Building Magazine recently refereed a debate between Robert Adam and the author Alain de Botton upon the latter's latest book 'The Architecture of Happiness'. The debate aimed to provoke discussion between the two figures, who stand ideologically, at opposite ends of the architectural spectrum, Adam representing the classical tradition, de Botton championing modernism. Robert Adam had an advanced view of the book and after studying its arguments, interviewed de Botton on his work. The debate tackled issues from the possibility of 'democracy' in architecture to issues surrounding the house building market in the UK, and the opinions given were strikingly different. De Botton's book reflects upon the idea of beauty in buildings and aims to persuade the public to become more comfortable discussing their feelings about buildings. However, Adam put forward the view that De Botton taps into too many establishment expressions, talking directly to architectural professionals. Whilst the two might not agree on many of these issues, the debate was certainly 'fast and furious'...

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