Given that the president is so fond of architecture, he is fortunate to reign in this AI Era. While AI must never be allowed to encroach on humanity’s creative or critical space, thinking about the prompts Trump might make on ChatGPT is a fine way to pass a few idle moments (and use up my allotment of free prompt-o-tunities).
Build a building that represents ostentatious neoclassical grandeur as large as it can be …
2. Nope. Something grander. Build a building that is gaudy, ostentatious and covered in neoclassical grandeur as tall as it can be, as if it were conceived by Raymond Massey in the movie version of Ayn Rand’s Fountainhead.
3. This time, give me a closeup of its details, with a balcony for an autocrat.
4. Drape the balcony for an autocrat with red-and-blue banners with the letter ‘T’ on them. And give the leader a gold scepter.
5. You nailed it! But I’d like know why you selected the images that you did.
ChatGPT expertly detailed the following design history summary …
Exterior: Excess Turned Monumental
The Facade
A continuous wall of colossal Corinthian columns—each 150 feet tall
Not dozens… thousands, wrapping the entire perimeter
Made of polished white marble veined with gold
The Steps
A grand staircase spanning nearly a mile wide
Shallow rise so you process upward, like entering a temple rather than climbing stairs
The Dome
Inspired by St. Peter’s, but scaled absurdly
Triple-layered: outer marble shell, inner coffered dome, and a hidden structural lattice
Crowned with a 100-foot gilded statue—not of a person, but an abstract “ideal ruler” figure
Ornamentation
Every surface carved: friezes of victories, allegories, mythological scenes
No blank space. If there’s stone, it’s sculpted.
Massive bronze doors (each the size of a 10-story building)
Interior: Awe as a Weapon
The Grand Rotunda
Diameter: 800 feet
Floor: inlaid marble map of the world
Ceiling: painted heavens with forced perspective so it feels infinite
Hall of Triumphs
A corridor one mile long, lined with statues twice human scale
Each statue lit from below to exaggerate power and shadow
Chambers
Rooms are never “rooms”—they’re halls
Ceilings start at 80 feet minimum
Gold leaf, frescoes, velvet, and polished stone everywhere
Acoustics
Designed so footsteps echo just slightly too long
You always feel small and observed
Urban Context
The building sits on an elevated plinth above the surrounding city
Radial avenues shoot outward like spokes—everything points back to it
Reflecting pools the size of lakes mirror the facade
Philosophy of the Design
This isn’t just neoclassical—it’s neoclassical turned up to 11 until it becomes surreal.
Key ideas:
Repetition → intimidation (endless columns)
Scale → submission (you feel physically diminished)
Symmetry → control (everything rigid, ordered, absolute)
Material → permanence (stone, bronze, gold—nothing temporary)
6. Design a scepter sitting horizontally with all the symbols of modern-day history.
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