much, is reproduced here with excellent effect. A special

congratulation must be pronounced upon the illustrated advertisements in the Architectural Review. They are admir- ably produced. Taken altogether, and both for matter and production, the Architectural Review is a monument of charm and interest, enterprise and efficiency.