College is for the connections . . . and the architecture

BY CARLA YANNI After the recent college admissions scandal in the United States, many people were left scratching their heads. Who would pay half a million dollars just to secure a place for a child at the University of Southern California? Sure, USC comes in at a respectable 22nd place in one national ranking of … More College is for the connections . . . and the architecture

Modernism and the Memorial: Public remembrance in the US and Germany.

KATHLEEN JAMES-CHAKRABORTYProfessor of art history at University College Dublin 2017 might turn out to be the year in which white Americans ceased to take Confederate monuments lightly; of course, their African-American neighbors never had. The erection of Maya Lin’s remarkable Vietnam War Memorial in Washington, DC, in 1982, inaugurated a memorial boom in the United … More Modernism and the Memorial: Public remembrance in the US and Germany.

The 1939–40 New York World’s Fair publicly launched the first idea of the television and what it can do.

This publicity photograph from RCA emphasizes the wealth and prestige of the first television viewers posed in front of the TRK-12 RCA receiver.Courtesy of the Hagley Museum and Library.  BY DANIELLE SHAPIRO Today, we take television for granted. It is everywhere, in different sizes and shapes, in our pockets and our living room walls. It is … More The 1939–40 New York World’s Fair publicly launched the first idea of the television and what it can do.

Recovering the fading histories of America’s postwar suburban churches.

American architect Edward A. Sovik designed the Riverside Bible Chapel in Story City, Iowa (1949). In her new book, author Gretchen Buggelnshows how architects and suburban congregations joined forces to workout a vision of how modernist churches might reinvigorate Protestantcommunity.Photos by Gretchen Buggeln. BY GRETCHEN BUGGELN Mention “postwar suburban church” and you are likely to … More Recovering the fading histories of America’s postwar suburban churches.

Did John H. Howe design any Frank Lloyd Wright houses?

John H. Howe created a Usonian design for the Bryant and Marjorie Denniston housein Newton, Iowa (1958), with a combination of grand and intimate spacesthat pinwheel around a hearth. This house is said to be similar enough to a few Frank Lloyd Wright-designed houses that questions have been asked whetherHowe in fact designed any constructions … More Did John H. Howe design any Frank Lloyd Wright houses?

How early aviation inspired American utopianism

Frank Paul, “Flying Man,” on the cover of Amazing Stories 3, no. 5 (August 1928). BY ADNAN MORSHEDAssociate professor of architecture and architectural history at the Catholic University of America A hundred years have passed since the world’s first scheduled passenger airline service. In Florida, on January 1, 1914, a Benoist XIV airboat flew from … More How early aviation inspired American utopianism

The continuing influence of the Mexico ’68 Olympics brand

Lance Wyman, designer, Mexico ’68 logo, 1968 BY LUIS M. CASTAÑEDAAssistant professor of art history at Syracuse University A recent analysis of financial data provided by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) attempted to quantify how much the Olympic brand is worth today. The analysis, in many ways a problematic one, found it to be worth … More The continuing influence of the Mexico ’68 Olympics brand

Case study #5 (and final) from the Media Archaeology Lab: On OTHER NETWORKS and "the internet."

BY LORI EMERSONAssistant professor of English, as well as the founder and director of the Media Archaeology Lab, at the University of Colorado at Boulder — #MALcasestudies is a weekly blog series featuring treasures that exist in the University of Colorado at Boulder’s Media Archaeology Lab. See links to previous posts below.— It’s been a privilege … More Case study #5 (and final) from the Media Archaeology Lab: On OTHER NETWORKS and "the internet."

Case Study #4 | "It Is Known": George R. R. Martin, WordStar, and Media Archaeology in the Media

From #MALcasestudies series author Lori Emerson: This week’s post features Matthew Kirschenbaum, a scholar whose work in digital forensics and media archaeology as well as his role in running the collection of vintage computers at the Maryland Institute for Technology in the Humanities (MITH) has long been a model for my own work. Kirschenbaum’s post … More Case Study #4 | "It Is Known": George R. R. Martin, WordStar, and Media Archaeology in the Media

Case study #3 from the Media Archaeology Lab: The Vectrex Gaming Console from 1982

The Vectrex gaming console of 1982, which is housed in the Media ArchaeologyLab and was produced for only two years, was remarkable for its lightpenand its portability, among other features. BY LORI EMERSONAssistant professor of English, as well as the founder and director of the Media Archaeology Lab, at the University of Colorado at Boulder … More Case study #3 from the Media Archaeology Lab: The Vectrex Gaming Console from 1982